Passive Aggressive Post-Its
by quite-a-riot
Summary: When a fateful encounter results in Lucy being linked to a complete stranger, she will have to find a way to live with (and maybe just love) the messy scribbler who seemingly shares her skin. Lucy can't help resisting the pull of fate, but when friends get involved, she doesn't stand a chance. Set where Earth meets Earthland, being a college freshman has never been quite like this.
1. The Day of the Fateful Encounter

**A quick author's note, I've been reading on FF for a while, but this is my first foray into writing in years, so please, amazing fan fiction community, take care of me! *bows* And with no further ado...**

Whipping her hair over her shoulder and glancing around frantically for the departures list at the Hargeon train station, an eighteen-year-old, busty, blonde girl dragged a massive pink Louie Vuitton rolling trunk case behind her, clutching her ticket and trying her best not to run over anyone's feet. The handle of her equally massive purse slid down her arm and she abruptly halted in the middle of the bustling crowd to keep anything from falling out of the overstuffed handbag.

But before she could do more than park her suitcase up next to her and let go of the handle, she felt something warm slam into her back, knocking the air right out of her. At that jarring moment of impact, she felt a surge of heat rush through her body, causing her muscles to contract as a brief, lightning fast tingle zipped out through her toes and fingertips.

After that she felt her balance fail her. As though it happened in slow motion, she fell forward, losing the tentative grip she had on her purse and gasped as it slid out of her hands and across the polished floor, thankfully only losing a hairbrush, a handful of bobby pins, and phone charging cord before skidding to a stop just as her downward journey came to an end. She barely managed to catch herself on her forearms as a tan hand, attached to a toned arm came down on either side of her head, holding up most of what was clearly a very male body pressed somewhat intimately against her back. Before she had time to process what just happened, the weight that pushed her to the floor was gone. Everything sped dizzyingly back up into normal time and she began to pull her designer booted feet back under herself. In the next moment, the blonde was shocked to find herself lifted off the floor from behind by a pair of large, hot hands on her rib cage.

"Oi! Sorry there, didn't mean to hit ya like that…didn't expect ya to just stop there in the middle of everything though…you okay?"

It took her a moment to realize the cheery male voice belonged to the mysterious hands that briskly set her down on the floor and let go. Trying to cover her embarrassment, she brushed down her pleated mini skirt and turned around to apologize…. only to be greeted by the sight of a grinning guy about her age, sporting a white scarf, hair as pink as her suitcase… and little else.

In fact, he was wearing nothing but a pair of flame covered boxers. Which was just…weird…and bizarre…and who the hell wore a scarf in August? Especially with NOTHING ELSE? But none of that mattered. Nope. Because this guy was absolutely and irrevocably ripped. Like, David-Beckham-ripped. Like, he was created-by-God-to-walk-around-stark-naked-and-gift-the-women-of-the-world-with-the-sight-of-his-bare-abdomen-muscles-ripped. The words of apology she had prepared died on her lips as her mouth went dry, looking at all his smooth tan skin on display, trying hard not to think about the fact that THAT had been on top of her a second ago. She could feel her cheeks flare up with heat, but still couldn't seem to rip her eyes away from the magnificent piece of art in front of her.

"Hey, are you?"

"Huh?" (not her brightest hour…)

"Are you o k?" The boy repeated, slower this time, furrowing his brow as he leaned over her, his hands clasped behind his head. Lucy managed to close her mouth with a nod and a raised eyebrow, dragging her eyes up from his low hanging waistband, past his glorious torso, and back to his intense emerald gaze. God, even his eyes were gorgeous. _Wow, did he have pink eyebrows too? Is it possible that this is his NATURAL hair color?_ she thought to herself. _There's always one sure way to find out…_ As though they had a mind of their own, her eyes flickered down to his waistband again just for a moment. Then, she realized that while she was openly ogling this scantily clad Adonis, he was still staring at her, now with a slightly cocky smirk, waiting for her to speak.

"W-where are your CLOTHES?" the girl asked, somewhat dazedly, as the boy ran a hand through his already disheveled hair and his smirk spread into a sheepish grin.

"Lost a bet with a stripper…are you sure you're alri-" His concerned inquisition was interrupted by a loud speaker announcement informing passengers that the train for Magnolia would be leaving in five minutes. Snapping out of her teenaged hormonal haze, the blonde bombshell spit out a profanity and scrambled to pick up her purse, brush, and charger cord, cutting her losses with the bobby pins. Grabbing the handle of her giant rolling suitcase, she took off as fast as her high-heeled boots would take her down the way she had been going.

"Hey! Weirdo!" The girl flipped her head around to see what the mostly-naked-crazy-stripper-betting-pinkette was yelling about. "Train to Magnolia's the other way," he said with a grin, pointing back over his bare shoulder.

"Shit! Thank you!" she cried as she swiveled in an about turn, nearly bowling over a Japanese tour group with her luggage in the process. She flashed him a wide grin of thanks and took off at max-heel-running speed, barely making it on the train as the doors slammed together behind her.

Little did Lucy Heartfilia know, as she stood catching her breath just inside the sliding doors, how much that fateful encounter would change her life forever.

 **Well, there it is, the first chapter/hook. Anyone interested? More will be coming either way, when the mood strikes me!**


	2. Thread of Pink & Red

**Thank you so much to everyone who faved, followed and reviewed already! This kind of update schedule and length won't be regular, but I wanted to get you guys into the meat of the story right away...happy reading!**  
-

The first time it happened, she thought it was some kind of joke. But even that made no sense. Who would go to the trouble of sneaking into someone's apartment, and then bedroom, just to write on their arm? It wasn't even funny.

She had grown used to waking up with weird bruises and scrapes she didn't remember getting, but this was definitely not something she did in her sleep. _Ladies did not write on their arms._ Wait, did she have writing on her face too?! She had heard that was something friends did to you if you fell asleep around them. Levy hadn't yet, but that didn't mean she wouldn't!

A quick glance in the mirror assuaged her of that worry and her attention returned to her wrist. A tiny wrinkle, _that she would deny until Narnia was open to the public_ , formed between her brows as she contemplated the origins of the mysteriously humble words.

"Hmm, mysteriously humble, I've got to remember that for my book," she muttered absentmindedly as she touched the writing with her fingertips. "Buy matches? Why the fuck does someone want me to buy matches?" But sure enough, written in a messy scrawl, definitely not her own classically taught loopy and feminine script _(ladies write legibly and delicately)_ , were those very words, improperly capitalized she might add:

 **buy matches**

Definitely not Levy then. She licked her thumb, swiping it experimentally across the words. They smeared with a little rubbing. On any other day, Lucy may have had more attention to spend on explaining why random words were showing up on her arm (or more importantly how someone had snuck into her apartment!), but today was her first day of classes at Magnolia University and goddamn it, she had more important things to do. She didn't run away from a lifetime of luxury and boredom to sit around doing nothing!

Lucy leapt out of bed, filled up the coffee maker, grabbed the carefully composed outfit she had laid out the night before and cautiously stepped into the shower _(ladies did not fall on their butts)_. She scrubbed her porcelain skin until it squeaked, wiping away the mysterious ink from her body and mind. Brushing her teeth for precisely two minutes _(ladies did not get cavities)_ , she got dressed, took time to dry her hair carefully _(ladies never appear in public with wet hair),_ arranging her low waist length pony tail over one shoulder and dabbed on her favorite lip gloss. Hefting her heavy book bag over both shoulders _(because one shoulder will give you a crooked back, ladies do not have crooked backs),_ she grabbed a package of strawberry pop tarts, poured coffee in a couple of to-go cups, and practically danced out of her front door to the apartment across the hall.

* * *

In Levy McGarden's defense, she hadn't gotten a lot of sleep last night.

(And for the record, that was that book's fault. For being so _addicting_. And _long_. And deliciously _wordy_.) So when the tiny blunette opened the door of her apartment with her hair sticking up on one side, holding a shoe in one hand and a banana in the other, to find her best friend's freakishly white smile, she was less than _glowing_ at the idea of being awake and ready to learn. Don't be deceived, Levy LOVED school, practically more than coffee…just, not at the crack of 7am.

"Hold on to your underwear Lu-chan, I'll be ready in two minutes," she grumbled, trudging off through the maze of household debris toward her bedroom, to hopefully pull herself together and unbury her books for her first day of classes.

The Japanese honorific was an inside joke. The two had both, separately, taken Japanese in high school, so when they met and bonded over one of their favorite manga, it had become a (sort of) mocking jest… which had become an enduring habit… which neither really noticed they were doing anymore. It also helped that both of them had a mostly-secret-but-not-really-secret obsession with Japanese culture. Tea cafes were fun goddamn it!

"No problem Levy-chan, I'm actually running a little early this morning," the blonde raised her voice to be heard through the wall as she browsed the full bookshelves lining Levy's living room walls. Searching for anything interesting she hadn't borrowed yet, she stood with her hands firmly clasped behind her back, careful, proper, and controlled.

"Yeah, I noticed," Levy muttered under her breath. She glanced back with a lifeless smirk at her blonde friend as she drooled, politely, over her bookshelves before escaping back into the only bedroom of her tiny, and consequently cheap, apartment.

Levy had decided within a month of living on her own that she really had no use for a living room, and so had promptly set up the room as a library instead. Bookshelves lined the walls from floor to ceiling, covered haphazardly in books ranging in orientation from rows, to piles, depending on where there had been space the last time Levy had decided to "organize" her books. On most shelves, the rows of books were stacked in two or even three layers deep. Many, that hadn't made the cut for shelf space, sat in piles leaning up against the end of the bookcases, or behind and beside the cute pair of worn yellow and cream striped French regency style loveseats, one almost unrecognizable under the weight of yet more books, new ones waiting to be sorted through and placed on the shelves…someday. Pulling back long, heavy drapes, Lucy let the bright sun shine in through the sliding door leading to Levy's tiny balcony, which was drowning in potted plants. (An admirer of Levy's majored in botany and used the plants as a weekly excuse to come over and see her). As the room immediately brightened, Lucy noticed the pillow and blanket on the more cleared-off of the two short sofas.

"Slept out here again?" Lucy yelled to Levy through the wall with a giggle. "I'll have to borrow the book from you as soon as you're done if it's that good!"

"It's all yours. Finished it around three this morning. Just wait 'til you hit the ending! Sooooo worth it!" said the slightly muffled blunette as she came back out of her bedroom, tying her wild locks back with a silk scarf. "It should be sitting somewhere near the end of the couch there…" she continued with a vague wave of her hand toward the pillowed end of the loveseat. Lucy rolled her eyes and fished under the sofa for the indicated novel, shoving it into the front of her already straining book bag.

"One of these days, you have got to let me help you organize your library! I don't know how you find anything in this mess!" It was an old argument, but the blonde was just unable to look upon the glorious chaos of Levy's home without letting out her inner OCD. Lucy's place, in contrast, was spotless, a result of the compulsion to clean drilled into her when stressed, anxious, or just procrastinating _(ladies were tidy)_.

"It _is_ organized!" came Levy's typical rebuttal, as she tied off her bright orange Converse Chuck Taylor high top, pausing a moment to run her index finger lovingly over the Sharpied words and sketches covering her favorite shoes. These particular masterpieces had gotten through Levy's high school boredom. No matter how much she doodled, no one was going to take away her shoes. A little flutter of excitement (and maybe a Lilliputian's worth of nerves) was rekindled in her stomach at the thought of her first real college class. She had taken lots of them online during her senior year, but that was nothing in comparison to actually being there! With other students who actually _wanted_ to be there! And the libraries! A vision of herself zooming around a curved bookshelf on a library ladder took over as she zoned out and her eyelids drooped.

"Ready to go Levy-chan?" Lucy queried, jarring Levy out of her daydream, when she had finally managed to close the straining zipper of her book bag over her newly acquired read.

"Just about…coffee?" Levy asked, blinking hopefully, as her she turned her puppy dog eyes on Lucy, bending under the weight of her own loaded baked-potato of a backpack. Lucy just laughed and picked up the two to-go mugs she had set on the cluttered kitchen counter when she came in, handing the steaming mug with "I don't do mornings" scribbled on it to Levy, and carefully venturing a sip out of her own, Van Gogh's _Starry Night_ covered, cup.

Breathing in the potent blend of bitter coffee beans and caramel creamer, Levy let the first sips of caffeine roll over her and chase away the fatigue from a long night spent pursuing literary completion (For " _t_ _he person, be it gentleman or lady, who has not pleasure in a good novel, must be intolerably stupid_!"). After that ritualistic moment of respect for the Caffeine Gods (Praise be unto them and their most benevolent Prometheus-like gifts to humanity), Levy shoved Lucy out her door with a final grab back for her sunglasses and the two girls locked their apartment doors before leaving Fairy Hills Apartments to head off across campus in the direction of their first class of the year.

* * *

Natsu Dragneel, frat brother and pyromaniac, lay face down, half-on and half-off of an extra-long twin mattress suspended six feet off the ground, covered in black sheets and a lumpy red comforter printed with what, he told everyone who asked, were dragon scales. He was having a great dream (something about saving the world by eating a whole fried chicken the size of a house) when his phone blared out a tinny, techno version of "Ding Dong the Witch is Dead" (so The Wizard of OZ was his favorite movie, what of it?! He liked the flying monkeys!). For a split second, he almost ignored it and went back to sleep. Then he shot bolt upright and scrambled for his phone, remembering what had happened the last time he had ignored a call from Erza Scarlet.

"Go for Dragneel" he yawned into the phone, closing his eyes again as he tried to recapture the taste of the fried chicken he was just dreaming about. He rubbed his free hand through his spiky pink locks. Surprisingly clean.

"Natsu! Where are you? Do you have any idea what time it is?!" came a very serious, almost sinister voice over the phone's speaker. Cracking an eyelid, Natsu glanced at the old Pete's Dragon themed alarm clock sitting on a shelf next to his head and groaned.

"Shit." Natsu's first class had started an hour ago. "My alarm didn't go off," _More like I forgot to set it… but what she doesn't know won't hurt her_ , he thought with a smirk. "I'm leaving now and will be there in ten, Erza" _Well, more like fifteen, but close enough_.

"Make it five," came the menacing voice, spurring his eyes open and causing sweat to bead at his temples.

"Aye, sir!" Natsu said, hanging up the phone, and rolling out of his loft bed in a practiced move, landing on the laundry-covered floor in a crouch. Luckily, he was still wearing his well-broken-in jeans from yesterday, and with a sniff, a shrug and a reapplication of deodorant, the pinkette pulled on what smelled like a clean shirt and glanced over at the other loft in the room, his roommate's, which was conspicuously empty, a hand knitted navy blue blanket falling over the edge.

"Bastard couldn't bother to wake me up," Natsu muttered under his breath as he quickly brushed his teeth. "That's cold man…" Tossing his used toothbrush into the sink, he opened the mini fridge to grab a drink only to find it empty. Instead he found the hidden treasure of a half empty gallon jug of Gatorade sitting next to their beat up leather couch. Chugging it down, he tossed the now empty jug back over his shoulder onto the outdated shag carpeting peaking out from under the mountain of clothing and detritus. His trusty scarf hung on a hook next to the door (like it always was when it wasn't around his neck), waiting for him.

Properly be-scarved ( _that was a word right?_ ) and about to jog out of the room, he realized he didn't have his keys. Patting down his pockets turned up nothing. Natsu frantically searched his backpack, the bathroom, his bedside shelf, all to no avail. That ten minutes was definitely going to be closer to twenty…Then, a sudden thought occurring to him, the pinkette froze. Narrowing his eyes, he threw open the door to his room and slammed it behind him.

Jet and Droy, a couple of the other guys in the house, looked up from some stupid video on Jet's phone and jumped out of his path as he stalked to the kitchen. Pushing his way through the crowd of lucky frat brothers that didn't have early classes on Monday morning, he made his way to the giant chest freezer that took up the whole end of the galley kitchen. Throwing the heavy steel door open, his frown deepened. There sat his keys, now enclosed in a block of ice that had been carved into a very life-like rendition of someone flipping him the bird.

In front of this tribute to rude gestures sat a tented index card scrawled with a haphazard note: "Happy first day of the semester you fucking pyro".

There was a part of Natsu that had to admit, this was a pretty good one. He and Gray had been pranking each other consistently for the last six years of their rivalry/friendship. On any other day, he would already be plotting his revenge. But he just did NOT have time for this shit today! His hand automatically went to the matchbook in his pocket out of habit, only to remember he had used up his last one yesterday. And his lighter had been out of fuel for like a week. He glanced at this wrist, where he remembered writing a reminder to pick up some more only to find his wrist clean and decidedly blank. Hmm, must have rubbed off in his sleep.

Pulling out the crude sculpture, he opened the utensil drawer, pushing through the many half melted spatulas and bent whisks ( _they really needed to invest in some decent cookware_ ) until he found what he was looking for. By this time, Natsu had drawn the attention of every guy in the house and they crowded into the smallish kitchen, lazily finishing their cereal or muffins, or recording video on their phones as they gathered to witness the result of yet another prank from the infamous "fire and ice" frenemies of Fairy Tail fraternity. When Natsu dropped the icy one-fingered salute on the industrial steel countertop, a general chuckle went through the crowd and immediately murmurs broke out.

"What did he freeze this time?"

"Looks like his keys, man, that is so not manly. His Harley keys are in there!"

"Serves the Salamander right for letting his guard down..."

"HAHAHA! Classic Gray! Is there anything he hasn't tried to freeze?"

"I don't know, seems pretty predictable to me, isn't the ice thing getting a bit old?"

"Yeah, didn't take him long to find 'em…"

"What's he looking for?"

"I wonder what he'll do to retaliate for-"

Suddenly the running commentary was cut off by the sound of a very strong arm hitting a very frozen ice hand with a very solid meat tenderizer. Ice chips exploded out in all directions, showering the front row of onlookers with frozen slivers. With one more hit, the keys were free. Taking a bow to the now applauding audience in the kitchen, he grabbed a muffin out of Nab's hand ( _idiot always spent more time looking at his food than eating it_ ), stopped by his room to swing his ratty book bag over his shoulder, securely locked his door, and hurtled over the front steps out of the colonial style fraternity house he called home.

As he ran, Natsu swiped open his phone to check the time. He went pale and picked up his pace from a jog to an all-out sprint.

Erza was going to kill him.

And then his ghost was gonna burn that ice prick's alarm clock as a memorial offering…once he bought some goddamned matches.

* * *

It was lunch time when Lucy noticed the words were back. She was rolling up her sleeve to dig into her fruit salad ( _Ladies did not get food on their clothes)_ when she froze, distracted by the familiar phrase inexplicably written on her wrist again. Not quite the same as before, but written darker, as though it had been retraced multiple times with a red pen:

 **buy matches**

Pushing her lunch out of the way, she laid her arm out in front of her on the worn picnic table, that little wrinkle that-didn't-exist-but-totally-did rearing its unwelcome head again _(Ladies did not get wrinkles, particularly from worrying_ ).

"That is so weird..." she muttered to herself. Just great, she couldn't get her arm to stop telling her to buy matches. Yeah, it sounded crazy. Hell, it was crazy. Lucy jumped when she heard a familiar voice just over her shoulder.

"What's weird Lu?"

"Levy! You scared me!" Lucy screeched as she put a hand over her racing heart and craned her neck to see the tiny blunette. Levy laughed at her overreaction and walked around Lucy to the seat next to her, setting down a to-go bag from 8-Island and swinging a leg over the long picnic table seat to straddle it facing Lucy. She set her full, heavy book bag reverently on the ground next to her and craned her neck over Lucy's arm to see what she was looking at.

"I don't know why you're surprised. We agreed to meet here. Well I was going to ask how the rest of your morning went after English 1, but now we have to have a discussion about the weirdness of matches. Wait, do you even own candles?" Levy mused as she leaned back again, pulling a burger half the size of her head out of the bag and taking a big bite.

"No! People who burn candles are just asking to burn their houses down! Algebra and Bio were fine, nothing special." Lucy bit her lip as she went back to contemplating the Nancy Drew mystery that her arm once again presented. "...I don't think I've ever bought matches! That's just part of what's weird about this whole thing. I do NOT need matches…but somehow… someone?... keeps writing this on my arm. I woke up with it there this morning, and washed it off. But it's back. I don't remember anyone writing on my arm….but what else could it be?" Licking her finger again, Lucy drew it over the words, once again smearing them with a little effort.

"Are you sure you aren't doing it subconsciously or something? You know like Mr Hide takes over your body and writes things and then you snap back to Dr. Jekyll and have no clue that it was you?" Levy's eyes sparkled as she considered the research project possibilities of having a best friend with a split personality. Psychology was a hobby of hers.

"Hmm..that's a thought," Lucy contemplated the probability of Levy's proposal, then pointed out the flaw in her logic. "But that is not my handwriting. I don't think I could write like that if I tried...and even if my alter-ego has different handwriting somehow, I don't even own a red pen! I heard that red ink is psychologically linked with failure!"

"Well, that is weird. I think more experiments are necessary. Here, use this! Clean it off and see if it comes back!" Levy pulled a bottle of hand sanitizer out of a pocket in her bag and opened it, squeezing some into Lucy's hand.

"Thanks…" Lucy used the alcohol to loosen up the pen marks and wiped off the whole mess with a napkin from her lunch bag. Staring at her now blank wrist for a few minutes with narrowed eyes, she gave up and returned to her lunch. Just as she was finishing, halfway into a familiar heated argument as to Mr. Darcy's true intentions (Levy always insisted he was head over heels from the start and that rude guys were kind of hot), she felt a slight, tickling, pressure on her wrist and glanced down.

"Holy bananas! Levy!" she burst out interrupting Levy mid-rant and holding out her arm so the blunette could see the evidence herself. "It is DEFINITELY not me!" Angry looking letters were appearing on her arm one line at a time, as though some ghostly presence were leaving her passive aggressive notes demanding she go on an arson-spree.

 **BUY MATCHES**

The words then got darker and thicker, as though someone were tracing them over and over. Both girls just sat and stared in shock. As the words got darker one more time, Lucy snapped and fell over backward off the picnic table bench with a small shriek, trying, rather stupidly she realized, to get away from her own arm. Ignoring the hefty amount of her friend's panties there were showing, Levy stared down at her with wide eyes. Sitting up and grabbing the hand sanitizer from Levy's now limp fingers, Lucy squeezed a copious amount over her arm and smeared it around, grabbing her used napkin and rubbing the ink off as much as she could again. Giving Levy a panicked glance as she got to her feet and brushed off her skirt, she whispered, "You saw that too right?" Her eyes were glued to that spot on her arm again, clutching it with her other hand as though it would suddenly grow a mind of it's own and start attacking her.

"Oh yeah, I saw it, but what in the holy name of Shakespeare WAS that?" she whispered back, grabbing Lucy's arm and examining it. Just as Lucy opened her mouth to tell her she had no fucking clue, letters began to appear again. Levy gasped as the words appeared not once, but five times written in a row down her arm in quick succession.

 **BUY MATCHES**

 **BUY MATCHES**

 **BUY MATCHES**

 **BUY MATCHES**

 **BUY MATCHES**

Nothing happened for a breath and just as they thought the mysterious ghost writer was done, another line was added, like an after thought:

 **and lighter fluid**

They sat in silence for a minute just staring at Lucy's arm, waiting for something else to happen. When nothing changed for about a minute, they turned to look into each other's eyes.

"Their demands have grown. Maybe you should...just go buy some matches?" Levy whispered, glancing around like something was going to jump out of the bushes surrounding their new lunch spot.

"And…lighter fluid," Lucy agreed in a breathy whisper with a frantic nod.

And that was how Lucy had ended up wandering the aisles of her local convenience store with a jumbo box of matches, questioning her sanity, and searching for lighter fluid. Her sleeve was covering the redundant list on her arm, but she was still hyper aware of it, glancing every few seconds back to where the fabric covered up what she was beginning to think of as demonic purchasing demands. Grabbing a bunch of bananas and a box of strawberry pop tarts before she finally found the lighter fluid next to the lightbulbs, ( _because why **wouldn't** you put the stupid butane with the lightbulbs?!_ ) Lucy checked out and walked home, grumbling to herself about the dangerous _(that shit could explode at ANY moment!)_ butane that she didn't even need.

* * *

Natsu's arm had developed a personality and was fucking with him.

There was no other explanation.

He specifically remembered writing a note on his arm, reminding himself to get matches when he finished the matchbook last night. Then, when he got back from his early class and tried to eat his usual omelet, bacon, sausage biscuit sandwich, and bowl of cereal for breakfast, he remembered to write it again from where he had (obviously he thought) rubbed it off in his sleep. Writing the note darker this time, to keep it from coming off, he finished the rest of his heaping breakfast, gelled his naturally pink hair out of his eyes, and snuck a fish from the fridge to his not-quite-allowed-cat's food bowl.

He grimaced as he traced over the "buy matches" haphazardly and tossed the pen back in the direction he had borrowed it, gathering up his stuff to head back to class.

He didn't think about it again until lunch. He had come back to the frat to take advantage of the food their dues paid for. He had loaded up his tray with the usual, three of what everyone else was eating, plus a bowl of microwave ramen and a bottle of hot sauce, and was just starting to sit down when Romeo, newly made a sophomore this year (who had immediately begun worshipping at the altar of Natsu when he joined as a freshman), hailed him from across the room, dragging a gangly kid with him.

"Yo! Natsu! You gotta show Jason your Fire Dragon Roar. Little shit thinks I'm making it all up." Romeo exclaimed.

That was all it took to throw the frat boys into frenzied action.

Everyone grabbed their trays off the tables between Natsu and Romeo, shoveling food down desperately before it could be consumed by a stray fireball. Bacchus (the frat's uncontested liquor expert and provider), on the other hand, walked forward and set a bottle of Bacardi 151 next to Natsu before crawling back under the table to finish sleeping off last night's bender with a garbled "Be wild Natsu!". _Lucky-ass super senior always took Mondays off from classes._

Natsu just stared at the newb ( _Justin-or-whatever_ ) and let his grin get the slightest bit manic. Reaching into his pocket, his act was broken by a frown at his annoyance to discover, once again, that he was out of matches. And lighter fluid. He was only in this matches mess because he couldn't remember to refill his lighter.

"Shit, can someone spot me a lighter?!" he snapped to the boy-men surrounding him.

"What?!"

"Seriously?"

"The Salamander doesn't have any fire on him?" the incredulous remarks were cut short by a cheap zippo flying at Natsu's face. He caught it out of the air, with a curt word of thanks, and turned back to Josh-or-whatever to finish what he had started.

As Natsu spun the cap off the bottle of 151 proof liquor and took a swig, Romeo dragged Jason back and to the side about twelve feet as the pale blond kid's eyes grew to unbelievable roundness. With a last smirk at the new guy, Natsu flicked on the lighter and blew out a flame ten feet in front of him. The sweltering heat coming off of the flames that issued from his mouth lasted just long enough to cause the skin on Natsu's face to stretch and pucker before it was gone. The guys all cheered and Jeremy-or-whatever could just be heard over the din with a "That was so COOOOOOOL"…

...when the sprinklers went off.

As Natsu and the other upper classmen sat out on the patio waiting for the new pledges to clean up the water, he glared at his wrist, which was inexplicable empty again. Bumming a pen off of Reedus, he wrote the message darker and harder this time.

Only moments later, as he stared at the message, just willing it to disappear again…it did. It dissolved as though someone were running water over his skin or something.

"Oi, Reedus, what kind of disappearling-fucking-ink pen is this? Shit just dissolved off my skin!"

"Um, its just a red Pilot roller-ball Natsu, its not like I gave you something special." Reedus replied, muttering that he wasn't about to let his artist's pens come anywhere near that pyro.

With a skeptical look at the deceptively-harmless-looking-demon-pen, Natsu firmly wrote the words again and again down his arm. Five times seemed like enough:

 **BUY MATCHES**

 **BUY MATCHES**

 **BUY MATCHES**

 **BUY MATCHES**

 **BUY MATCHES**

And then, because it was really the problem, he added at the bottom of the list,

 **and lighter fluid**

Then he recapped the pen stared at his arm. This time, the ink stayed put. _Take that devil ink._

The next morning when he woke up without the reminder, he just sighed, grabbed the pen he stole from Reedus and wrote it out again. At this point he was willing to sign his soul away if the fucking note would just stay on his fucking arm. The last think he was expecting was the pale pink writing showing up underneath it with the precise, loopy script of someone who was definitely not his arm (even if his arm had developed it's own personality, it would never be that girly):

 _I fucking bought them! and the lighter fluid! WHAT DO YOU WANT FROM ME?!_

Well that was new.

* * *

 **Ok, Chapter 2 complete!**

 **I'm using italics to show thought and for Lucy's writing because there aren't really font options on here, so hopefully that isn't too confusing.**

 **A quick note about some references you may have noticed. Since a true bibliophile cannot function without letting their reading affect their thoughts and actions, Lucy and Levy will have lots of references to classic and popular literature sprinkled into their thought processes. I will do my best to cite the sources and meanings of them all at the end, but everything I site is worth your time to investigate, so get your butt out there and read anything you haven't heard of! Knowing is half the battle.**

 **Narnia-** if anyone doesn't know what this is, you don't deserve to be here. Read _The Lion, The Witch, and The Wardrobe_ , and then you may return to polite society.

 **Lilliputian** -refers to the race of tiny people in _Gulliver's Travels_ , often used as a descriptor for something miniscule

 **"the person...intolerably stupid"** -a quote from Jane Austen's _Northanger Abbey_

 **Prometheus-like gifts** -Prometheus was a titan in Greek mythology (so like Zeus' uncle basically) who favored humanity and gifted them with fire

 **Dr Jekyll & Dr. Hide** -this is another one of those references where if you haven't heard of it you've been living under a rock and should send out an SOS so that civilization can send out a rescue party to come get you!

 **Mr. Darcy** -The hunky yet brooding main character of JAne Austen's _Pride & Prejudice_...basically Gajeel with good breeding and extensive property

 **Nancy Drew** -the most kick-ass teenaged/young adult detective ever conceived (by Carolyn Keene)

 **Sorry if I missed any!**


	3. Rules of the Area

**Ok, here we go. Back on track! I wanted to get the story mapped-out and a couple of chapters ahead before posting again, but here it is! And I can noncommittally drift about that I may or may not have approximately 100 chapters planned for this story...just you know, maybe. possibly. no promises. *wink, wink***

 **And I realized I forgot to do the ever present disclaimer! Just doing this once. So consider it a blanket warning for the entirety of this story's future chapters.**

 **Disclaimer: This story may cause heart flutters, raucous laughter, sentimental eye glistening, hormonal outbursts, and/or mushroom-like head growths. However, whatever this story causes, it's characters don't belong to me, so send the bill to Hiro Mashima!**

* * *

Lucy was at the end of her rope...dangling over a metaphorical Tantalus as he steadily grabbed at her ankles.

So she did what any avid adventure/fantasy/pretty-much-any-other-type-of-fiction reader would do. She suspended her rational mind and went with it. Nothing else had worked to keep the damn message from appearing. _If you can't beat 'em…_ She grabbed her favorite pink highlighter from her desk and with just a slight amount of hesitation ( _Ladies did NOT write on themselves_!) wrote angrily below the seemingly indelible reminder to buy matches.

 _I fucking bought them! and the lighter fluid! WHAT DO YOU WANT FROM ME?!_

Lucy waited, holding her breath to see if the message would finally go away, until suddenly two more words appeared (well, if you could call them words):

 **um WTF**

HOLY SHIT. The bedeviled writing actually responded!

What now? Was she tempting fate playing with the supernatural forces of the universe? Should she just forget it now and live with directions from unknown sources showing up on her probably possessed arm for the rest of her foreseeable future?!

No. That is what the old Lucy would do. The old Lucy would have turned up her nose at the wardrobe to another world, she would have run screaming from a city in the sky, and she would have scoffed at the idea of a Platform 9 ¾. The old Lucy would have let Gandalf and the dwarves find their way without her to the Misty Mountains. The old Lucy was conditioned to fear everything she didn't understand. She had lived in a world where Big Brother was watching and it hadn't taken a cage full of rats or the thought police to convince her it was for her own protection.

But the new Lucy, the Lucy who had branched out to places she had never dreamed of in the last month, the Lucy she was now, knew better. Well, a little better anyway. She was free. She was sailing for adventure on the big blue wet thing(metaphorically)! And, now she was being presented with a hand (or in this case arm) to drag her into her very own adventure. So she took the only path she could under those circumstances.

She ran through dozens of things she could write to initiate first (intentional) contact with the being residing in her haunted/possessed/anthropromorphized (she hadn't eliminated the possibility that her arm had developed a separate consciousness; anything was still on the table) limb. After much deliberation, she settled on the perfect opener.

 _Hello?_

Yep. Nailed it.

 **HI!** The possessed arm replied moments later.

Ok, first attempt at direct communication successful. Now what? She needed more information.

 _What are you?_ There. That was simple, to the point, and revealed nothing about herself.

 **how do you not know? you're the one writing on my arm.** Seriously? That was the most basic question she could think of to ask! Wait…the entity had an arm of its own?! Was it another person?! It sounded just as confused as she was.

 _Actually I'm writing on MY arm._ The other person seemed to be having the same problem she was. Wait, she was jumping to conclusions…what came next? Remember, Levy said to conduct experiments. OKokokokokok, you can do this Lucy. Control the variables, don't make assumptions. Remain clinical.

 _Are you human?_ Basic, to the point, good starting place.

 **duh. Isn't that obvious? WTF are you?** How rude! But informative…another human. That changed things. So it wasn't a haunting or possession so much as…possibly a weird method of communication? Ok, time to give him or her something back.

 _I am human as well._

 **Really? Cuz you look like writing on my arm.** Wow, what an idiot.

At this point, Lucy was running out of arm space. The messages had marched their way down her arm in an orderly fashion to a point and then wildly veered to somewhere around her elbow (her fellow human-white-board was writing rather big). So, she hopped off her bed and went to wash the ink off her arm in the bathroom. Just as she was drying her hands the tingling sensation she had come to associate with a new message started up again.

 **how did you DO that?! everything just disappeared!**

 _I washed my arm. I was running out of space._ Correction. We were running out of space.

 **WAIT Is that what kept happening to my reminder to get matches?! It kept disappearing**

Whoever this was, they clearly weren't the fullest shelf in the library. Lucy sighed. That was going to make this just that much harder.

 _I assume so. I washed off the messages you left yesterday. Especially after I bought your damn matches._

Remembering her trip to the store, she felt pretty stupid now, as she glared at the matches and lighter fluid still in their plastic sack from the store. She guessed she could throw them away now. Not like she'd even use them. Some of her new hard-earned rent money down the drain. Maybe she could donate them to a shelter or something…the tingling sensation on her arm again broke her train of thought.

 **SO**

There were a few moments before the red writing continued.

 **are you a girl or just a really girly guy**

Wow, no dancing around polite discourse for this one.

 _I happen to be of the female persuasion, yes._ Then she went back and put a question mark after his question. The lack of punctuation was really starting to get to her.

 **you coulda just said yes did the ? really matter? ya knew what I meant** She could practically feel his or her eyes rolling. It was always how people reacted when she corrected their grammar.

 _Convenience is no excuse for laziness._

Lucy cringed. She sounded like Miss Aquarius. The strict governess had spent so many years reciting her many Rules to be a Proper Lady that Lucy could hear them in her sleep. But since she had run away from he-who-will-never-be-satisfied, (and Levy had maybe mentioned how weird it was to recite randomly what ladies must do every five minutes) she had stopped parroting them aloud when they popped up in her brain. She had gotten a lot better at keeping them in. They rarely came out in tangible form anymore.

 **WHAT DOES THAT EVEN MEAN?!** Was he or she raised in the woods?! by a dragon or something?! She grabbed her highlighter to explain the Aquarian proverb, but paused just before writing. She needed to get back on track.

 _Never mind._

 _So_

What should she ask next? Well she couldn't keep calling him or her, he or she. That was just getting awkward. And confusing. (And frankly annoying for the author of her story to remember to do.)

 _Are you a man then?_

 **born and raised** She laughed at that. He was rude, had terrible grammar, and seemed to have all the wit of a dozen "poor Yorick"s, but his blunt honestly was pretty funny. It was easier to get information out of him than she thought…and he didn't seem to be too curious about her. She felt a little inexplicably disappointed for a moment. Maybe this kind of stuff happened to him all the time. Maybe she was just not interesting enough on paper…er, skin? _…or ever?_ A small voice in her head whispered. Stay on track Lucy! She needed to know more about him.

 _How old are you?_ If he answered that, she could try something more personal. Nothing happened for a moment and she wondered if he wasn't going to answer. Then:

 **21 you ?** There was a beat before he added the question mark. She smiled (at least he could take direction), but hesitated again. How much information was too much to share? He might be human, but that didn't mean he wasn't a complete stranger. _And ladies did not give out personal information to strangers_. But that initial pause before answering somehow gave her the impression he wasn't going to tell her anything else without giving out something about herself.

 _19_

What should she ask next? Hmm…

 _Has this ever happened to you before?_

The answer was instant this time.

 **nope you?**

 _Me neither._

They were running out of room again and Lucy was getting up to wash her arm again when she felt the tingly sensation on her left calf. Sitting back down, she crooked her leg up onto the bed in front of her, pulled off her knee-high boots and read what he wrote. Guess it worked on more than their arms.

 **whats your name? ran out of room**

She was an inch away from her leg before she stopped herself. She really shouldn't give her name to some stranger, weird communication method or not. He could be anyone.

 _What's your name?_ There, if he answered, maybe she could trust him enough to tell him her name.

 **I asked you first!**

 _Well, I'm not telling if you're not telling!_ Was he really 21? She felt like she was arguing with a kindergartner. Maybe that pause had meant more than she thought? Maybe his grammar was so terrible because he was really a little kid, still learning! Why should she trust anything he told her anyway? But...there really wasn't a reason to lie about that. She hadn't told him her age at that point, so he had no motivation to keep his real age a secret...still, she had no way of really knowing.

 **well then I'm gonna call you Weirdo!**

 _HEY! I'm not a weirdo!_

 **then tell me your name** Nope. That was definitely not happening now. Not when he could still be a dirty 40-year-old child molester. There were nasty people out there.

 _Fine. Call me whatever you want._

 **awesome so Weirdo why won't you tell me your name?** For a moment Lucy had the urge to let another wave of Aquarius advice crash out of her, but she contained it. This guy had established his lack of gentility. She needed to lay down some clear, simple rules so he understood the relationship they had.

 _You're a stranger and I'm not comfortable telling you stuff like that. But if this is going to continue, we should lay down some rules. And do some experiments._

 **rules are dumb what kind of experiments?** Lucy rolled her eyes. Of course. She would get stuck with a hoodlum as well as an idiot. But she paused in thought for a moment over the experiment. She pulled off her sock and tickled the bottom of her foot.

 _Did you feel that?_ She waited a moment.

 **feel what?** Ok, so mere touch wasn't transferred. That made sense. If she had felt other hands touching her and her body bumping into stuff that wasn't there she definitely would have noticed. But then she remembered the random bruises and scrapes that had appeared when she didn't notice. Moving so she could see the most recent injury, on her knee, she steeled herself and pushed on it sharply.

 **OW! was that you?!**

 _Yeah, I pushed on a bruise I have there that I don't remember getting….was that you?_

 **well I have a bruise there yeah but its not like gave it to myself** Fair enough.

 _What happened?_ Lucy's curiosity got the better of her

 **bar fight** Well that explained it, and he was definitely at least 21 then…wait! Shouldn't she have way more injuries if he got into a bar fight?! Didn't people get knocked unconscious and stuff during those? Admittedly, she had very little hands on experience in this area. Maybe he had gotten really hurt but this skill-or-whatever of theirs didn't cover all of their skin…

 _You got into a bar fight and all you damaged was your knee?_

 **guy had a really hard skull** He had totally missed the point, dense as an outdated encyclopedia.

 _I meant, you didn't get hurt at all anywhere else?_ She wracked her brain trying to think if she had had any other injuries appear around the same time as her knee. She couldn't think of any.

 **nope. I'm that good!** **:)** The smiley face at the end of his response was followed shortly by what was actually a really decently drawn muscled arm flexing, (weirdly with flames around its fist) somewhere around her left ankle. It tickled a little and Lucy laughed out loud. The noise in her otherwise silent bedroom reminded her she had a plan that was steadily being pulled off track.

 _That's rule one then. No more bar fights. I don't want to get hurt anymore!_

 **AW! fightings awesome though! and I really am that good**

 _Yeah, maybe, but accidents happen and if you break your arm or something, that could affect me now!_

 **I guess you're right at least until we figure out how this works I'll try not to start any but if someone swings at me I'm not just gonna take it**

 _Please do. You deserve the right to defend yourself. And I don't want someone giving me a black eye through you._ She hesitated a moment before adding:

 _Hey, can you at least try to use punctuation? It's getting really hard to tell what you're saying._

 **K.**

 _Rule two, no revealing identifying information to each other until the other one is ready._

 **huh? why?**

 _You could be an ax murderer for all I know! You're a stranger and, at least right now, I don't trust you. I guess I assumed you felt the same way…_

 **Ok. yeah... that makes sense I guess.**

 _Good. Rule three, we can't show anyone sciencey about what is happening to us._

 **I'm sorry, did** **you** **just use the word sciencey?**

 _Shut up! You know what I mean! I don't want you to be dragged off to some lab on an island where Dr. Moreau will do experiments that will hurt me through you, or keep me from living my life. Or vis a versa._

 **who the fuck is that?**

 _Mad scientist in a book I read. He tried to create animal/human hybrids. Think Full-Metal Alchemist._

 **and that is?**

 _Oh my GOD, what do you do with your time?!_

 **well, I spend a lot of time eating…** Was this guy for real?! **and playing with fire.** WTF?! Not even going to ask.

 _Never mind. Just trust me, those are not the type of experiments we want to be a part of._

 **agreed then. Addendum to rule 3: only we can experiment on ourselves.** So he knew at least _some_ big words….

 _Ok, and only after we've verified with the other that it's ok beforehand._

 **deal.** This was actually going much better than she thought it would.

 _Ok. Do you have any other rules you think we should follow?_

He didn't respond for a few minutes. Lucy assumed her mysterious skin-sharer (she really had to come up with a better name for what they were) was thinking it over. Finally he started in again, this time on her right thigh, since the left leg was pretty much full.

 **got one. you don't talk about fight club. In fact that should be rule one. and number two. lol**

 _I'm sorry, who said anything about a fight club…?_

 **WHAT?! haven't you ever seen Fight Club?!**

 _I'm assuming that's a movie?…and that would be a no._

 **well that's just sad. its a GREAT movie. basically their first and second rules are that no one can talk about the fight club. It keeps them all from ratting on each other and getting arrested and stuff. so my rule is we can't talk about it to people. not until we figure out whats going on. its just us right? as far as we know. So we should figure it out before we bring anyone else in on it.**

Wow, that was more than he had written together since they started. He had written significantly smaller than before, but they were at mid-thigh already. She hiked up her skirt a little higher to open up some more writing room.

 _Ok, but someone I know already knows something's up. My best friend saw your writing appear yesterday…_

 **OK… then we each get one person to let in on it. It will probably be hard to keep from my roommate anyway.**

 _Ok. So now we have that clear_

Lucy paused, trying to decided where to go from here. Then she glanced at the clock and realized how late it was getting, so she quickly jotted out a farewell message.

 _I have to shower and get ready for class now, but_

Here Lucy paused, unsure of what the social conventions of this situation would be. Luckily, he somehow knew what the problem was.

 **It was nice to meet you Weirdo. Especially since you aren't a demon.** Lucy laughed. He really said the most random things.

 _You too._

* * *

Five minutes after her final words dried on his leg, Natsu stood in front of the full length mirror on the door in his boxer briefs and stared wide-eyed as the red ink and pink highlighter seemed to melt off his skin little by little. First the stuff written on his left forearm faded, followed by the script on his left calf muscle. It kind of tingled a little bit as he tried to picture what the Weirdo was doing. When she got to the writing on his right thigh, he realized his eyes were closed and he was enjoying the idea of a girl in the shower washing the pen marks off his body a little too much. What the hell?! He didn't even know what she looked like! Fucking hormones!

With a slightly panicked look at Gray's loft to make sure he was still snoring away, Natsu grabbed his towel and headed for the small bathroom shared between their room and Max and Elfman's next door. Might as well shower before the ice-princess got up and hogged the bathroom (luckily Elfman and Max both showered at night, so he should have plenty of time to um…shower). Once he was….clean, maybe he'd still have enough time to get back at Gray for yesterday.

Day dreaming of a busty blonde (because why not?) slowly and seductively setting fire to her own clothes before moving on to set ablaze everything his roommate owned, Natsu locked the door behind him and …ahem…showered.

* * *

 **Tantalus** : character in Greek mythology most famous for his eternal incarceration in Tartarus where he was made to stand in a pool of water that fell when he tried to drink, and under a fruit tree that pulled just out of reach when he tried to pick its fruit. Doomed to starve with salvation just out of reach for all eternity, he is the personification of frustration. Don't ask me what he was punished for, it slips my mind at the moment.

 **Wardrobe to another world** : another Narnia reference, see notes in Chapter 2 for my opinions on this.

 **City in the sky** : reference to _The Golden Compass_ by Phillip Pullman, the amazing first volume of _His Dark Materials_ (did you guys know there is going to be a sequel series?! So freaking excited)

 **Platform 9 ¾** : I'm just going to stop citing the Harry Potter references after this chapter, it was Mashima's inspiration to write Fairy Tail, so I think we're probably good on that front.

 **Gandalf…Misty Mountains** : referring to _The Hobbit_ by J.R.R. Tolkien, not to be confused with _LOTR_ , totally different styles and intended audiences…though you know Lucy has read them all. Come on, the girl craves adventure...

 **Big Brother…thought police** : from _1984_ by George Orwell, published in 1949 but eerily accurate in terms of how we now treat language today. Be prepared to spend the next week and a half being as disillusioned as a human being can be

 **Sailing…big blue wet thing** : ok, sort of a cop out on the book reference, but technically _Muppet Treasure Island_ is based on the book _Treasure Island_ by _R_ obert Louis Stevenson…lol, couldn't resist.

 **He-who-will-never-be-satisfied** : Lucy's tongue in cheek was of referring to her father in Harry Potter terms, actually something that Levy came up with, which may come up in a flashback sometime in the future

 **"Poor Yorick"** : a reference to Hamlet's dead jester in Shakespeare's Hamlet, court jesters had a reputation of combining the archetypal "village idiot" and "village savant", so Lucy is dealing a bit of a backhanded compliment here

 **Dr. Moreau** : sadistic mad scientist told through the eyes of shipwrecked Edward Prendick in H.G. Wells' _The Island of Doctor Moreau_

 **Full Metal Alchemist** : technically a manga as well as an anime, I'm including it. *sticks tongue out at naysayers*


	4. Magic is Alive

**Well, here it is! I'm so excited to share what I have coming up with you guys, I'm trying for updates every three days! We'll see how it goes!**

* * *

Lucy was determined to find out what was going on.

And Google was determined to thwart her.

She had tried every combination of "words appearing on skin" she could think of. She had tried, "invisible person writing on my skin", "my skin is linked with someone else's", "mysterious writing appears on my arm", etc. in between her classes, and had been at it for several hours after they were done.

Dinner time had come and gone, but all she seemed to have to show for it were hundreds of links to fan-fiction sites and religious zealots. The Church of Zentopia, in particular, seemed to be very vocal on the subject, but after diving in a little deeper, she discovered they were very vocal on just about everything. It was interesting how consistently fiction and religion showed up side-by-side during her crazed searches. There was enough content for a research paper on that alone.

But it still wasn't what she was looking for. She just wasn't the type to believe this was a religious experience. He-who-would-not-be-satisfied and Miss Aquarius had raised her to believe in what she could see and feel. Gods and stigmata just didn't factor into that. Though, she had always rather enjoyed the idea of a pantheon of gods, like the Greeks or the Norse, wreaking havoc on the lives of mortals. Sometimes it was easier to believe that if there was a higher power he was not benevolent, but childish and spiteful. It was a cruel god indeed who had made her the heir to the Heartfilia Konzern. She could almost picture Loki, the trickster, enjoying a good laugh at her expense.

After the first few pages of results for each search, the offerings turned to forums run by crazy people frantically searching for other crazy people to confirm that aliens were in fact talking to them. Oh yes, after an already tedious evening of perpetually dead searches, she had finally dived off into the deep end of non-recognizable server forums in a last desperate act of hope for her sanity.

Oddly, out of everything, "my arm is possessed" had yielded the closest results, but each link she followed ended in confusion and more unanswered questions. "I don't remember getting this tattoo," (a bit of an inference on her part) yielded more amusing, if not more helpful, anecdotes.

And so, she had returned to the tauntingly blank Google search page disheartened and frustrated. As with any futile search, she had to be missing the key factor. Something that set apart what was happening to her, versus what she had read so far; that one word that would finally let Mr. Google understand exactly what she wanted him to search for.

There had to be someone else out there this had happened to before! So, after the sixth hour of fruitless searching she had abandoned rational thought and jumped headlong into fiction territory. What did she know about similar situations that could lead her in the right direction?

She had no obvious origin story to imply this was a once in a lifetime event. She didn't get bitten by a radioactive spider, sprayed by hazardous chemicals, or kidnapped and raised by a tribe of Amazonians. _Although, that one would have been awesome_ (For some reason the voice of Miss Aquarius in her head seemed to agree with that). Running through an even more fanciful list of other possibilities, Lucy was also able to determine that she hadn't refused shelter to any disguised enchantresses, kissed anyone lately (or pretty much ever), entered into any unusual bets involving her first born child, or pricked her finger on anything suspicious. There was nothing special happening with the alignment of the stars, planets, or the cycle of the moon. No, nothing really unusual had happened that could help her pinpoint when it had started.

She had determined that she had been experiencing bruises and scrapes from the idiot's fights for at least a month, but she couldn't remember anything that gave her a more solid timeline to work with. It could have been a month ago, it could have been a few. The only change that had happened in her life was leaving home. And, though she could sort of believe Miss Aquarius was an evil witch who had put a curse on her, the blue-haired beauty was definitely not the type to hunch over a cauldron chanting "Double, double, toil, and trouble." If anything, she was much more of a "screw your courage to the sticking place" kind of woman. This…curse? ability? power?…just seemed to have appeared one day, like magic.

Wait, magic. Was that the missing link? She had been trying so hard to think scientifically before, she had neglected a very large search area. Someone who had not been raised to think magic was a silly fairy tale might very well describe this phenomenon that way.

Lucy unnecessarily double-clicked into the search bar and typed in a new set of instructions (for the tiny woman she liked to fantasized lived in her computer and spoke to Mr. Google for her) to try searching for in the world wide web of information.

 **my skin is magically linked to another person**

 _Come on Virgo_ (yes, she had named the little woman inside her computer! That did NOT make her weird!), _dig deep and do your thing._

 _Eureka._ There was still a lot of crap, but the third entry down looked promising. It was a blog entitled, _SoulMates-The Journey to find my Second Skin_. Lucy clicked on the link and was greeted by a stunning header photo for the blog.

Two people smiled at one another from opposite sides of the screen. A woman, on the left, had pale, almost translucent skin that seemed to glow in the sun setting in the background. Her long, pale green hair fanned out behind her in the wind. She faced the guy on the right side of the page: a swarthy, fit man with defined cheekbones and a short, spiky, black haircut. His coloring, defined features, and tasseled earrings suggested he was aboriginal in ancestry (maybe from the Himalayas?). The infatuated look in their eyes was unmistakable, even if the title of the blog hadn't given it away. Between them the huge open sky exploded in color just giving way to night. It was a stunning portrait, displaying a professional photographer's eye and an intimacy that drew Lucy in, but made her want to look away, all at once.

The stunning photo made sense when she searched for the blogger's profile and started reading. Bisca, the woman in the photo (apparently Irish-Fiorian born, but raised in southern Alvarez by ranchers) and the writer of the blog, was a professional photographer for Point-and-Shoot, a company based out of Osprey in Bosco, a country to the east of Fiore. She clearly had an eye for beautiful landscapes, another stunning vista glowing at the top of her profile page. Lucy navigated the site quickly, trying not to read anything else until she had found where the story began. She hated spoilers.

The first entry of Bisca's blog was dated seven years previous. The entry began with another beautiful photograph: a pair of right hands, one pale, one darkly tanned, with their fingers interlaced, but laid flat so that identical sun tattoos could be seen on the back of each hand. After a quick glance at the photo, Lucy hungrily dove into what she hoped were the answers she had been searching for. Luckily Bisca's writing style was engaging and quick to read.

 ** _"_** ** _Hi! I'm Bisca and I believe I have discovered proof that magic is alive and well in this world. I'm starting this blog to record my experience with a magical phenomenon I have experienced over the last few weeks."_**

 ** _"_** ** _A sun tattoo appeared mysteriously (and painfully!) on my hand one day, which scared and amazed me for several days. (EDIT: I have added a picture of our tattoo above!)"_**

 ** _"_** ** _Then, about a week later, I was on a shoot, taking notes on my arm for my camera settings (F-stop, etc.) because I had forgotten to bring my trusty writing pad, when I got a response to my scribblings. Replying to the mysterious writing on my arm over the last few days, I have discovered that I am somehow magically linked with a person named Alzack. We haven't exchanged much information as of now, but from what I have learned, he is experiencing the same effects I am, which I will catalog in future entries. We are planning to conduct a series of tests to determine the extent of our link and what that entails."_**

 ** _"_** ** _It is my belief that we are fated to find one another. I base this assumption on a tale I once heard on a job. As a nature photographer, I spend a lot of my time traveling. While staying in a monastery in the frigid North, I was invited by the locals to witness and photograph an ancient and very exclusive local tradition of storytelling at a festival in honor of the New Year, a holiday bigger than Christmas there. The tale that stuck out for me at the_** ** _Фестиваль возрождения_** ** _(which translates to Festival of Rebirth) was the story of a pair of lovers who became lost in the Great White Tundra of the North one fateful night. Russian storytelling is as extensive and rich as an Italian meal, each taking about the same amount of time. What I am including here is a summation of a story that took the most amazing man I've ever met three hours to tell, including side stories explaining how he met his wife, why he wears pointed shoes, what happens to a man who shaves his mustache, the time he received his favorite pipe from a woman with enormous breasts, and why family can conquer every obstacle put in your way (just to name a few). This esteemed, and admittedly perverted, man opened my eyes to many things during my week in Russia and I will always be indebted to him. I do not pretend to be as good a storyteller as my seanchaithe (Gaelic historians/storytellers) ancestors, but I will do my best to give the story the life it deserves."_**

 ** _"_** ** _A man and woman, dedicated to one another through the bonds of hard won marriage (here old Makarov saw fit to explain the ancient marriage rites they had to undergo, involving the groom's indentured slavery to the bride's family and a perverse game of stripper tag involving the whole village…isn't Russia just fantastic?), left their warm fire to embark on a journey to reach the man's childhood home in the dead of winter."_**

 ** _"_** ** _During a blizzard that blanketed the land in unending white, the pair lost their way and soon found they were near to starvation. To save his beloved, and himself, from death, the man went hunting for food in the bitter cold. He came upon a beautiful white bear, barely visible in the swirling snow. The man saw her appearance as a blessing from the gods and swiftly took her life. With her meat and hide, the two were able to survive for another week in the barren wasteland of the North."_**

Photographs of pale-skinned Northerners gathered around the smallest and oldest man Lucy had ever seen accompanied the green-haired woman's narration at different intervals.

 ** _"_** ** _However, just as they viewed smoke in the sky from a nearby settlement of people, they were tracked down by the great and vengeful forest god Volos, who transformed from a massive grizzly bear to a dragon before their eyes. The shape-shifting god of the earth and underworld had fallen madly in love with the beautiful white bear and taken her for a mate, granting her immensely long life, barring accidental death, so that he would no longer walk Earthland on his own. In his fury, the dragon/god bestowed a curse on them for killing his mate. As he would be separated from his mate for the rest of his time on Earthland, so too would they be cursed to never again lay eyes on the one they loved."_**

 ** _"_** ** _Reincarnation is a commonly held belief in the North. That is, that when man dies, he is reincarnated into another body and is able to atone for the errors of his past lives, seeking a better life in his next reincarnation."_**

 ** _"_** ** _Knowing what the future held for them, the lovers acted quickly and decisively. Before they could be torn asunder by the curse, they took the knives they carried with them always and each carved their name into their lover's flesh as a reminder that, though they would never lay eyes on one another again in this life, their love would remain strong so they could find each other in the next by the scars on their souls."_**

 ** _"_** ** _The legend goes that when the lovers died, years later and worlds apart, their souls were reincarnated into new bodies. One day, when fate saw fit to bring them together again, and they touched for the first time, their souls recognized each other and the names carved into their skin in that past life tore once again into their flesh. The Dola (protective spirits that function like Fate) smiled upon their loyalty and as a reward for their faithfulness, and in compensation for the denial of their original union, the couple was gifted with the ability to feel everything felt by their beloved, sharing pleasure and pain alike to atone for the many years they were unable to see or touch one another."_**

 ** _"_** ** _Sitting in a room with an ancient man, telling even more ancient stories, it was easy to believe that this tale was more than just a fable encouraging loyalty and faithfulness. Combined with my experiences from the past weeks, it seems the obvious conclusion is that Fate is working through us, Alzack and I."_**

 ** _"_** ** _I believe Alzack is my soulmate from a past life, magically linking to me in order to bring us together once again. My brilliant grandfather used to say that Anam Cara (an Irish phrase translated as 'soulmate') was like a hidden treasure that everyone searched for, and only those with the greatest luck ever found. If I have even a chance of meeting my Anam Cara, then I have to take it. This blog, as I said, is a record of my journey as I, and my possible soulmate, find our way to each other through this new and mysterious magic, blessing, or treasure map (only time will tell which term is the most apt!). I'm hoping also that this blog will serve in the future as a guide for other soulmates who find themselves linked without anywhere to look for answers. There must be more out there who are scared and confused. I still feel like I'm crazy in my own head believing this. But, I know in my heart, my sanity is as stable as my hands are, forever steadying my next shot. So I welcome all future afflicted to my journey. Hang on tight, this is gonna be a wild ride. I can feel it."_**

Lucy finished reading the first entry and sat back as she realized she was perched on the very edge of her desk chair, muscles tense, face inches from her laptop. So, she had a soulmate. Or could have one, at least. Considering her opinion of the idiotic ruffian so far, that was not the most encouraging news. Her hand drifted toward her cup of writing utensils for a moment to pluck a pen from the bouquet of Bics and freshly-sharpened pencils, but it fell away empty.

She _should_ probably tell him what she found out. It seemed like the right thing to do…only…for some reason (possibly because she really did know him in a past life), she just _knew_ the minute he found out they could be soulmates, he would want to meet. She barely knew anything about him, but for some reason, she had no doubt in her mind what he would choose to do with that information. And now, especially knowing there was a possibility they were soulmates, fated to find one another despite all odds and consequences, she was even more set on waiting to tell him anything personal. The thought settled on her like a weight, dragging down her shoulders with fatigue. She felt a deep soreness in her muscles, as though she had been running for hours.

Lucy had finally claimed a life for herself that belonged to her and nobody else. She wasn't ready to give up even a small part of herself to anyone, let alone the huge part of her heart that a soulmate would require. She had always enjoyed the idea of fate and destiny, but there was also a part of her that believed destiny could be changed; that freewill mattered. Because if it didn't, then her escape had meant nothing; a single stop on the unchangeable train of destiny. _Oooo, another great turn of phrase to work into her novel!_

Plus, she reasoned with herself, just because Bisca began, seven years ago, thinking she and Alzack were destined to be together when she created and named her blog, didn't mean the ending to the story was just as rosy, despite the photographic evidence. Maybe it was wiser not to mention anything to Mr. Matches (well, she had to call him something right?) until she had finished reading a few more blog entries and had some more accurate information to go on. Yeah, that sounded like the right thing to do. It would be cruel to get his hopes up, and then find out they aren't really soulmates, right? _Right._

With that settled, Lucy went to find the next entry…only to discover that over the 7 years since she had started the blog, Bisca had written more than 1000 entries. She glanced at the time and cringed. There was no way she was going to even make a dent tonight. _It's a marathon, not a sprint, Lu-chan_ , Lucy could practically hear Levy chiding her. The little blunette loved to wax pedantic on the differences between gathering sources for research and recreational reading.

And, if she was being completely honest with herself _(A lady always knows her own mind),_ she was emotionally exhausted from her adventure/research-filled day. So, she bookmarked the blog page and made plans to return to it the next day. Her mind raced with curiosity over the whole thing, but she had a scholarship to keep and rent that had to get paid. If the Fates (Lucy had always preferred the Greek myths) had seen fit to deliver her soulmate to her, he could wait another few hours while she got a decent night's sleep. As her mind shut itself down and began to drift into the realms of Morpheus, her fingers ghosted back and forth over the bruise on her knee, the bittersweet pain a physical reminder that she had embarked on an odyssey today, and odysseys required nothing if not patience.

* * *

 **Loki** \- the god of tricksters form Norse mythology, (NOT the version from _Thor_ the comic book character btw) has no greater purpose to his life than feeding his own ego and fucking with people. He cares about no one's happiness but his own and is more likely to turn on a supplicant than fulfill a request directly. He doesn't have noble bone in his immortal body, which makes him a great guy to blame just about everything annoying and cruel in the world on.

 **Radioactive spider…raised by Amazonians** —comic book references: _Spiderman_ , literally tons of super heroes and villains, and a _WonderWoman_ reference

 **Enchantresses…pricking her finger** -fairy tale references: _Beauty and the Beast/Cinderella_ (one of the original tales, not the cartoon), various tales where true love's kiss does something magical, _Rumplestiltskin_ , and _Sleeping Beauty_.

 **"Double, double, toil and trouble"-** Famous line from the witches chant at the start of Shakespeare's _Macbeth_

 **"Screw your courage …sticking place** "—another line from _Macbeth_ , Lady Macbeth encouraging her husband to grow some balls and get on with the killing already, also, fun trivia fact: this line is quotes in The Hunt song in _Beauty and the Beast_ the Disney film (original please, don't bring that new autotuned trash around here)

 **Tiny woman who lives in her computer** —an indirect reference to Terry Pratchett's _The Colour of Magic,_ in which a main character has a camera that literally functions by having a tiny man painting tiny pictures of whatever it is pointed at. His books were a little too random for me (which is seriously saying something) but my brother is a huge fan.

 **Russian storytelling** —I did some research into this, traditional Russian storytelling is meandering and inclusive, focusing on the individual telling it, and what it reminds them of their own life, and always including an important account of how the main character overcame a difficult obstacle. There are a varied cast of great gods, spirits and mischief-makers to pull from, so I wove a few of those in here. The Festival of Rebirth is my invention, but it is a true fact that New Years, up until recent times, far outshined Christmas at the most important winter holiday.

 **Fiorian storytelling** —I chose to make Fiorian storytelling based on American storytelling, which tends to be quick and concise, getting to the point with little embellishment. Since Bisca was raised in Fiore and we (Americans that is) are a country of bloggers these days, it seemed like the right fit.

 **Seanchaithe** —very important Gaelic storytellers/historians, usually a job passed down through generations of a family who were responsible for the history of the Gaelic peoples (Irish, Scottish, etc.) which was not written down for many years. Everything was through the oral tradition. I did bring a bit of Irish storytelling methods in too. I know I ran with Bisca's character a bit based on her appearance and on the idea that she would have been raised in a family that would know about soulmates, and revere them as in the Gaelic traditions. (I'm not an expert on this, so if I get anything horrendously wrong, please correct me!) It puts her in stark contrast to Lucy, making her more susceptible to tales of magic and enchantment.

 **Ancient Russian marriage rites:** totally didn't make this up, I'm not even that crazy. There are recorded records of a small corner of Russia that required the want-to-be-groom to work as a slave for the bride's parents until they approved of him, then he was sent to find the bride and strip her, which became difficult because the whole village was in charge of hiding her and heaping more clothing, and fishing nets, on her. Then, when he had managed to get the girl naked, he was required to run away until she invited him back to share her bed. Fucking love Russians.

 **Volos** -slavic God of the forest and underworld, known for shapeshifting into various animals, particularly a dragon (too perfect right?). Bears feature heavily in Russian folks stories, so I took some liberties

 **Dola** -protective spirits that know the path a person was meant to walk and appear as small animals and spirits that poke and prod a person to their destiny…I portrayed them a bit more benevolent here…though their gift could certainly be interpreted as a curse

 **The Fates** -in Greek mythology a group of women, usually three, who control the destiny of human beings…the Disney movie _Hercules_ goes a bit off the original myths, but that's the basic idea

 **Morpheus** -Greek god of sleep and dreaming

 **odyssey** -a clear reference to the epic poem that basically defines the word now, _The Odyssey_ by Homer (not confirmed but widely accepted) in which Odysseus makes a convoluted 20 year journey to get home. If you think of Natsu as Lucy's home, that's a nice metaphor for their story…*sigh with dreamy eyes*

 **Sorry for all the author's notes this chapter, I just got really excited to share all of the different ethnic storytelling trends with you guys! Also, I know Bisca is a little out of character, but live with it, she's perfect for my purposes.**


	5. Ice Boy

**So, I started out thinking I would do every three day updates...then my OCD realized that would make the updates different days every week...which totally screwed with my brain. So, Mondays and Thursdays! And that's final! for now!**

 **Also, a quick thank you to everyone who has left me a review! I love hearing your thoughts and getting your feedback! A special shout-out to the guest who reminded me that Bisca is in fact from Alvarez originally! Last chapter has been altered accordingly. I'm trying to stay away from the cliche backstories found in so many NaLu AUs, so there will be some departures from the expected (as you will soon see), but if anyone else sees something that could jive a little better without screwing with my plan, I'm happy to oblige! Happy reading, see me after for the pop quiz. ;)  
**

* * *

Natsu was doing an uncomfortable amount of thinking lately.

That is not to say that he didn't think normally. When it came to his major, for instance, he had no trouble keeping laser-like focus, something that still stunned the people who grew up with him. He would never understand why people reacted the way they did when he told them what the official name of his major was. It was one reason he preferred to call it things like "firework engineering" or "rocket creation". 'Chemical engineering with a pyrotechnic focus' just didn't roll off the tongue as nice as "explosion science" (his personal favorite). But no matter what it was called, it seemed like a no-brainer to him:

Natsu + chemicals + fire=awesome.

Maybe it was his hair… the stupid salmon-colored fluff had been undermining him since before he could talk.

In any case, he rarely found himself asking big philosophilogical questions, or absorbed in metaphysica whosy-whats-its. Whatever. Words weren't his strong suit. Give him numbers any day.

So after a frustrating day of suppressing his curiosity through class after class, he had hit the track to keep his body from going stir crazy while his mind was finally free to run in circles. Three hours of running, squats, push-ups, and crunches ended with him collapsing on the floor of his frat room, still unable to quiet his unusually overactive mind, stumbling over the same questions, and still without satisfactory answers. He had grabbed a quick three coarse snack on his way to his room, so he propped himself against the couch and munched while he mused.

Natsu preferred to live the life that had been dealt to him as it happened. Worrying didn't have any effect on the future, as far as he could tell, so why worry about it? He would just take what came, and chase whatever happiness flew past his nose until it was ready to fly away again. Anything worth having stuck around.

But now…he had the Weirdo. And with the knowledge of the Weirdo, came the knowledge that his fate was no longer just his own. His inability, or disinclination, to control his environment could result in him hurting someone other than himself now. When he stubbed his toe, he stubbed her toe too. When he got punched in the face, she got punched in the face. When he got kicked in the balls, she got…wait, how the fuck did that work anyway? Would she even feel it if he got kicked in the balls? I mean, she definitely didn't have balls…being a she…so how did that WORK?! Just one of the many questions he had no answer to.

He just didn't have enough data. He liked understanding the "what" behind what happened to him. He knew what was happening in his body when drinking gave him a hangover, what properties of light photons and oxygen molecules made the sky appear blue, and what combustion looked like as chemical equation. They were science. They were well known, and well tested _facts_. But he had never even heard of anything like this happening to anyone before, and a quick search on Google for "skin transference" and "sensory linkage" had come up with nothing. If science hadn't gotten their hands on someone like him, there wouldn't be anything substantial worth finding on the web.

Granted, secondary source research had never been his strong suit. He preferred the hands-on approach.

But little miss Weirdo didn't want to meet. Or tell him her name. It was beyond frustrating (even if she sort of had a point, especially since probabilities were high that she hadn't grown up in a boxing gym like he did).

So the hands on approach was sort of out. Except…his hands were her hands right? So, if no data existed, and he couldn't get directly at half of the primary source, he would just have to get creative and use her as a secondary source. He couldn't be 100% sure of her answers, but there wasn't really a reason for her to lie. Plus, there were ways of surprising the truth out of people. He did it all the time. Sometimes being blunt and loud had its uses.

Alright, if he was going to treat this like an experiment, first he needed to set down some testable variables. What did he assume to be true?

So Natsu dug out an old, half-used English notebook (it would have plenty of pages left for taking notes) from under his ratty sofa, where he kept all his old notebooks, and flipped it over to start on the back page, upside down. Using what he was starting to think of as his lucky red pen, he automatically set up the problem in terms he could wrap his brain around. Terms of scientific discovery. Without really thinking about it, he started a research outline, slipping into the required passive voice and the redundant, but clear, descriptions he had carefully drilled into his writing over the last three years. It wasn't exactly what he would call a well rounded research study, but it served to get the thoughts out of his head and organized.

 **Assumption 1: Ink placed on the skin of my body, more specifically on my arms or legs, transfers instantaneously to the Weirdo's equivalent skin.** They had both mentioned that they were writing on their arms to begin with, and the shared bruise was on both of their knees, so it seemed like a direct correlation. Whatever appeared on him, appeared on her equivalent surface area. And the conversation had flowed pretty quickly back and forth without delay, so it seemed reasonable to assume it happened in real time.

 **Questions raised by this assumption:**

 **1.** **What if not all body parts are linked?**

 **2.** **Not all parts of our bodies are the same. i.e.: if I write something on my dick, where would it show up on her body? Or would it at all?**

 **3.** **Is it just ink, or will anything that will mark the skin transfer?**

 **Proposed experiments:**

 **1.** **Label parts of my body with numbers (including the male bits) in chronological order and ask her if any are missing.** It would be interesting to see what the prissy Miss Weirdo thought about that particular experiment.

 **2.** **Paint on my arm or leg where ink trials were successful.**

 **3.** **Get muddy in an area where ink trials were successful.** Sure, it wasn't the most developed experiment, but he needed a man-made substance and a natural one to round out the experiment.

 **Assumption 2: Injuries are also directly transferable between my body and the Weirdo's body.** The bruise proved that it went at least a little more than skin deep.

 **Questions raised by assumption 2:**

 **1.** **What if not all body parts are linked?** Hopefully this would be resolved in experiments from Assumption 1.

 **2.** **Not all parts of our bodies are the same, i.e. if I get kicked in the balls, what happens to her?** He was really not looking forward to that particular experiment. His weary leg muscles twitched just thinking about it.

 **3.** **Internal injuries might not transfer, as only those visible on the skin have been tested. i.e. if I pull a muscle, can she feel it?**

 **Proposed experiments:**

 **1.** **Get kicked in the balls** Natsu cringed as he wrote it. Science better be fucking grateful.

 **2.** **Over-stress a muscle intentionally by maxing out at the gym**

 **Assumption 3: Touch doesn't stimulate the nerves enough to transfer.** This one was something he had been thinking about earlier in the day. She had asked if he felt something, and whatever she had done, he had not felt it. Common sense said that she had probably tried touching her skin somewhere and that had not transferred…so she had moved on to try something else: pushing on a bruise that she didn't remember getting. Chances were that her touch didn't get through. That was assuming of course that she thought like he did…but he felt safe making that assumption. Idiots didn't tend to correct your grammar correctly.

Plus, he probably would have felt her hands putting on lotion, or whatever it was girls did to make their skin so freakin soft and touchtastic (shut up, it's totally a word). And he definitely would have at least gotten a courtesy what-the-fuck-are-you-doing message if they had shared feeling when he was jacking-off in the shower. Though, that brought up the question of equivalencies again…for now, all he could say was THANK GOD. It was hard enough trying not to act like he had all the hormone-induced, perverted thoughts that he did on a daily basis. Having to worry about _any_ girl knowing every time he…er…helped himself out…was not something he needed to worry about. He would never be able to freely masturbate again, knowing that there was always someone out in the world that knew exactly that he was doing when he did it. Every single man's worst nightmare. Though…(the little pervy part of Natsu argued) that would have been a very fun day of experiments. But wait, to have a complete experiment, all assumptions had to be tested, right? So, those experiments really should be done anyway…

 **Questions raised by assumption 3:**

 **1.** **Are all areas unaffected equally? Not all nerve areas have the same sensitivity.** He was pretty proud of himself for remembering that from high school anatomy.

 **2.** **Not all parts of our bodies are the same, would touch to those areas transfer to equivalent organs.** Hopefully not, or he had really gotten their relationship started on the wrong foot. Though…(shut up pervert)

 **3.** **Would data reveal the same results for me? Data from testing thus far has been done by the Weirdo** So far we have been assuming that it works both ways equally…but that shouldn't be taken for granted.

 **Proposed Experiments:**

 **1.** **Apply varying degrees of pressure to the more sensitive areas of the body, i.e. the scalp, nipples, neck, face, genitals, etc.**

 **2.** **Pluck hairs from various parts of the body to see if that can be felt**

 **3.** **Try different forms of touch, i.e. scratching**

 **4.** **Coordinate touches in confirmed areas to prove directionality (whether it works for both of us)**

 **Assumption** **4: Scars and markings on my skin previous to us being linked together do not affect the Weirdo.** This one he was less sure of. He wondered if all his past scars were now present on her body, or if old injuries to the skin hadn't transferred. She hadn't mentioned a massive scar on her neck appearing out of nowhere, so he guessed not, but the scientific side of his brain needed more definitive data. Plus, this was an easy one; all he had to do was ask. With the trusty red pen, which he honestly had no intention of returning at this point, he wrote on his left arm again. He made sure to use correct grammar and punctuation this time. It couldn't hurt to get on the Weirdo's good side.

 **Do you have any scars now that you don't remember having before? Specifically any on your neck?**

Natsu absentmindedly rubbed the scar in question through his scarf as he capped the pen and waited. He glanced at the clock and saw that it was almost two in the morning. Where had the time gone? He set the notebook aside, running a hand through his hair. He could keep going in the morning...well later in the morning. Then he frowned.

Gray still wasn't home. He poked his head into the hallway. He didn't see any of the other guys either, but he could hear people talking out on the front porch, so, he headed out to see if anyone had seen Gray around. It was an unspoken agreement between them, almost since the beginning, that it was better for everyone around them if they kept tabs on each other's whereabouts. It cut down on the collateral damage.

Mest, a senior member of the house, and some friend of his from his major…Natsu could never seem to remember the friend's name (Lamo something maybe?), or Mest's major for some reason…maybe because Mest kept dropping out and joining again?...but anyway, Mest and Friend-of-Mest were sitting out on the porch, smoking.

Natsu had tried that, freshman year; being a smoker. He really had enjoyed how awesome it looked to have smoke coming out of his mouth. He even learned how to blow rings and stuff. But when he lost his first fight in years at the gym, he quit cold turkey and never looked back. Smoke was cool, but he did not. fucking. _lose_. Especially to that punk kid. _Float like a butterfly, sting like a bee my ass._

Natsu stuck his hands in his pockets, strode up to Mest-and-Friend, and cleared his throat to interrupt their conversation. He didn't want to get stuck making small talk, he didn't have time for that shit right now.

"Hey, Mest, you seen Gray? He's not in the room." Natsu asked without further preamble.

"Isn't that the dude who got banned from that bar…Galuna something?" Mest's friend butted in with a cocky smirk. "Like he got drunk and went totally ballistic and tried to kill someone? What an asshole. If you can't hold your liquor, don't go drinking, am I right?"

And that was the point at which Mest began writing his friend's eulogy. It began, 'I always considered my good friend Lahar a pretty smart guy. Turns out I was wrong. He will always hold a special place in my memory, though he is now better recognized as the victim of the explosion that destroyed my fraternity house for the sixth time...' Mest had a bad habit of zoning out entirely as his mind jumped around from place to place.

Natsu was typically an easy-going kind of guy. But, there were a handful of things you absolutely never did in front of him, if you wanted to walk away unscathed. And mentioning _that_ night was one of them. Natsu grabbed Friend-of-Mest around the neck with one very strong hand and slammed him into the wall next to the front door of the house. Loose mortar dust sifted down behind him as the douchebag's head made contact with the bricks, eyes wide in absolute terror at the pink-haired beast snarling in front of him. His fingers tried to pry the iron-like grip from his neck, unsuccessfully. Mest snapped back into the present and made a half-hearted effort to help, already knowing what was coming.

"Natsu, Lahar didn't mean anything by-"

"Mest, buddy, shut the fuck up." Natsu said in a mockingly friendly tone. He was not in the mood to take anyone's shit. He had had a long fucking day.

"Aye Sir!" Yep, this was going exactly where Mest thought it would.

"Now, Lamar was it?" Natsu paused just long enough to cut off Lahar's attempt to correct him with a flex of the hand grasped snugly against his wind pipe, his eyes flashing with barely controlled anger. "I'm gonna explain this to you exactly once. Because _everybody_ gets one, even dumbass pieces of shit like you. And then you are never, ever going to mention _that_ night ever again. Gray went through more fucked-up shit than your dickless brain could imagine by the time he was six. A fucking Bosnian soldier raped his mother and shot his parents and just about everyone he knew, just for being fucking Croatian, while he watched it happen from where they hid him in his family's fucking car. He lived in that car for a week! In the fucking winter! So until you have experienced shit that makes you want to shit your pants to remember, stuff you have to work through in years of mother-fucking therapy and support groups and still haunts your dreams, you don't get to say shit about Gray Fullbuster. You haven't earned the god-damned right." Natsu paused in his tirade to make sure his audience-of-one was focused on nothing but him before he drove home his point. "And, for the god-mother-fucking-damned record, Gray hasn't had a drop of alcohol to drink since that night. Which was his fucking 21st birthday. So, never. And I mean FUCKING NEVER say a goddamned word about THAT NIGHT ever again."

With a final squeeze, Natsu dropped his hand and turned silently back to Mest, one pink eyebrow raised as he ignored the quivering pile of terror that sunk to the ground behind him. Mest knew what Natsu wanted.

"He left with Loke a few hours ago."

Satisfied with that answer, Natsu gruffly thanked Mest for the info, and headed back into the house, shaking off the tension in his muscles that told him he should be punching something.

So Gray had probably crashed at some girl's place. Since he had gone out with Loke, probability pointed to Fairy Hills Apartments. Natsu felt more tension trickle out of him. At least Erza was nearby if anything happened. She was one among the many girls taking classes at the university who lived there. Why Loke chose to pick up one night stands so close to the home of the biggest activist (and overreactionary) for women's safety and self-defense in Magnolia, Natsu would never know, but Loke loved to hang out there. He even called it his "hunting grounds". And, to be fair, Loke had spent the night in almost every apartment at some time or other, so he clearly knew his way around the Titania (she watched over Fairy Hills like the queen of the fucking fairies…at least that was what Natsu had been told when he asked why everyone called her that…fairy stories were not really his thing, despite his choice of fraternity).

Girls always flocked to Loke, but though they always thought he was good looking and in great shape, he was nowhere near on the same level as Natsu and Gray. And that was just stating a fact. He suspected that was why Loke liked to take Gray out with him. After all, Gray was a six-foot-one, dark and brooding chick magnet with the muscle to back it up. It didn't take a degree in psychology to figure out why their friendship worked. Loke did all the talking, Gray was just his moody self, and they both got laid whenever they felt like it. It was the perfect symbiotic wing-man relationship. Add into the mix that Gray was always the obvious designated driver and…well, his popularity spoke for itself. And sure, if Natsu felt like it, he could be right there with them.

Natsu closed his room door behind him and slung his scarf over the hook by the door. Pulling his shirt over his head and unbuttoning his jeans, he took a moment to check himself out in the mirror. He had put in a lot of hours at the gym and in the ring to look like this, someone might as well appreciate the view. He tightened his abs and struck a pose just for the fun of it. Maybe he should get a tattoo...not that anyone would see that either...

He had tried the sleeping-with-random-people thing his first year in the house, but it just didn't do it for him. Occasionally he still tagged along with his man-slut friends, but he usually ended up getting bored and leaving early to hit the gym, or a late night all-you-can-eat buffet. He liked to think he had his priorities straight.

Unless he was drunk. Evil Natsu the Drunk was a pervert who didn't care who or what he fucked. Thank God his alcohol tolerance was through the roof now. It had been almost a year since his last drunken escapade and he meant to keep it that way. He would say he wished he could forget that time, but thankfully, he already didn't remember half of it.

He was done with that life, but he had yet to find a girl he could really be himself with, who didn't run screaming when they found out about his past. Or his PTSD.

Well, he thought sarcastically, there was always the Weirdo. They seemed to be stuck together for the time being. He wondered what she looked like. A quick glance at his arm showed that, unsurprisingly, she had not yet responded to his early morning question.

Working to push his newfound worries to the back of his mind again, Natsu pulled himself up into his loft and forced himself to focus on his breathing until he drifted off into a fitful, dream-filled sleep.

For some reason, his fantasy blonde from the shower had shown up again. Except, she wasn't naked, or lighting anything on fire this time. As flashes of the girl raced through his mind, he was only able to catch flashes of her, as though he were watching scenes of a movie filmed from his point of view. First her chin-length hair was flung into the air as she turned to look over her shoulder at him with a mischievous grin, then she was curled into a ball in bed wearing a silky nightgown, tears leaking from her tightly scrunched eyes. Next she tossed a guy in an old-timey suit, twice her size, over her shoulder with a well-executed throw, wearing heels and a long shiny dress, which quickly changed to an image of her shoving her face, red with anger, close to his as she yelled at him, fire sparking in her eyes.

In the dream, she seemed horribly familiar…like a kid he knew from summer camp ten years ago but hadn't seen since. Her name floated on the tip of his tongue even as he struggled to remember if they had ever actually met. He was almost there, his mind catching and focusing on one mental snapshot of her face…a blush flushing her cheeks as he watched her pupils dilate and her mouth fall open. Her hair was longer in this memory than the flashes were showing him. She was wearing a really short skirt with boots, he remembered that very clearly (hehe). And she had something with her… behind her…what was it?…something pink…definitely…something…pink…

* * *

Natsu was startled awake by a handful of ice cubes colliding with his bare chest. His body's knee-jerk reaction was to sit up, resulting in a near concussion on the ceiling. The dream he had been struggling to hold on to was immediately forgotten.

"What the FUCK man?!" Natsu exclaimed, aiming a well-placed kick at his bastard of a roommate's head on instinct.

With the ease of practice, Gray Fullbuster ducked the leg and snickered. Watching Natsu slam his head into the ceiling when he was woken up this way never got old. At least it hadn't yet, and they were going on their thirteenth year of friendship and their third year sharing a room.

Most of the house didn't understand why they still chose to room together. General opinion was that they fought 24/7, but in actuality, the pranking and fighting took up only about forty percent of their time together. The majority was whiled away in peaceful cohabitation, and mutually trained ignorance of the other's actions. It wasn't what you would call a classic friendship, but it worked for them.

Gray continued to defend himself from Natsu's muscle memory as the pink haired idiot followed the kick by swinging the lower half of his body off the loft and into Gray's torso. They had been doing this for so long, Gray mused, that he could almost see what the pinkette would do next.

What would really surprise everyone was the tiny sliver (of the pie graph of their time together) that represented the rare times when they put their bullshit aside and actually talked to each other. That slice was thankfully much smaller than it used to be. They had come a long way since they met. Warren, a senior in the house who swore his almost completed psychology degree allowed him to read everyone around him like a book (pssh, yeah right) had hypothesized that their mutually traumatic childhoods had forged a bond that went deeper than blood and most closely resembled brotherhood.

Gray preferred to think that no one else would ever understand because no one would ever be as fucked-up as he and Natsu. And their mutual fucked-up-ed-ness worked to cancel each other out. They were known on campus as the Fire-and-Ice duo, but Manic-and Depressant was probably more accurate. Gray kept Natsu from hurting anyone with his lack of foresight and pugilistic attitude, and in return Natsu kicked his butt out into the world, forcing him to interact with people on a regular basis for reasons that didn't involve him getting laid. It was a fucked-up friendship, but it worked. It was predictable. Until suddenly Natsu switched up the playbook.

Natsu froze mid-punch, just staring at his arm, eyes wide, and poised with tension filled muscles ready to complete a left hook that never came. Surprised by this change in demeanor, Gray straightened out of his fighting stance to see what was so very interesting about the flame brain's suspended left arm, bare like the rest of him as he stood frozen in his black boxer briefs. Ever since losing that bet over the summer, he had taken to wearing only non-embarrassing underwear.

Gray wasn't sure what he was looking for on his roommate's arm, but he was not expecting to see broad pink strokes of highlighter appearing before his eyes, seemingly by magic. Gray's jaw dropped open without him noticing. Above the lines that were appearing, Natsu (he knew that chicken scratch better than his own) had written a question about scars on someone's neck and in light pink text below the question was a simple:

 _No, why?_

That same loopy script, somehow cute and terrifying at the same time, was now spelling out the words:

 _OW! WHAT THE FUCK DID YOU DO, BAKA?!_

Natsu shook off the last vestiges of sleep and mumbled, "Shit. I broke rule number one." His right hand tentatively touched his head where he had rammed it into the ceiling, wincing. Then he narrowed his eyes at his arm. "What the fuck is a baka?"

Gray swallowed all of the exclamations of surprise on the tip of his tongue, suppressing all of the comfortable insults that rose up the back of his throat, and struggled to keep a calm, collected facade.

He had taken Japanese in high school, so he knew what "baka" meant. That hardly seemed like the biggest problem here though. Somehow, this scenario was just so typically Natsu. When would he quit getting himself into fucking weird situations?! Struggling to take the whole experience in stride, he let out the breath he had been holding in a long sigh and said, with the tone of exasperated world-weariness he saved for that very rare slice of the pie graph:

"What the fuck did you do, idiot?"

And that was how Gray the Ice Boy found out about Lucy the Weirdo.

* * *

 **No references this chapter… the boys just aren't big literature fans, but we'll be back with our intrepid heroine on Thursday in the next chapter: The First Shower in Five Days.**

 **I dropped some little Easter eggs for characters behind in this one…anyone pick them up? Also, if anyone (who I haven't told) can tell me what all my chapter titles have in common, I'll write you into the story…how you ask? Well, you'll just have to figure it out and see! Thanks again for the amazing amount of reviews, follows and favorites so far! You guys are definitely my kind of people.  
**


	6. The First Shower in Five Days

**Guys, you really outdid yourself with the reviews last chapter. It MADE my week, so THANK YOU! I think they stirred up the characters too, because even while I wasn't in his head this week, Natsu snuck up and grabbed hold of the reins, pulling me into a place I wasn't expecting. Totally didn't plan how this chapter ended, but it is definitely my favorite moment between them so far...can't WAIT to hear what you think!**

* * *

The craziest two weeks of Lucy's life were finally coming to an end.

She had honestly believed that the weeks when she ran away from home, met her best online friend in real life for the first time, lived in a hostel with said best friend, and begged her way into a full ride scholarship at the university of her dreams like a modern day Pip, would have held that place for longer than a month, but alas, she was very sorely mistaken.

Over the last fortnight, she had undergone every experiment Mr. Matches (though the Marquis de Sade would be a more apt name at this point!) could think of to conduct. The result was that she no longer thought of him as merely an idiot. Oh no, now she thought of him as the evil, and oddly clinical, idiot who was going to get her thrown into Bellevue Hospital on Blackwell's Island!

She didn't know why she had even bothered to lay down rules. He had broken rule number one before breakfast the very next morning (sure he had blamed the bump on his low hanging ceiling, but she just knew he had been fighting)! She rubbed the place where the goose-egg on her forehead was finally fading and sighed. At least he had apologized for that.

It hadn't been as bad over the first weekend, in the privacy of her own home. The tests had started the morning after they spoke for the first time. He began with simple questions, which she did her best to answer honestly and as inconspicuously as she could while writing on herself through all her Friday classes. Luckily, she been given the weekend off from work to cut down on the stress of her first week of college. So, Saturday and Sunday, she and Levy (who had immediately jumped on the Operation Soulmate Research bandwagon) poured over the first year or so of Bisca's blog and everything the campus library had on reincarnation. They had really made some progress in their research and Lucy was debating whether to let the evil idiot in on what they had found out.

And then the real testing began. And had yet to stop.

Her tormenter didn't seem to need sleep, or have class, or a job, as he conducted endless tests at odd hours of the day and night all that weekend and through to the next. To be fair, he _had_ warned her (after a fashion) before each trial, as agreed. But when she had conceived of the rule, she had not considered the possibility that _he_ considered a hastily written **GET READY** **for (enter vague experiment name here)** scribbled across her arm, ten seconds before whatever he had planned, as fair warning! She had some very close call moments that week.

On Tuesday, if she hadn't dived frantically into the nearest closet just in time, a whole hallway of people would have witnessed mud appearing on the entire left side of her body as if by some demented reverse of the Sorcerer's Apprentice incident. Or a hellish curse. She was keeping her negative categorizations pretty open at this point. Especially since she had accidentally locked herself in the closet. And had to wait a half an hour for Levy to get out of class and come free her.

He had repeated that particular trick with paint, water (which had just smeared the paint), and something sticky that smelled suspiciously like Tabasco sauce. Though, that one could have been an accident…she suspected foul play.

As a result, she had begun to gain a reputation amongst her professors and fellow students as a skittish, excitable individual, whose tendency to hop up and run from the room had earned her the oh-so-clever nickname of Bunny Girl. Needless to say, her social life had not picked up much. With the noted exception of a very stoned, very peculiar "life-long learner" (the nice term they used to describe bored retired people who came back to college to take classes) named Warrod, who asked where he could get some really quality mushrooms, she had been persona non grata. Oh, and add "druggie" to the list of personas she was non grata-ing. ( _Ladies did not do drugs!)._

Thankfully her private tutors and Miss Aquarius had more than prepared her for freshman-level classes and she hadn't yet fallen behind the rest of her peers. But, at this rate, it was only a matter of time before Mr. Matches drove her grades into the ground.

But it wasn't just in psychological torture her new friend dabbled. Discomfort seemed to be a special talent of his as well.

Yes, her new over-enthusiastic skinmate (she really, really had to come up with a better name for their relationship) (and nope, she was not about to start calling that hellion the one perfect soulmate reserved for her and her alone) poked, prodded, painted, and splashed. He had shredded muscle and injected adrenaline (where he had gotten his hands on adrenaline was a mystery, but the combination of the pain from the needle in her butt and the dead certainty that she was having the heart attack to end all heart attacks was undeniably the scariest thing she had ever experienced), plucked hair and submerged himself in a tub of ice water. She felt like he had a voo-doo doll of her and was doing everything to it he could, short of lighting it on fire (oh gods she hoped he wasn't going to light himself on fire). If it weren't for the constant stream of scientifically worded questions, asking her to describe the results of each test as completely as she could, she would have thought he was torturing her for fun, with no purpose or conclusion in mind. But no, through it all, her merciless comrade in arms (oh gods, she had fallen to plebian puns! And alliteration! The horror!) maintained what could only be described as an almost unbreakably cheerful attitude. It almost made it hard to remember that all of her pain, was his pain too. Even when he had completed what was clearly his least favorite test, getting kicked in the balls by his roommate, he had followed her response of:

 _I feel like I have the worst menstrual cramps ever, yarou!_ with:

 **Great! I'm all fired up now!**

He probably didn't realize she had just called him a bastard. Or maybe, as she soon learned to be true, it was just his answer to everything…

When she had counted every single number from 1 to 82 he had drawn all over her body (directly after her shower, the asshole), he had said it. Lucy could feel her cheeks growing hot with anger and embarrassment as she thought about where she had found number 69. And the pervert had had the nerve to be "fired up"! _(Needless to say, ladies did not 'get fired up'!)_

When she had reamed him out for the smiley face painted on her thigh in the middle of the dining hall, he had said it. He had said it when his hair pulling had brought tears to her eyes, and he had said it when she had confirmed that it did in fact feel like she was sitting in an arctic tundra as she sat in the sun at her favorite window in the library and attempted to do her biology homework.

But, he had also said it when she had felt the tension leave her muscles and thanked him for massaging their feet after the adrenaline had spurred on a five mile run to the middle of nowhere (and a six mile, rather lost, walk back). And he had said it when she had apologized profusely for accidentally falling down the stairs and bruising up their left butt cheeks.

Every experiment ended with those magic words, as though that too was somehow an integral part of his mad experiments. Over and over in that stupid red pen! The redundancy was driving her insane!

At least he had used correct capitalization and punctuation. On some level, he must have recognized her mind could only take so much abuse.

However, the most inconvenient part of the experimenting process, over all the stress and discomfort, seemed to be that he never cleaned up after himself! He would cover her in mud, paint, or ink, and then wait. You would think, if he had so much time on his hands he would at least do her the courtesy of washing off his experiments so she didn't have to take so many goddamned showers, but apparently he was perfectly content to be muddy and covered in paint forever. And he always seemed to wait until just after her shower to start the next experiment. How completely disrespectful could one guy get?!

But that too had turned out to be an experiment.

Her stubborn streak had won out on Thursday, and she had flat out refused to shower. He would never learn to clean up after himself if she was always doing it for him. So, she left him a note, nonchalantly, after his first test of the day. Thankfully she only had morning classes on Thursdays.

 _Soap and water won't kill you, you know._ Yeah, it was passive-aggressive, but he really should have figured this one out on his own. Miss Aquarius would have been proud. _(Ladies do not hint, they imply, strongly.)_

So she had sat outside her apartment building, doing her homework and smelling of formaldehyde (where the HELL was he GETTING this stuff?!). After three hours or so, the smell suddenly disappeared and she had the satisfied feeling that she had won one small battle, even if the war seemed to be going to him. She immediately rewarded him with a comment:

 _Was that so hard?_ He responded in his usual red.

 **No, but it shortened my experiment. That was my first shower in five days.**

 _Ew! That's disgusting!_

 **Why? You were showering. Not like we both need to now.**

And just like that, another layer of his character revealed itself. She had assumed all the experiments were being announced because so many were. But this was valuable information: he could be sneaky.

She had almost adjusted to his insane pattern by the second Saturday. And then she had to go to work. As part of her scholarship, she did a work study through the university, giving back her time for their nicely donated education. Even though they had technically been full when she applied, they had given her a substitute position, filling in whatever needed to be done when someone needed time off. It was a pretty sweet deal that she didn't want to mess up _(Ladies made the most of every opportunity)._

However, Lucy thought even Miss Aquarius may have drawn the line at trying to remain professional and collected, wearing long sleeves and pants to hide whatever new torture he might throw at her, at noon, in August, doing landscaping and trash pick-up duty, while being prodded all over with pins and needles. Literally. The dumb-ass was testing out acupuncture on her. On a fucking Saturday.

Sunday had been better, the morning surprisingly calm as he tested something that (thank the gods) didn't seem to transfer. But she dreaded every time the questions came back, because it meant that the next test might return her to agony. She began to flinch every time new words would appear.

On Thursday of the second week, she had a shining moment of brilliance where she decided that if she stalled long enough when he asked a question, she would get a few more moments of peace. It worked for the first couple of tests and she thought she might have a normal day for a change, but after apparently eating his weight in food, instead of him just waiting patiently for her to let him know she did not in fact feel like she had eaten, he began to doodle. On the bottom of her foot. It was excruciating.

While Mr. Matches had conducted his own tickle test and come to the same conclusion she had, they had found a loophole: drawing on ticklish areas was an entirely different matter. When the tickling was done by something that left a mark, like a pen or paintbrush, the feeling of the application transferred with the marking. (It didn't seem to make logical sense, but what about the damn situation did?!) So Lucy, who had luckily (she thought) pulled an afternoon shift at the campus library re-shelving books, found herself squirming and dropping books as she stubbornly stalled answering his questions and he retaliated by tickling her feet inside a pair of thigh-high stockings and designer pumps.

She had immediately regretted wearing them, of course, after an hour on her feet, but the fantasy of getting asked out and possibly ravished in the stacks by a hunky co-ed had been too good to pass up when Lucy gotten dressed that morning. She had still covered up the prime communication space of her arms with a light, long sleeved blouse, but she had thrown caution to the wind and left a tiny strip of skin bare between the hem of her skirt and her opaque stockings. Luckily the library was air-conditioned, and most twenty-one-year-old boys didn't have access to their upper thighs when they were dressed for the day.

As expected, her attire had definitely been gaining her the attention of the male library-goers, which she had been enjoying until he had started that incessant doodling. Then she couldn't think about anything else. Her feet felt like that old computer game where the snake wove around eating apples and getting longer and longer until it bit itself or the game ended. The sensation reminded her of the summer she had found her mother's old computer in the basement and hoarded the simple bi-colored graphic games on it for weeks. It was her most prized possession, that brick of a laptop. At least, it was until she was found out and the "distraction" was donated to a shelter across town. She liked to think her mom's outdated laptop had brought some homeless kid hours of wonder and awe, but in all likelihood, it had probably been thrown out. She guessed even homeless people had higher standards these days.

Between the tickling and the pricking of tears in her eyes at the memory, she could barely concentrate. Practicing the technique she had been working to master the last week, she grabbed her bag and the last pile of books off her cart, and high-tailed it, as fast as her stiletto clad feet would take her, to the basement stacks.

Though she had yet to venture down to the stacks of Vermilion Library, it wasn't difficult to find the door to the only room on the lower lever. On the heavy oak door, a tarnished brass plaque read: "For our Mavis, who will live forever through the books she loved so well." Curiosity peaked now, Lucy pushed open the door just enough to slip through.

A typical library basement would have been musty, with cold, florescent lighting, and cheap matted carpeting, colorless and faded. But, a kindred spirit had clearly designed the bibliophilic heaven, or at least funded it, and even the underground storage rooms were warm with lamplight and polished oak floors. An army of simple, efficient shelving replaced the traditional haphazardly piled books of "the stacks," and a large, heavy, serviceable table took up the center of the single immense room that reached out to the corners of the library above. The beautiful sight of it was almost enough to make Lucy forget why she had fled the natural sunlight of the upstairs world. Almost.

Kicking off her shoes in relief, she placed the random stack of books that gave her an excuse to be down here on the table, and immediately plopped to the floor to pull off her stockings. Reminded of another childhood pastime before she could remove the offending articles, she grinned and scooted over until she sat under the immense table, able to barely sit up without hitting her head. Laying back on her elbows, she noticed several someones had had a similar idea at one point, because messages and drawings spanned the underside of the table. A couple that stood out were the carved phrase, "May our history show us the way to the light" and a massive, Sharpied message declaring, "Yuri and Precht are the Masters of Fairy Tail!" with a weird symbol drawn at least a foot wide. _What weird names_. And what the hell was Fairy Tail? Another tickling sensation from her foot reminded her why she was down here in the first place and she sat back up to pull off her stockings with no further ado.

Concealed from the world, and finally rid of her hosiery, Lucy took in the spectacle that covered her feet and continued to grow up her ankles.

She had seen similar designs once before, at a wedding she had attended with her parents when she was very young. The groom had been a good friend of her mother's; a tall, thin man with pale hair and a funny beard she had later learned was a called a "goatee". She felt a little sad when she couldn't remember his name.

The bride had been Indian, resplendent in a gold-edged sari and dripping with jewels. However, her hands and feet had interested Lucy the most. Covered in swirling burnt sienna lines and dots from the tips of her digits all the way to her elbows and knees, the woman had looked like a living garden. Or the night sky in her mom's favorite painting. She had never seen anything like it and was enchanted. She felt a wave of sadness and nostalgia sweep through her at the memory, but was distracted again by the masterpiece gracing her bared skin.

The design, already radiating from the arch of her foot, put the Indian henna she had seen all those years ago to shame. The components of this artwork didn't use the same curved flower and vine shapes either. Instead, the shapes of nature had been replaced by tiny geometrics and stars, exploding in a bright red half circle made up of dots and sharp points that somehow achieved a similar effect. She felt ink being added to her neglected ankle and finally noticed that her feet hosted almost perfectly identical, symmetrical copies. Bringing her feet together in front of her, she suddenly saw the bigger picture: a single, expanding medallion across both feet, with meandering shooting stars spiraling up into her ankles as she watched them appear.

For the first time in almost two weeks, Lucy forgot about being uncomfortable, embarrassed or annoyed. She sat quietly, with her legs spread in a very unladylike way and her feet pressed together, entranced by the beauty of the magic she felt -for the first time- lucky to be a part of. The shooting stars danced up the inside of her calves and met suns on her knees, bursting with swirling sunspots made up of tiny dots and long, straight rays that shot out and up her thighs. The rays he had outlined were half full of glorious organized chaos when the steady flow of geometric star dust ceased. Blinking out of her open-mouthed and hypnotized stupor, Lucy scrambled for a pen in her bag and quickly jotted out a note on her arm, their de facto communication board.

 _Why did you stop?_

There was no answer, but the drawing resumed, slowly at first, but gaining speed until he was drawing with a vengeance, jumping back and forth seamlessly from one leg to the other, working to maintain the symmetry he had started. Her face lit up and her lips stretched into a grin of pure glee. When the beams radiating from the fiery suns were completely full he paused again, seeming to run out of canvas. She relaxed her cheeks, sore from smiling. Lucy watched, eyebrows furrowed, wrinkle forgotten, as she tried to guess what he would do next.

To her surprise it was her arm that tingled with writing, instead of her legs.

 **I'm out of room.** She found herself attempting to tamp down a surprising amount of disappointment. She knew he couldn't keep going forever, but she hadn't wanted to break the warm bubble of peace and joy that surrounded her. It had been so long since she had felt so completely…at home.

Then, when she had just about given up, he wrote again.

 **Where should I go now?** Her heart did an odd little flutter in her chest as her disappointment melted away and an excited smile crept back onto her face. Thinking it over for a moment, she eyed the beautiful markings covering her legs.

Where else was there that he could easily reach? And had lots of room to draw, so he could keep going for a while? Somehow, just telling him where to put pen to skin felt like it would break the magic; like it would snip the red string of fate that connected their hushed worlds in this moment frozen in time. So, feeling a shiver of excitement at her uncharacteristic boldness, she pulled a pink pen from her bag, flipped up the hem of her shirt, and tied it out of the way to expose her flat, creamy stomach.

Trying to imitate his style she drew a careful circle of dots around her belly button and stopped, setting her pen down and hoping he would catch on. Two heartbeats of breathless anticipation later, tiny red hearts bloomed from the dots she had drawn, they in turn birthing concentric teardrops, and he was off again, racing to cover his new canvas in glowing red. The components were different this time though, consisting of a combination of small curvy shapes and long swirling lines. Struck by the sudden need to record this moment for posterity, Lucy grabbed her phone from her bag and started taking video of the expanding artwork on her torso. She shivered as the design meandered closer to her hip, and with only the slightest hesitation, dipped lower, into the indentations left by her pubic bone, just barely disappearing below the low hanging waistband of her skirt before swooping back up to the opposite hip. Her phone recorded ten minutes of video before she was forced to start a new one. Lucy recorded five more videos before giving up and getting lost in watching the lines again. He had finished filling in the lower half of her torso, from the waist to pelvic bone and was just coming back to fill in the top of the circle when her phone beeped to alert her of an update. Picking up her phone again, she noticed the time.

 _Shit!_ She had been down there for nearly six hours! It was almost midnight and her shift had ended at seven! More importantly, the library closed in ten minutes! Quickly retucking her blouse, yanking on her stockings, and grabbing her shoes and bag, she sprinted up the stairs and dashed to the doors of the library, barely making it as the janitor prepared to lock the doors behind him.

Slowing down as she burst out into the balmy summer night, disheveled and dangling her pumps from two fingers, Lucy caught her breath and grinned at the adrenaline coursing through her veins. On her abdomen, he seemed to catch her excitement as the drawing felt like it increased in speed, something she briefly lifted her top to confirm.

Eager to get home to continue whatever it was they were doing, she set off in stocking-ed feet, leaping and twirling like a ballerina through the mostly deserted campus. She didn't meet with a single person on the way back to her apartment, but lightning bugs flurried out around her, fireless sparks fluttering in the wind. The universe seemed to be sustaining her blissful bubble, creating a magical wonderland of natural beauty to keep the waking world from crashing in on her warm, joyful passage. The music of crickets and a gust wind whispering through leaves egged her on, coaxing a soft giggle of delight from her lips.

Racing up the stairs of her building on the tips of her toes, she unlocked the door in record time and leapt through the door, silently shutting and locking it behind her. Dropping her stuff at the door, she grabbed the hem of her silky blouse with both hands and whipped it off over her head.

In the serene darkness of her spotless apartment she pulled off her stockings again and unzipped her skirt, letting it fall, and stumbling out of it to make her way to the full-length mirror in her bedroom. The moonlight flooded the room through the large picture window over her desk, making the red ink gracing her body look black, and her skin practically glow. Standing in her underwear, watching the swirls move progressively north, Lucy felt like a mythical creature, wild and mysterious. Slowly, she pulled the hair pins from her hair and her French twist tumbled into waves of shimmering gold to the just past the middle of her back. She swayed back and forth a little, enjoying the feeling of her soft hair on newly uncovered skin.

Her pounding heartbeat had just mellowed out when she felt and saw the sweeping glide of his design caress the sensitive skin under her breast as it disappeared into the lace of her bra. Her breath hitched at the sensation, and caught in her throat when he did the same on the other side. Muscles she had never felt before tightened, low in her belly and shivers radiated from where his pen marked her. Holding her breath, Lucy steeled herself and popped the hooks on her bra, feeling inexplicably wicked as she dropped the lacy confection to the floor. She could see where he had drawn now, small details filling in around the sweeping curves, studiously avoiding the voluptuous chest that he couldn't see.

Then he suddenly switched gears, starting a new kind of drawing on their left shoulder, clearly outlining a specific shape this time, instead of just a pattern. Her curiosity reawakened, Lucy swept her hair off her shoulder and leaned closer to the mirror, reaching out to click on her lamp. The room sprang into color at the soft, warm glow and the pen marks covering the majority of her body seemed to catch fire as they bloomed back into red. The shape of whatever he was drawing now dipped into her cleavage and rolled back up on the other side. Perhaps realizing suddenly where he was drawing, the artist stopped and waited.

Lucy froze, holding her breath as she stared at the end of the line he had left unfinished.

After a moment of absolute stillness and silence, the line progressed an infinitesimal amount toward her nipple and stopped again. She suddenly understood. He was asking her permission.

Lucy didn't move. She just waited, entranced to see what he would do next, silently willing him to continue.

When the line extended again, there was no hesitation. She took in a deep breath, as the line circled her nipple, drawing an unexpected moan from deep within her. Warmth pooled in her stomach as he drew without concern for propriety or decency now, the lines flying over her chest, filling out the shape of a dragon. One clawed foot circled her right nipple, while another rested in her cleavage. The tail of the beast looped around her left breast, it's barbed tip falling just shy of her areola. The head of the beast sat right at her collar bone, matching up to a swirl.

And just like that, the image came together.

All of the intricate lines on her torso suddenly solidified into a picture: an elegant, yet powerful, dragon, breathing swaths of fire full of patterns that shaded the flames and made them almost dance in the dim light down to the lace whispering against the skin just under her hip bones. It was, without a doubt, the most beautiful thing Lucy had ever seen. He finished his masterpiece with a final bit of crosshatched shading on the dragon's tail. Then, low on her right hip, at the bottom of the flames, and just under the edge of her lacy underwear she felt him write something else and eased down the soft material to see two letters:

 **ND**

And, in that instant, it was finished and the spell was broken. Lucy grabbed her phone from her bag, and, disregarding her nakedness, took picture after picture of the amazing artwork she had witnessed being created. She changed her underwear to a pair with red lace that almost matched the flames he drew and took more. Her eyes lingered on those two little letters, so insignificant, yet so important. His initials. They had to be.

Hunting down a pen in her bag again, she uncapped it and wrote on her arm one more time that night, before laying down to fall asleep in little more than his creation.

 _Thank you. It's_ _ **magnificent**_ _._ She traced over the last word four times.

 **You're welcome.**

* * *

Natsu stared, stunned, at what he had done to himself in the mirror. He hadn't drawn on himself like this in years.

And it had started so innocently, trying to get her attention back on the experiment, but had somehow morphed into something so…loaded. He gulped, wishing more than anything that he could see it—what might be his favorite drawing, out of all the fire-breathers he had drawn over the years—splayed across her torso instead of his.

It wasn't even an entirely sexual desire. That spark of tension was certainly there, sending frission out to his extremities, but it was more like…he had felt her watching him, as though she was leaning over his shoulder, her excitement and awe intoxicating, her breath almost whispering in his ear. He had felt drunk, light-headed; the feeling lingering, making his thoughts fuzzy. The spike of adrenaline she had sparked still ran through his veins, super heating his skin and amplifying his senses.

He wanted to see her admiration, the appreciation and wonder he had felt from her as he poured everything he had into the markings on his skin. Their skin. He wanted to know how it changed his majestic creation to be displayed on a curvier canvas. And yes, that little pervy part of him really wouldn't have minded seeing the breasts he had so daringly adorned in red. He didn't think he had wanted anything so much since…well, since Igneel.

What was this girl doing to him?! Thank gods Gray was out again for the night. It was embarrassing enough seeing the evidence of himself showing-off for a girl he'd never even met, let alone having witnesses.

Pulling himself away from the mirror, after taking a couple of pictures with his phone, Natsu reached for his towel to go shower. But then he paused, distracted again by the messages from earlier in her handwriting on his arm, contrasting so sharply with his own spiky, illegible remarks.

 _Why did you stop?_

 _Thank you. It's_ _ **magnificent**_ _._ He felt a little zip of pride and a smile snuck up on him from the corner of his lips.

He sighed. There was no way he was showering tonight. Or probably even this week. He washed his hair in the sink instead, carefully wiping down the areas of his body without drawings, using a washcloth. _Clean enough_ , he thought, as he did a few pull-ups on the edge of his loft, to run down that lingering adrenaline rush, eventually pulling himself up and over the ledge into his waiting comforter (ladders were for featherweights). He was asleep when his head hit the pillow, never realizing—or caring—that she had not responded to his last test.

That day marked the end of the experiments.

And it was another five days before either of them took a shower.

* * *

 **Pip** -main character from Charles Dicken's _Great Expectations_ , a story famous for its rags to riches theme. And yes, Dickens fans out there, it was not a Mrs. Havisham reference! You're welcome!

 **Marquis de Sade** \- A real historical figure featured in many pieces of literature, including but not limited to a play entitled (I shit you not): _The Persecution and Assassination of Jean-Paul Marat as Performed by the Inmates of the Asylum of Charenton Under the Direction of the_ _Marquis de Sade._ His claim to fame is being the origin of the word "sadism" as he was known for being sexually deviant, even torturously so. Basically a pretty fucked up dude, he once cut a prostitute and dripped candle wax on the wounds to get off (sound familiar to anyone?). A bit harsh for a description of Natsu's experiments, but our Lucy has always been a bit of an over-reactionary…

 **Bellevue Hospital on Blackwell's Island** \- the famous insane asylum the investigative journalist Nellie Bly infiltrated, posing as a patient to reveal the inhumane conditions in late 19th Century asylums.

 **Sorcerer's Apprentice** \- not really a book reference, sorry, but the idea of progressively out of control magical dancing brooms continually splashing her with mud was too good to pass up.

 **kindred spirit** \- a phrase common in _Anne of Green Gables_ by Lucy Maud Montgomery

 **Special thanks to Juliastes for reminding me about Mr. Cursey and the adventures of Fire-Lucy. Totally fucking perfect. Also, before I get all kinds of messages about how Yuri was not, in fact, ever a Master of Fairy Tail, IT'S A JOKE! which flows better and makes more sense for two guys dicking around in the library. Makarov is in Russia (though his father went to Magnolia University! Foreshadowing of what is to come maybe? hehe) and Mavis is a girl, so she couldn't have been in Fairy Tail Fraternity. Therefore, I will pull the artistic license card and leave it at that.  
**


	7. Operation Purify

**Ok, so this literally just got done, so I will definitely be coming back to do a final edit run-through, but I didn't want to leave you hanging. This chapter got out of hand. Everyone had something to say, so my gift to you: 3,000 more words than usual. Probably all in the author notes at the end. So. Many. References! *gets the crazy eyes*  
**

* * *

Levy hated seeing her dearest friend miserable. And she had been miserable. For days on end now.

When her bubbly blonde friend had burst into her apartment at the crack of 7:30am again that first Friday of the semester, exclaiming to Levy about soulmates and reincarnation, and how she shared her skin with some guy who was probably destined to complete her—heart, body, and soul—Levy had seen stars (well, first she had rubbed her eyes and made her repeat it all, and _then_ she had seen stars). For a moment she had even been jealous. A skin-linked soulmate sounded like something straight out of a Gabaldon novel—or something by Katie MacAlister…mm hot-sexy-dragon-men—and Levy's love life had been subsisting on fictional sexual tension since it went stagnant freshman year of high school. Coincidentally, that seemed to happen when she had become friends with Jet and Droy…

But Lucy apparently didn't see it as a madly romantic encounter, destined by the stars and steamy in the extreme. And when Levy took a second to think it through, it made perfect sense. The poor girl had never been allowed, in her whole life, to make a single decision for herself, and then, when she finally gains her freedom, BAM! Her soulmate is chosen for her, without the Fates of the universe even consulting her on the matter! The very nerve of the old harpies!

So Levy had sworn right then and there that she would free her friend from this bond! She had founded Operation Soulmate Research on the spot and transformed into her secret alter ego: The Majestic Bookworm! Ace-researcher by day and freakishly-fast paper writer by night! Donning a short, form-fitting orange dress (because even The Majestic Bookworm could use all the help she could muster getting a decent date) and a matching headband, she put on the super special red reading glasses her parents had given her last Christmas, and was ready to embark on her mission to the library.

And then she remembered that she had class in half an hour.

The research would have to wait.

BUT after her classes were over on Friday, she had raced to the library and stuck her handy-dandy, laminated "Occupied: Go the fuck away." sign on the archway to her newfound favorite study nook in the southeast corner of the third floor, staking her claim against the non-existent throng of campus library-goers. She had arrived at campus for the semester a week early and spent the entire time getting to know her new hunting grounds; the library that would feed her avaricious hunger for knowledge for at least the next four years. She had carefully calculated—based on ventilation patterns, window placement, student traffic paths, decibel measurements, and many furniture squishiness tests—which study space was the best in the building. Then she had stolen the best furniture, with some help from her tall and gullible man-friends, so that she had the optimum height and comfort combinations in her new Bookworm Cave, an invaluable base of operations for any super-researcher and her intrepid heroine friend.

The Majestic Bookworm did NOT fuck around with research. It was serious business. Kings and conquerors had fallen due to poorly informed advisors, and Levy was not going to let her liege-lady down! This consigliere was not going to leave the capo della sua famiglia in dolore emotivo! It was her job, as the snake that tempted Lucy from the Eden of Heartfilia Manor with the fruit of knowledge from the tree of popular culture, to protect her investment. She was fostering the perfect friendship here, and nothing would screw that up. For the first time, Levy had a friend who had not only asked to share her inner sanctum, but had helped her steal the furniture. The idea that a man could ruin that had her blood on a rolling boil. What were men to rocks and mountains? The rocks of bonded sisterhood, and the mountains of common interest, that is. Even, when that long envisioned day arrived that her Prince Charming/Benedict/Mr. Darcy/Noah Webster/D'Artagnan/Odysseus/Heathcliff/Casanova finally swept into her life, her friendship with Lucy would always come first.

So, though she longed for a soulmate/perfect-perspicacious-storybook-heartthrob of her own, the momentarily crestfallen expression on Lucy's face had had her inner-feminist screaming nasty things about destiny and its unending tendency to steal the freewill of woman-kind everywhere. There had to be a way to free the sister of her heart, as close as her own blood, from the red shackles of fate! Words were her medium, her vehicle, her je ne sais quoi! And with the right words in her hands, anything was possible! Even side-tracking the long yellow car of foreshadowing coming to run over Lucy. If anyone was going to be running someone down, it would be Lucy doing the driving. With a fabulous hat.

No one told Lucy Heartfilia what her life would be! Not anymore!

With this rallying cry thundering in her inner ear, The Majestic Bookworm crusaded out into the wilds of the non-fiction floor and began compiling. A super-researcher was only as good as her resources after all, and nobody knew the ink and paper jungle better than Levy.

Within two hours she had built a sturdy wall of tomes around her carefully chosen desk and made good progress through her stacks, but had achieved mixed results. She had promised to wait for Lucy before diving into the blog she had found, so she was doing as much background research as she could. So far the religious section had yielded a range of results on reincarnation (no surprise there), but the subject of soulmates had turned up close to nothing, and Levy was beginning to pine for the plethora of predictable prose she was used to sifting through, picking and choosing the choicest of its fruits, weaving an unbreakable weft of argument around warps of undeniably substantiated fact! (She always waxed poetical when the bulwarks of ignorance caged her in at every turn!) And the culprit was clear.

This new library had it in for her.

Levy huffed the bangs out of her eyes for the twelfth time in the last minute and steadily proceeded to lose her shit. Releasing a strangled cry of rage at the injustice of her precious wordy friends keeping the mysteries of life from joining her ever expanding bank of knowledge, she swept her 40 or so pages of annotated bibliography on reincarnation sources off the table and into the air, pouting as the pages fluttered to the floor. She would pick them up later. (What was the point of adding page numbers if you weren't going to toss your notes into the air every once in a while?)

Right now, she had a bone to pick with the heart of this library. Exiting her crenelated castle of literature, and strutting forward to linger beneath the arch to what she had previously considered her own personal Cave of Wonders, her eyes roamed the suddenly hostile environment she had once trusted, searching for an indication of where she could find the evil demon who had turned her books against her.

So basically she was looking for the biggest dictionary they had. That was always where the heart of any library could be found.

Jet, a friend (and not-so-secret admirer) of Levy's who had been heading toward her new second home to say hi, saw her piercing glare sweeping over her most treasured domain with distain…and promptly turned tail and ran like the wind. Levy was tiny and adorable. Until she came up against a subject she couldn't find information on (or she saw someone mistreating a book…the day Droy drowned his horticulture textbook would forever live in infamy!). Then she was a feral wildebeest, whose over-active imagination made every molehill of a setback into Mount Doom, complete with flowing lava and a sense of betrayal that had her leaping over Sam to straight up murder the innocent bystander who had (in her fever-crazed eyes) dared to bite the proverbial ring that was the perfect potential primary source from her hand, taking her finger with it (which seemed to factor on her scale of importance somewhere between the value of her first born child and a first edition copy of War and Peace, in the original Russian). It didn't happen often, but when it did, the only solution was to run, and run fast. He had to warn Droy! The poor guy was going over to water her plants tonight, surrounded by her goddamned personal library! He had no idea what he was walking into!

As Jet dashed out the front door of the library, he passed a familiar blonde, Levy's friend (he couldn't remember her name, Hot or not, all other girls faded away next to Levy…when she wasn't a raging library-cat protecting her young), almost grabbing her to take with him. But he thought better of it. You didn't have to run faster than the bear, just faster than the friend who dared you to poke it.

Lucy rushed up to an admittedly disheveled and ornery looking Levy and reverently held out a single thin volume, like the Holy Grail, blissfully oblivious to how close to the flames she danced. Then, she unknowingly said the one thing that could save her from the cavernous maw that was Levy's misplaced righteous anger in that moment:

"Look what someone was checking-back-in to the library when I walked in! Together Again: An Examination of the Myths Surrounding Soulmates and Reincarnation, doesn't that sound just like what we are looking for?!"

Levy's eyes shone brightly through the haze clouding them and looked upon her John the Baptist, bringer of good news, the servant sent to hail the arrival of the sacred word! The library hadn't betrayed her, he patrons had! And she had accepted that fact years ago! People could never be as trustworthy as books. And facts were comforting.

Grinning, and genuinely overwhelmed with affection for her friend, Levy took the book from her and threw her arms around her lux in tenebris. From the moment Lucy had entered her life, she had brought the exponential luminosity from which her name derived, so if anyone was going to throw open the shades in her hour of darkness, it would be her.

Lucy, confused by the hug, but always feeling slightly starved for affection and human contact _(Ladies did not initiate affection),_ hugged her back and proceeded to tell Levy all about the questions her alleged "soulmate" had come up with to ask her. They worked together to get the reincarnation notes back in order and whipped out their laptops to crack open Bisca's blog.

All in all, thought Levy, it was a pretty productive afternoon!

* * *

The next two weeks had rolled through, knocking down Lucy at every turn (both literally and metaphorically). Levy's once impeccably dressed, and quaffed, neighbor now could care less what her hair looked like, or how big the bags were under her eyes. She had taken to wearing yoga pants with every outfit. She skittered around, hiding from everyone but Levy, and silently endured the in-depth scientific experiment her life had become.

Bisca's blog had unfolded in an increasingly familiar tale, so much so that it was impossible to deny that Lucy was going through the same phenomenon. The most startling fact that came up in the blog was something else altogether.

 ** _"When I saw his face today, I instantly knew we had met before. Sifting through my portfolio of work, I discovered that we actually met several years ago on a photo shoot for a trick-shooting competition. It was only right before he got the tattoo on his hand that he moved out to Bosco, in a neighboring town. Perhaps relative location plays a factor? It remains to be seen at this point though…"_**

And, all signs pointed to Alzack certainly being Bisca's soulmate, especially considering the role reincarnation played in the matter. Shortly after their bond made itself evident, Bisca had written about the dreams she experienced, what she believed to be memories of her past lives.

 ** _"I had the oddest dream last night. I was dressed in animal skins and carrying a spear, hunting with a tribe of women, when we came across a tribe of men. Alzack was there. His hair longer and wilder, but undeniably him. We encountered one another and became lovers. I believe this is one of my past lives, perhaps the very first."_**

 ** _"The dreams are becoming more frequent. Time and time again, I dream of us finding and loving one another in past reincarnations of ourselves. Every time, we look almost the same…it seems impossible, for surely someone would have noticed if identical people kept showing up throughout history, but maybe it is something unique to bonded pairs like us? Maybe it is what allows us to remember and find one another…only time will tell…if then."_**

Lucy had not yet experienced this, to her knowledge, though, it was very difficult to remember anything about a dream in general when one was constantly under siege by science. If these experiments didn't stop soon, there would be hell to pay! Levy needed her fucking friend back! Not to mention Lucy was using up all the hot water in the building with her ridiculously frequent showers…

So, processing what she had learned from Bisca, Levy had focused her research on how to expunge past lives. If the bond was because of their past lives being linked, then maybe it could be cleansed away if the cycle of reincarnation was stopped. Thus Operation Purify was born.

According to her research, there was actually quite a lot of focus on overcoming one's past lives. Some of the oldest civilizations—the Greeks, the Chinese, the Ancient Fiorians, even the aboriginal tribes of Africa and Desierto—had built religions around the idea that a soul is reincarnated into different bodies, and most of them had some form of redemption, or purification, that allowed a way out.

It was the loophole Levy was searching for.

Cobbling a bigger picture together out of the many different views (as was her specialty) she had come to believe that the key lay in remembering one's past lives. In Buddhism, there was a practice of purification called Jivamala, in which one tried to purify oneself of one's past lives by remembering them, in order to free one's immortal soul from eternal reincarnation. _If you could break the cycle of reincarnation, and soulmates depended on reincarnation_ , Levy reasoned, _then logically, one could break the chain that bound one soulmate to another, giving back freewill and independence to the afflicted bonded pairs._ So, taking that idea one step further, Levy switched gears and chased her trail of bullet points and footnotes to rituals and practices that helped one access the memories of one's past lives.

There were some interesting practices in Buddhism, though they required a lot of time and a complete change in one's way of life, which was not particularly helpful to the current problem.

In contrast, the Zentopian practices were a bit extreme: almost cult-like in their ritual, with an emphasis on sin and retribution to be paid for those sins committed in past lives. There were some very zealous followers of the Church of Zentopia who even resorted to self-harm as retribution for said sins, which would in turn rid them of the distractions of their current lives, so they could focus internally more completely, remembering their past incarnations and beginning then to atone for them.

Conversely, those following the Way of Nirvana, a religious practice among the northern Native Fiorians, believed they could help remember their past lives by being sinful again, sometimes sparking a regressed memory and then chasing that to reveal a chain of past similar sins, so they could flip the switch and turn to lives of purity and freedom.

Those also didn't seem like something Lucy would be interested in trying…though watching the pure and innocent heiress trying to commit sins of lust would certainly make for an amusing afternoon. When Levy had first met Lucy, she had been shocked to hear the stacked and svelte bombshell was still a virgin. But her naivety about sex, and pretty much everything else, was just one of the "gifts" she had inherited for being born a Heartfilia. Levy was determined that she would have her pick of the litter. Though no one seemed interested in a flat-chested-super-nerd like herself (oh if she only knew the lengths to which Jet and Droy had gone to ensure that!), she was positive she could at least spice up her friend's love life. And if she had a future author for a best friend to live vicariously through, more the better. And so, she set her nose to the grindstone and branched out to unconventional sources, looking for a way to jump start the past-life-memory-mill.

* * *

Across campus in the necessarily solid structure that was Fairy Tail frat-house, Gray was preparing with glee for the next experiment on Natsu's test subject. Natsu had adopted the name Weirdo for her, but anyone that flame-brain thought was weird didn't merit the title. Plus, he already had a growing respect for her, as a chick who could hold her own in a conversation, and piss off his roommate to boot. But he didn't yet know her actual name, so he just referred to her as "she" or "her" or "our friend". Natsu and he were the only ones who knew about her, so it worked well enough.

He had been a well-entertained observer for the last week, while Natsu tried his best to make the girl break. It had become a bit of a game with them. Natsu needed to define the parameters of his situation, but he was lousy at thinking up experiments; most of them just near-death experiences or reject Fear Factor challenges. He was just asking to be messed with. So, with an offhand comment one night, early in the week, Gray had issued a challenge that the idiot couldn't ignore.

"That girl is completely unshakable. You have done shit to her that nobody would fucking endure without complete mental breakdown, and she, with only a little well-deserved sass, just keeps answering every goddamned question. At this rate, I think you'll break before she does."

And with the famous competitive nature of Natsu Dragneel now in the mix, they had a ballgame. It was almost too easy.

Since that day, Gray had gotten him to do unspeakable things to himself in the name of victory (and science, a little), with absolutely zero repercussions. It was like the easiest one-sided prank war he had ever participated in. When Gray had dared him to use Vijeeter's Epi-Pen (it was almost expired so he had to replace it soon anyway to keep on hand for his nasty bee allergy), he had thought Natsu would hit his limit. But after a moment of hesitation, and a well-placed triumphant smirk on Gray's part, Natsu had grabbed the thing from his break-dancing-brother's hand and promptly stabbed himself in the ass with a shot of epinephrine.

The effects were immediate. For almost a full ten hours, he didn't quit moving. It was hilarious and stunning to behold.

Because, though Natsu's energy was at an all-time high and he could barely sit still enough to even eat, he didn't fight a single person. There were a couple of times where he went to hit someone, just to let out the pent up energy that oozed from his skin, and have the brawl he was clearly itching for, but every time he checked himself and pulled his punches, shadow-boxing and jogging in place instead.

It was completely unheard of. Natsu lived to fight—and blow stuff up—but fighting had always been number one on his list of favorite things to do. Any excuse to start a brawl, he did it. And he was damn good at it, usually taking on five or six guys with hardly a scratch to show for it. Gray was, of course, an exception, but he had made a promise, in one of their rare serious moments, not to initiate anything. For _her_ sake. When he made that promise, he thought it would be a moot point. A Natsu that didn't solve all of his problems with either fists or fire? Unheard of. But he had stayed true to his word. After that first morning when Gray had learned about _her_ , Natsu hadn't fought once.

And the whole house had noticed. A betting pool the size of Bosco was growing daily. Everyone watched breathless to see if today would be the day that he broke his streak. The minute the adrenaline syringe had hit his hand, Bacchus (who was such a good gambler he had been made bookie to keep him from fleecing the whole house) had been flooded with new wagers. It was established that for the bet, Natsu had to be the one to throw the first punch, so the brothers of Fairy Tail gathered to heckle and witness the miracle of a non-pugilistic Natsu, hopped up on adrenaline.

He tried everything he could to relieve the itch in his blood. At one point he started doing push-ups, challenging multiple people to see who could do more. He won against ten consecutive guys before losing interest and juggling shit instead. Which led to a hilarious number of misshapen objects being chucked at him to juggle, most of which broke on the floor or his face. Yet, he still didn't throw a punch.

But this new test would really test his will-power. Not even Natsu could let someone kick him in the balls and not retaliate. It was a biological imperative. Unless it was from a woman, the only response hard-wired into the male brain was a sturdy punch to the face, or stomach. So Gray had bet a week's worth of wages on today being the day Natsu lost his bet to himself. And Gray got to be the lucky sucker who clocked him in the gonads. Yes, it would mean he would get punched in return, but for the monetary returns, it was nothing he hadn't gone through before.

The rest of the house didn't know the real reason behind Natsu's odd behavior, believing Natsu had lost a series of bets to Gray and was now paying his price. So they gathered to see the outcome of this most recent trial of Natsu's endurance with baited breath. Would their weeks of doubling down be paid out today? The pot was getting pretty weighty.

So Gray approached the pinkette through the crowd surrounding him, his fellow brothers parting for him as hands came out to give him hearty slaps on the back in solidarity. Natsu was experiencing similar support and expressions of sympathy. No one was looking forward to what was to come. Natsu's face was set and determined though. His eyes immediately found Gray's as he made his way to the center of the house basement, where all impromptu fight club events were held, per house rules following the WWF Halloween Party of '01. The determination in them dulled Gray's enjoyment a bit. He was, after all, about to break the number one bro-code rule, even it was upon request. Meeting Natsu's gaze with the seriousness the situation called for, Gray stripped off his shirt. Natsu did the same, for form's sake. All fighting events in Fairy Tail basement were conducted shirtless, following the rental tuxedo disaster of '05. That particularly ruckus event had also prompted the rule that Fairy Tail fraternity would never again agree to be a wedding venue…no matter how good the money was.

Gray stepped forward, prepared and willing to do his part in the exploration of science. And Natsu winced a little at his movement, clenching his hands into fists. Gray slid his right foot back and fell into a low fighting stance. Just as he shifted his weight to strike, Natsu cried out.

"Wait! Someone tie my hands together!" He pulled the scarf from his neck and held it out, keeping his eyes on Gray. _Damnit,_ thought Gray. _There went my easy winnings_. Pissed off now, Gray jumped in place to keep up his angry adrenaline while Romeo tied Natsu's hands snuggly behind his back and swiftly stepped away from the doomed prisoner.

The minute Romeo was clear, Gray darted forward and kneed his roommate where the sun didn't shine. Better to be surprised then have time to anticipate.

Natsu's muscles bulged as his arms strained against his scarf, a roar escaping his throat as he fell to the floor, unable to stay balanced with his hands restrained. A string of cuss words the likes of which the house had never heard, and probably never would again filled the air as Natsu released the frustration and pain in the only way he could. After a full minute of cursing, the air was finally clear and Romeo approached the downed pinkette cautiously to release him. Grinding his teeth together and glaring at Gray like he wanted to tear him to pieces, Natsu dug in his pocket and found a pen, limping back to his room to write to _her._ Gray just stood there watching him go, perplexed. Bacchus sidled up to him with a shot of vodka and gave his condolences for the last winnings he had thought so sure. But Gray was barely listening as he threw back the shot, his eyes never leaving the shuffling idiot he had grown up with.

How the hell was this girl doing what all Natsu's friends, his beloved foster father, and a clinical therapist had been unable to do?! She had to be one hell of a woman.

* * *

Meanwhile, Levy had a breakthrough in Operation Purity, from an unexpected source: the campus billboard. In a digital age, the existence of such a billboard seemed almost magical in itself, a dead medium allowing like-minded individuals to find one another for mutual needs, coming alive at the opportune moment to deliver the exact message needed at the exact time: Wiccan coven seeks new members, call or text the number below for more information. Past life compatibility a must. Retrogression examination of past life provided free of charge.

She had honestly not even been trying; reading the outdated pages of advertisements out of habit as she waited for Jet and Droy to join her for dinner. They had completely bailed on lunch with her a few days ago for some stupid thing going on at their frat, so they were planning on making it up to her and BAM! There it was. Like a message from the gods, waiting to be found. The flyer was several years old, but with a little luck on their side, the phone number was still active. Levy listened to the voicemail message and knew she had struck gold.

"You've reached Ultear Milkovich, facility manager of Crime Sorciere, center for past life regression and penance. Leave your name and number."

Levy left her information and sparkled with her new found success. She couldn't wait to tell Lucy! Forgetting all about Jet and Droy, she ran off to Fairy Hills to tell her the great news. When she arrived and knocked on Lucy's door, she wasn't home. Excitement wilting a little at her absence, Levy returned to her own apartment and decided to try her again in the morning.

Jet and Droy waited all evening. And then went home disappointed.

* * *

Lucy was having a fantastic dream. It had to be one of those past life regressions Bisca kept mentioning.

 _It had started peacefully, with her standing on a deserted bridge over a canal in the middle of the night, watching the streetlights reflecting off the water. The wind ruffled her short hair, lifting and pulling it in every discernible direction. She was dressed to the nines in a navy bias-cut gown that pooled around her bare toes and exposed her entire back to the cool night air. She played with the silk charmeuse between her fingers and hummed to herself as she waited. For what Lucy didn't know._

 _Then his candy apple red convertible screeched to a stop behind her, burning rubber on the road. His odd-colored hair was ruffled from the drive and he still wore driving goggles that concealed the better part of his face. But that didn't matter, she knew it was him, after all, she had called him. Who else would it be?_

 _"You're late," she said, facing him, but remaining in her place, leisurely leaning against the stone railing of the bridge, excitement thrumming through her at the sight of him behind the wheel of such a beautiful vehicle. "Ostentatious little thing isn't it?"_

 _"Red is the only way to go. And my new baby is definitely a she, not an it," the driver retorted as he pushed his goggles off his face and up into his hair. "Ain't she a beaut though? The 1935 Mercedes-Benz 500K Roadster. They sent me the first one off the line. Best perk of being a driver for those pricks. Now, why don't you get that pretty little caboose of yours into my exquisite new roadster so I can give you that lift you were beggin' me for an hour ago." He sent her a confident smirk as he loosened the white silk driving scarf that protected his neck from the rough material of his close-collared wool blazer._

 _Lucy smirked back, but stood her ground, pushing his patience so far as to gather her skirt up in one hand to hop up and sit on the stone barrier she had been leaning against. Setting the pile of silk uncaringly next to her on the limestone, she pulled her skirt up enough to cross her legs, exposing the silk stockings covering her knees as she did so._

 _"Of course it's a she. They always are. Now, why don't you get out of that matchbox and come over here to get me," she taunted, leaning back on her hands on the ledge and throwing her shoulders back to better display her ample bosom. She could feel the night wind whispering over her chest, stimulating all the sensitive nerve endings left wrapped in a single layer of silk in consequence to her backless dress. With lesser men, she would have already had them on their knees…in more ways than one, but her rosy-haired race car driver knew how much she liked a chase. It was what had brought them together in the first place. So, he swallowed down the urge to leap out of the car and nuzzle the nipples he could clearly see pebbling under the dark silk of her gown, and slid the goggles off his head. Running a hand through his wild locks, he leaned over and opened the passenger side door, summoning his usual confident bluster as she locked eyes with him._

 _"Nope, you call me to pick you up from a party you didn't even invite me to, I think you can get your ass off that bridge and onto this Italian leather on your own." He ran a hand suggestively over the pristine ivory seat and up the back, leaving his arm draped, casually over the back, waiting for her to comply. But Lucy wasn't ready to concede the game. She locked eyes with her prey and turned on the ledge, laying her bare back on the stone, uncrossing and bending her legs to rest her bare feet on the barrier. The silk of her dress slid down her thighs, pooling in her lap and cascading to the ground below her. In the lamplight the glisten of her silk stockings gave way to the glow of bare skin and black lace garters. She slowly slid her hands up her body, taking pleasure in the feel of silk covered skin beneath her fingertips as she held his gaze, ending with her hands above her head and sighing._

 _"But it's been such a long night and my feet hurt me so. Won't you carry me to the car?" she cooed slyly, already celebrating her victory as she saw his pupils dilate and zero in on the apex of her legs where her dress was just exposing the lacy edge of her knickers and garter belt._

 _He leapt from the car, willing to concede victory for a much sweeter prize. He always lost this game anyway._

 _Unable to wait another moment without kissing her, he landed on his knees next to her head as his lips crashed onto hers, as desperate as his hand was gentle on the sweep of her neck, coaxing her closer to him. He slid his other arm around her shoulders and across her back, circling all the way around the creamy bared skin and diving back inside her dress, fingers landed on the sensitive underside of her breast as she raised her head towards him greedily. His tongue tasted her open mouth as though it was food and he a starving man, sucking on her lip and biting gently. Lucy moaned, unable to keep up her cool façade any longer under the onslaught of his talented fingers and tongue. The whole thing was so exhilarating and new, yet comfortably familiar._

 _In one swift motion, he stood, pulling her lithe body with him using the arm snugly fitted around her back. She swung her legs around, looping one on his hip before her gown could fall and restrict her movement. Like a choreographed dance his hand slid from her neck to her exposed leg and back up under the edge of her dress. Her other leg sprung up as he got a firm handhold on her silk-clad derriere and she clung to him, pressing herself as close to him as she could get. She yearned to feel every inch of his skin on hers and it drove her to distraction. Her vision blurred and heat crawled over her skin, radiating from where his hot hands and arms pulled her against his toned sportsman's physique._

 _Turning with her in his arms, he released her mouth to greedily suck at the exposed skin of her neck. She arched her back, throwing her head back as he suckled at her skin, exposing her needy breasts to catch his attention. Through the silk his descended on her, the wet material creating friction that she could feel shooting waves of pleasure from the wet heat of her silk-covered core pressed against the hard proof of his own desire. She moaned at the sensation and her eyes closed as he threw her onto the leather seat, diving on top of her and tugging her strap down to get at her other nipple. Running his rough tongue over her now bare bud, he thrust with his hips, pushing his pelvis into hers and sending another moan rolling out of her lips. He kissed his way down her silk-clad torso sliding her skirts up around her waist to expose the lace that had so entranced him earlier. Just as his breath ghosted over her most sensitive nerves she heard a tinny siren cry out._ And suddenly she was awake.

It took a moment for her desire-hazed eyes to focus on the less-real seeming world of her Magnolia apartment. The sound of her doorbell ringing announced what had woken her out of her reverie as she glanced down at herself and suddenly recalled what had transpired at the library the night before. She lay in her red lace panties and nothing else, covered in ND's artwork and throbbing in places she didn't know could ache. She rubbed her thighs together, hoping to ease the feeling and reached for the silk kimono she had picked up on a family business trip to Japan. The feel of the silk on her bare breasts reminded her of the dress in her dream. And what a dream. She had never felt anything like it. It was like grabbing onto a live wire. The pulses of electricity pulsed through her, but she had no ability or inclination to let go. It was absolutely incredible. For the first time, she finally understood what all those romance writers were getting at. And she didn't blame them at all for falling short of the mark. It was…indescribable. To feel that deeply connected with someone, to be so free and unabashed and…excited. It was addicting. Lucy slowly made her way to the door of her apartment, seeing Levy through the peephole and pulling the door open with a whoosh. The air displacement caught the edge of her robe, showing off the drawings on her legs. Levy's eyes widened as she saw first the tiny patterns on her friend's calves and then the dragon laying across her chest

"Hey Levy," Lucy said, wincing at how hoarse her voice sounded and how warm her cheeks still felt. Clearing her throat, she continued, "What's up?"

Levy just stared open-mouthed for a moment before settling into a mischievous smirk and saying smugly,"It looks like we both have a lot to tell each other about last night…"

* * *

The two college co-eds approached the perfectly normal seeming door with caution, each a little spooked about what they were about to take part in, but for different reasons. Lucy was ready for anything at this point. Elphaba could answer the door at this point and she probably wouldn't even flinch.

No, she was torn about why she was there. A week ago, before the magical night in the library and the dream, which she still remembered in feeling, if not exact details, she would have been grasping at the smallest hope of un-bonding herself to the reckless individual who was her soulmate. Yes, she had accepted that fact now. He was clearly _something_ to her, and though it still scared her, and pissed her off…there was also a tiny glimmer of a flutter in her stomach whenever she thought about him. So, while she was certainly curious about what a past life regression entailed, she was also hesitant to do anything that could destroy this sometimes…wonderful...possibility in her life. She wasn't sure that she wanted it gone anymore. Thankfully, she wasn't as confident that this would work the way Levy thought it would. She figured the chances were about 50/50 at this point. She was just enough on the edge to take a chance either way.

Ultear had gotten back to Levy almost immediately, and when the situation had been explained to her (breaking that rule in the name of research, Levy reasoned to Lucy), was eager to see what her group could do to help. So, they had made an appointment for a week later.

And that's why they were standing in front of an old Victorian house, complete with tower and intricate latticework. The door was painted a deep maroon, and an orange tabby stood directly in front of it staring expectantly up at them.

"Is it a familiar, you think?" Levy whispered to her friend.

"I don't know, maybe?" Lucy whispered back.

From behind them, someone cleared their throat. Spinning around quickly, the two girls were faced by a beautiful woman with long, straight black hair, a little older than them and holding two brown paper bags of what appeared to be groceries. The hint of a floral perfume wafted around them as she walked past them to the door.

"Don't mind Milliana," the woman chuckled. "She likes to pretend she knows what she's doing, but she's really hopelessly clueless."

"Is she…really a person then?" Levy ventured, shuffling away from the feline who eyed her.

Ultear gave Levy a skeptical look before opening the door. The tabby meowed enthusiastically and bounded into the house. "No, she's just a typical cat: self-important and a little derpy," the raven-haired woman said with a chuckle. Switching her gaze to the blonde one as she motioned them through the door, she seemed to spark with curiosity, saying, "You must be Lucy. Your aura is out of this world."

And just like that, they were sitting and sipping tea while Ultear settled into a meditation pose and lit a bundle of sage, the homey scent intertwining with her perfume and creating a cloud of pungent scent. Lucy sneezed a couple of times, as quietly as she could.

"Now, Levy, are you sure you want to stay for this? We already know Lucy is bonded, so there is minimal risk to her when I open her second origin and let her past memories flow, but since we have no indication of your own past life experience, there is some element of risk." Ultear implored in a no-nonsense tone. Levy's mind was alive with curiosity and she nodded. She wasn't going anywhere, even if it didn't mean abandoning her friend in her hour of need. This was knowledge in its purest form: experience.

"Ok, but you were warned." And with that, Ultear closed her eyes and took a hold of Lucy's hands, softly chanted to herself. For a moment nothing happened, suspense hanging thick in the air between the women. Then a warm gust of wind blew all of their hair back, eerily sinister feeling in a house with all the windows closed. Ultear's eyes suddenly shot open, her grip tightening on Lucy's hands as she seemed to look right through her.

Then a burst of pain exploded through Lucy's skull, overwhelming her as images assaulted her at an alarming rate. Desperately clawing at her temples, Lucy screamed at the feeling, failing to notice Levy curled up next to her, clutching her blue curls in tiny fists.

The feeling was excruciating; like someone was dragging rusty nails through every memory they had ever had, their mind one raw nerve reacting to the invasion with an ineffective defense of electrical stimuli. Ultear gazed in horror at the two girls writhing in front of her. She had never seen anything like it. No one had ever reacted to a regression like this before, their auras spiking out in bursts of light. Lucy's was pink and light, how a happy aura should appear, if overly active, but Levy's...it was twisted and black, with the metallic tinge of blood to it. It wrapped around her like a blanket, cradling her in darkness. Ultear had released the spell immediately when the screaming had started, but the minutes seemed to drag on without end. Until finally, the aura-spots exploding out of them settled down under their skin again and the girls stopped screaming, exhausted on the floor. They opened their eyes together, looking right at each other. Lucy saw blood dripping down Levy's face with her peripheral vision. The looks of horror on their faces said it all. Their hands found and held each other as though they would fall off the world if they didn't.

What had they done?!

* * *

At Fairy Tail, Gray slowly released the lock he had put on Natsu. Five minutes ago, he had lashed out, bent double in pain and then lashed out again, punching at invisible enemies, eyes wide yet unseeing. To keep him from hurting himself, like he sometimes did when he had episodes like this, Gray had immediately locked him down with a hold from behind. He had seen him fighting off the imaginary adversaries many times over the years, but never had he winced in such pain while doing so. As Natsu came back to himself, completely oblivious to the destruction he had caused around him before Gray had gotten to him, he found it hard to breath as his senses amplified, his hands were warm with pressure, as though someone held them tightly, when he could clearly see they were empty. The light coming from the lamp in the room brightened, almost painfully, and he choked on the stench of perfume and what smelled like some kind of herb. Scrambling with watering eyes to the floor by his desk, Natsu grabbed his red pen and scribbled out a message on his arm,

 **ARE YOU OK?! WHAT WAS THAT?!**

He didn't receive an answer right away, but he waited.

* * *

Across town a tall man with wild black hair down to his waist wiped the blood from his eyebrow where it had been cut on the edge of the counter as he fell to the floor.

What the fuck was that!?

* * *

 **Ok guys, I included some of the more obscure vocabulary and language translations for you as well at the literary references this week, since Levy is just on a-whole-nother level. As always, if I missed something let me know, or go get your ass a dictionary! Or, fine, just Google it.**

 **In regard to reviews, holy-guest-invasion Batman! I loved hearing from all of you, but I want to answer your questions and commiserate with you, but I can't PM you if you aren't logged in! So a blanket thank you to all new guests, and a short message to repeat guest who gave me the tidbit on Bisca-I liked it better for good reasons and changed it because of that. CrimsonLink and I already talked about it, and he came around. But that explanation was as beautiful piece of vindication. It's so gratifying to know there are still people out there who know how to write in complete sentences! lol**

 **But seriously guys, log in, I want to fangirl out with all your glorious brains! As for everyone else, as I said, totally crazy weekend, but I read all of your reviews and will still get back to you, though it may be a combo if you review on this chapter.**

 **And now, the glossary that came with this chapter:**

 **Gabaldon-** referring to Diana Gabaldon, author of the Outlander series, historical time traveling romance featuring a pair of time-crossed lovers. Outstanding series if you haven't embarked, but be prepared to dedicate your life to this for a month, because the seven absolutely addicting main novels (not even counting the side novellas) range from 600 to 1100 pages. BUT SO GOOD!

 **Katie MacAlister-** a favorite supernatural romance novelist of mine, she has several short series, focusing on drop dead sexy vampires (see what I did there?hehe) and sizzling hot dragon men mostly. Hilarious supernatural romance at it's finest.

 **The Fates/harpies-** I've mentioned them before, so this is the last footnote you get on them, Greek bitches who control the destinies of mortals, harpies are actually a totally different creature, half woman and half bird whose sole job it is to torment those unlucky sinners who end up in the Tartarus, doomed to an eternal afterlife of unending and pointless tasks. Levy is a sophisticated researcher who thinks on a pretty high level, so I had her combine the use of the term "harpy" as an insult now, with the ancient Greek mythology behind it, creating the perfect insult when referring to the Fates.

 **What were men to rocks and mountains**?-another Pride and Prejudice reference

 **Prince Charming** -duh.

 **Benedict** -referring to the male protagonist of Mr. Shakespeare's Much Ado about nothing, known for his witty repartee

 **Mr. Darcy** -main protagonist of Jane Austen's Pride and Prejudice, this is the last Darcy footnote you get

 **Noah Webster** -the author of the famous Webster's Dictionary, Levy has a bit of a thing for him…

 **D'Artagnan-** the main protagonist of Alexander Dumas' The Three Musketeers, handsome, dashing and loyal

 **Odysseus** -the main protagonist of the Odyssey, epic poem attributed to Homer, known for journeying 20 years to reach home and his wife again (we're going to ignore all the affairs he had along the way…jackass)

 **Heathcliff** -main protagonist of Wuthering Heights by Emily Bronte, known for his violent tempers and abusive tendencies, but also his unbreakable love with the tempestuous Catherine

 **Casanova-** historical figure and author from Italy, known for his womanizing ways, but also his excellent grasp of romance, we can draw from this and the others listed, that Levy is looking for a whirlwind romance where she is swept off her feet by the adventure of it all…perhaps an unrealistic goal with her newly discovered soulmate that we all know and love…hehe

 **Perspicacious-** having a ready insight into and understanding of things

 **Capo della sua famiglia in dolore emotive-** Italian for **"** head of her family in emotional pain", used to pair with the common mob term **consigliere** —the right hand advisor of the head of an Italian crime family.

 **je ne sais quoi-** French term meaning "I do not know what" basically a quality that is indescribable but invaluable

 **Long yellow car of foreshadowing-** definitely a Great Gatsby reference. That book is so full of imagery it forgot to have a plot, so I couldn't resist. Especially implying that Lucy would be playing the part of Daisy, the embodiment of desire, who accidentally kills Myrtle driving Gatsby's car. I'm not sure who Myrtle is in this scenario, but that's just Levy's convoluted mind for you…and maybe some foreshadowing for Lucy's future love rival…ssshhhh…you saw nothing…

 **Crenelated-** the uneven edge usually found of the top of a stereotypical castle wall, formed by the battlements that archers hide behind in between shots

 **Cave of wonders-** refers to the original tale of Aladdin and the Forty Thieves, sanctuary to hide his stolen treasure, protected by the famous magic password, Open Sesame.

 **Mt. Doom…taking her finger with it** -reference to the climax of Return of the King in which Gollum, in his greed for the One Ring, bites off Frodo's finger to get it and falls into the volcano. If this was a spoiler for you, you live under a rock and it's not my fault.

 **Holy Grail** -the chalice that Jesus supposedly drank from at the last supper, generally known to possess magical powers that grant the drinker, be he worthy, the gift of eternal life, the goal of the mythical King Arthur's crusades

 **John the Baptist… the sacred word** -biblical references to John the Baptist, son of Elizabeth who was recognized Jesus in the womb, was born several months before him and came before him to prepare the masses for his good news/presence/bringing on the word of God…basically Levy is having raptures that equal a religious experience…she has a tendency to hyperbole, if you hadn't figured that one out yet…

 **Lux in tenebris** -Latin for "light in the darkness"

 **Elphaba** -originally from _Wicked_ : The Life and Times of the _Wicked_ Witch of the West, the spin-off novel of the Wizard of Oz by Gregory Maguire, and later the well-known musical Wicked by Stephen Schwartz, Elphaba is the first name of the future Wicked Witch of the West. A word to anyone wanting to read this novel, it is LOADS weirder than the musical. There is a scene in a philosophers club a four-way bestiality sex romp. It's one of the weirdest things I've ever read. Well-written, but totally bizarre. And nothing like the musical.


	8. A Gift for You of Perfume

**Sooooooo many great reviews and follows/favorites again! And I have gotten so many great ideas PMing with you guys! Thank you! (And a reminder for guests to sign-in so I can PM you back!)**

 **I decided to set a goal for myself. I might be an over-acheiver. You know, maybe.**

 **Currently this story is sitting at 135 follows and 84 reviews right before posting Chapter 8 (freaking out over here btw)! So, I'm shooting for 200 followers and 150 reviews by Chapter 10...if we make it, I will post a double length Chapter 11...so somewhere around 10,000 words. If a miracle happens and we hit 200 reviews, I will get Natsu and Lucy super drunk to celebrate! Interested?** **(Don't lie, you know you've been looking forward to it!)  
**

* * *

Natsu sneezed repeatedly and rubbed his burning eyes. This was just getting ridiculous. He glanced at the message on his arm and sneezed again, starting to get worried.

 **ARE YOU OK?! WHAT WAS THAT?!**

She still hadn't answered, it had been almost five minutes and still no response, just the subsiding pain in his head and his eyes watering with the brightness flooding into them. But they were slowly adjusting, the brightness settling into a vibrant world full of new shades of color he had never noticed before. But his eyes kept watering, tears rolling down his cheeks for the first time in years, and that terrible floral and herby-scent diving up his nose and into his sinuses. He sneezed again, trying to dislodge it. His head swiveled around trying to figure out where it came from.

That was when he noticed Gray, sitting—shirtless, of course—on the floor leaning up against the couch, a carefully blank look on his face as he stared at Natsu.

"What?" Natsu inquired, a little annoyed.

"Dude, you're crying," was Gray's deadpanned response. He did not do well with displays of excessive emotion. "You have a flashback again, or what?"

"No, it was something different. Sort of like a flashback, but about totally different stuff…and I'm not crying! My eyes just won't quit watering. It's like allergies or something! This smell is driving me nuts!" He swore again as another fit of sneezing hit him.

"What smell?" Gray arched an eyebrow and took a breath in, trying to figure out what the hell his roommate was talking about.

"What do you mean, what smell?! It's like I just walked into a perfume store run by a new-age hippie who does nothing but burn incense. It's fucking everywhere! Where is it coming from?!" His head swung around again, uselessly.

Gray just raised his other eyebrow and whistled low before saying, "I'm telling you, I can't smell anything. Except the usual. You know, man smell." He sat up a little further and his eyes widened. "Wait, if it wasn't a flashback, was it _her_? What did you write to her?! Is she ok? Maybe the smell is coming from her end!"

"Nah, can't be…" Natsu said unconvincingly, even to himself. "I tested that. We don't share senses….at least, we didn't last week. But _something_ just happened. She was in incredible pain. I don't know what it was because she WON'T WRITE BACK!" He finished, spiraling into a panic once more. Realizing he still held the pen gripped in his fist, he tried again.

 **HEY Weirdo! you there?!**

Then, finally, a message came back.

 _Yeah, I'm ok, I think._ But it was odd, the minute the words appeared, parts of all the words on his arm blurred, running off his arm like he was standing in the rain. His eyes watered again, flooding his vision and a thought hit him.

 **are you crying?**

 _Yes, sorry, didn't mean to hit the words._ Shit. She was crying. She was making him cry. Or rather, he was somehow crying _her_ tears. Something had definitely happened. And something had _definitely_ changed.

 **my eyes are crying too though. what the hell happened?** He paused before adding the next sentence. He was really bad at this stuff, but for some reason, he couldn't stand the thought of her in tears. Plus, his shirt was getting pretty soaked. **can I help somehow? please don't cry.**

Well, that didn't work, he thought as the tears flooded his eyes again.

 **nvm! cry all you need to! but, can you tell me what's going on? I'm experiencing some kind of trippy stuff over here.** Then it felt like someone wiped his tears away, his face drier than before. Whoa. He COULD feel touch on her skin now. And her eyes watering up again. Panicking at the thought, he unthinkingly turned to Gray.

"Hug me!"

"What the FUCK?" Gray responded, eyebrows jumping back up as he leaned as far away from the crazy pinkette as possible.

"Gray, she's crying! And we can somehow transfer touch now! I can't hug myself, it's just not the same! So you have to hug me. I don't know what's going on, but I've got to get her to stop crying! I…just…HAVE TO!" Natsu sprang to his feet, eyes spilling over again. He dashed them away with the back of his hand, not sure if they were coming from her or himself at this point. His eyes stayed on Gray, determined, as another tear rolled down his cheek.

Gray, hesitated for a moment then swore and hauled himself to his feet.

"Fuck. You think she's really hurting that bad?"

"Yeah, she's really hurting that bad."

And that was all it took. Gray liked her. He basically had no choice. Before he could think about it any more, he closed his eyes and wrapped his arms around Natsu tightly. Natsu felt the tears stop for a moment and grinned, writing on his arm awkwardly behind Gray's spiky black hair.

"We speak of this to no one. Ever. Got that flame-brain?!" Gray muttered through gritted teeth. Natsu just grunted and ignored him.

 **better?**

 _Yeah, how are you doing that? It feels like you're hugging me!_

 **Gray is helping.**

 _Gray? Is that your roommate?_ Oops, so much for the no names policy. Whatever, wasn't _his_ name, so it didn't really matter anyway. But she had stopped crying. It was working…he just had to keep her talking. What else could he say? That wasn't about whatever had just happened to her…

 **yeah, he's a fan btw. thinks you're pretty fucking tough to put up with all my crap.**

Gray tried to turn his head and see what Natsu was writing.

"Is this working, you dumbass? Because if it's not and I'm just standing here hugging you for nothing, I'm going to punch you so hard you'll be knocked out cold!" He shifted uncomfortably, his grip lessening slightly. Human contact made him uncomfortable. Particularly with people he knew really well. It was so much easier to share space with someone he barely knew.

"It's working! It's working!" Natsu said, pounding Gray on the back in encouragement. "She totally stopped crying! I'm trying to keep her distracted now, but you better stay put for a bit," Natsu said offhandedly, sparing Gray the minimum amount of his attention as he read what she was writing back. Invasion of personal space had never really bothered him. Though, he couldn't remember the last time he had hugged anyone…it had been a while. Weird.

 _That's because I am. You're a bit of a masochist Mr. Matches. Tell him thank you from me. I apparently really needed this._ Wait, did she just call herself weird? No, she can't hear my thoughts. Right?! He concentrated on his thoughts for a second and tried thinking,"Natsu Dragneel is the king of Fiore"... Nothing back. Nope, definitely couldn't read his thoughts. Thank the gods for that.

"Is she explaining what happened?...Fire Breath?...Hello?" Natsu ignored Gray and returned to the conversation.

 **It was my idea!** He could actually feel her eyes roll. What a weird fucking feeling. Then he re-read what she had written. **wait, Mr Matches?**

 _Yeah, that's what I've been calling you…because of the "buy matches" thing…though I guess ND is more accurate now, huh?_

Natsu's mind immediately flashed back to that night about a week ago. Shit. He had signed his artwork. He hadn't even thought about it, it was muscle memory at this point. Well, she knew his initials now. Not like it really mattered anyway, that was her stupid rule after all. He struggled for something else to say to keep her focused on their conversation.

"Natsu, I swear to gods if you do not tell me what she is writing, I will kick you in the balls again!" Gray finally huffed, still trying to look behind him without releasing his arms. Natsu quickly stuck his arm out to the side where Gray could see it. Gray read it and huffed again, tightening his grip slightly, a light blush tinting his cheeks for reasons he could not understand, "You didn't tell me she said thank you, you flamin' bastard." Natsu ignored him, pulling his arm forward again to write on.

 **yeah, that was a crazy night. guess you know my initials now.**

 _I guess I do._ She paused before writing again. _Did you see things just now? Like flashes? Memories?_

Natsu thought back to the painful torrent of images he had been assaulted with a few moments ago went he went into auto-self-defense mode. It reminded him of something…like a dream. Wait! That dream! About the blonde chick! Thinking back, he thought it may have been the same girl in the painful-mental-slideshow-on-steroids that had just happened.

 **do you have blonde hair? fairly long?** He inhaled sharply, waiting. Gray heard him and immediately demanded to know what she said.

"Shut up, I'm waiting on her to answer me!" Natsu furrowed his eyebrows and willed his arm to respond quicker. She was thinking. He could almost feel her brain running through her options.

"What did you say then?" Gray said, exasperated. Honestly, at this point he had totally forgotten he was hugging his best friend. He just wanted to know what the fuck was going on. It was like watching someone whisper in front of him. He was dying to know what she was saying. Natsu stuck out his arm for him to read quickly then pulled it back where it was so he could continue to stare at the place her answer would appear.

"Where did that come from? Why do you think she's blonde?" Gray was confused. It didn't make a lot of sense. "Did you see something just now? I thought you said it wasn't a flashback…"

"It wasn't, not like usual anyway, but I saw these fast flashes of images. Kind of like flipping through the channels really fast on TV. But I had a dream that was really similar to them a couple of weeks ago, about this really hot blonde chick. Like ridiculously stacked, how she stayed upright, I have no idea. I think," here Natsu paused as her answer appeared on his arm. He finished in a breath, "it's her."

 _Yes. How did you know that?_

"Really? Not only is she intelligent and tough, but a fucking babe too? How the fuck are you this fucking lucky?!"

Natsu ignored the irate man hugging him, and hurriedly wrote back.

 **I think I'm seeing you. in my dreams. and just now. how are you doing that? have we met? I feel like I remember you from somewhere.**

 _I don't know. Maybe it isn't me…but I had a crazy dream too…was that really you?_

 **I don't know. what did I look like?** Wait, did that even make sense? Whatever, she knew what he meant.

"Dude, what is going on? Flame-brain?"

 _I can't really remember. It's a bit hazy. The dream was a week ago or so. Right after you drew that dragon on us._

 **Atlas Flame**

 _What?_

 **his name. the dragon. I named him Atlas Flame**

"Cinder-Face! Earth to Squinty Eyes! Pyro!"

 _Of course you did... But that's beside the point. What do you look like? Maybe it will help me remember!_

 **doesn't that break one of your rules?**

 _Sort of, but you already know I'm blonde. Give me something to work with here. It's only fair._ He could actually feel her pouting. _What color is your hair?_

"Flame Breath, would you please stay focused! What is she saying? Is it her?"

 **You wouldn't believe me if I told you.** Fucking salmon hair. Fucking undermining him again. He couldn't even tell a girl what color his hair was without warning her first. Plus, what were the chances she dreamed about a guy with pink hair. SHIT! Salmon! Salmon hair!

 _Try me._ His chest felt a little tight. Like she was holding her breath. She was really serious about this. Maybe she wouldn't comment on it. Everyone did, but…maybe she would be different. She seemed different.

"Crazy Flame Spewer, will you fucking pay attention? Can you even hear me? Tabasco Idiot?...gods, I'm actually running out of insults…plameni kreten!"

 **Pink.** Damnit! He cringed and added, **Well, salmon actually.** Great, now even he was calling it pink. She was absolutely going to make fun of him now. He could just feel it.

 _It's you._ His frustrated sigh caught in his throat. _You're the one I've been dreaming about._ Holy-Uncanny-Photographic-Mental-Processes-Batman!

"NATSU FUCKING DRAGNEEL! WHAT THE FUCK IS SHE SAYING!?" Natsu noticed Gray seemed to be talking to him.

"Keep your underwear on, Freezer Burn. Yeah, it's her. The Weirdo is the gorgeous fucking blonde, literally, of my dreams. And she knows what I look like. She's been dreaming about me too."

"Holy shit," Gray paused, at a loss for what to say. "So what now?"

" I don't know."

 _And we_ _have_ _met!_

"Holy shit, she says we've met!"

"Jebao! Where did your sorry ass meet a Božica like her?"

"Božica? Where do you get off calling her names?!" Natsu shoved away from Gray's embrace, seriously considering socking him in the face, fighting rule be damned.

"It means 'goddess' you idiot!" Gray yelled back, pushing back and shaking out his arms, just realizing that they had been hugging for an embarrassingly long time. "Learn another fucking language already. Even she knows Japanese! I feel bad for her, linked to a dumbass like you. She deserves better."

His hasty words were an empty insult, more to cover his embarrassment over the hug than anything else, but they struck a chord with Natsu. He drew back his left arm, preparing a punch that had been suppressed so long it was burning to get out of him.

And then the writing on the arm caught his eye in his peripheral vision. Fuck. He promised. And who knew how bad she would get hurt if he got in a fight, now that things had changed again. He roared in frustration and turned away.

"Fuck you Gray," Natsu spat before stomping out of their room and slamming the door behind him. His tantrum propelled him out the back door of the house and across the yard, making it to just behind the shed where they kept their lawn mower, before running out of steam. Though he could feel the fresh air blowing past him, the terrible perfume and herb smell was still fogging him. It was almost suffocating. He tugged at this scarf, loosening it as though that would make a difference. Where the hell was the smell COMING FROM?

But, he had more important things to worry about right now. Luckily he had kept a hold on his pen.

 **Where?!** His brain went into search mode again and that image of her, long hair ruffled, in the short skirt and boots came back to him. Her hazy gaze as she looked at him. And it was almost like she was blushing…and the pink thing! What was the pink thing she had with her?! His mind just couldn't focus on it long enough to figure it out!

He dragged a hand through his hair, pushing his bangs out of his face yet again. He really needed a haircut. As he scrubbed at the locks and pulled again at his scarf, he froze. She was writing back.

 _The Hargeon train station. You had just lost a bet with a stripper. It has to be you, you are literally the only person I've ever met with naturally pink hair!_ Holy-mother-fucking-shit.

The girl from the train station! That he ran into! With her giant pink suitcase! That was the big pink thing behind her! They had barely said three sentences to each other, but she remembered him? Well, I mean, he had been mostly naked… and had pink hair, it's not like he _didn't_ stand out in a crowd…wait, how did she know his hair was naturally pink (ARG! SALMON!)? Most people just assumed it was dyed…

 **oh my gods I remember you! and it's salmon. and how did you know it was natural?**

 _You, um...weren't wearing a whole lot. It wasn't that hard to figure out._

Natsu's cheeks felt warm and he grinned when he realized she was blushing. His gaze immediately fell to his crotch. He didn't really have chest hair, but he did have a bit of a happy trail. Damn, he hadn't realized those incredibly embarrassing boxers had been riding so low. His stomach muscles spasmed just thinking about her seeing that part of him. He thought back to the image that had been haunting his dreams: the dilated pupils, the flushed cheeks, the slightly open mouth. A revelation hit his brain like a freight train.

Shit, she had been seriously turned-on.

Why hadn't he figured that out sooner? He knew he was pretty attractive, but he guessed he had never seen a girl react so…openly before. Her thoughts were so obvious now that he thought about it. It was just that, usually girls played the coy little game that drove him nuts. They said they wanted to go out, but then just being out together walking around wasn't enough. They said they wanted to get some food, but they never actually seemed to eat anything. They said they wanted men who were smart, but they got bored when the conversation turned to science or anything actually interesting. They said they wanted men that were funny, but they never seemed to be actually laughing when someone told a joke. How the hell were you supposed to know what they wanted if they never told you what they were actually thinking?! It was exhausting. It was what had prompted his man-whore stage freshman year. At least the drunk horny chick at the party didn't pretend to be anything but drunk or horny.

But the Weirdo had just stood there, at the train station, staring at his abs. Who did that? Who just sat there drooling over someone they ran into in a train station? Correction. What _girl_ did that? He could think of about half a dozen guys who did that to girls they ran into all the time. Not that it did them any good. Creepers.

Rushing headlong into some-admittedly rusty-flirting, like he did with everything else, Natsu bated her a bit.

 **as I recall, you liked what you saw.** He could feel her blush again. Oh yeah, he still had it.

 _That's funny, because I remember thinking you were a pervert who hung around with strippers._ Or not. Maybe she just flushed when she got angry! Shit. AND she thought he was a pervert. Thank gods she didn't know what he had been jacking off to lately.

 **he's not actually a stripper! I was talking about Gray! he just takes his clothes off every chance he gets, so I call him a stripper.**

 _Wait, your roommate Gray? So you willingly chose to live with a guy who sits around naked all the time? And weren't you just hugging him? So….when did you guys start dating? High school? Or sooner?_

 **Uh, FUCK no. not even as a joke. Gray is like my fucking brother.** Natsu shuddered in horror. Why did people always think that they were gay?! They spent more time punching each other than anything else! He blamed his stupid hair again. **Besides, just because I have** **pink** (fuck it, it was a losing battle) **hair, does not mean I'm gay!**

She moved to writing on her leg, since their arm was more than full. Natsu hiked up the edge of his cargo shorts and sat down on the grass behind the shed, finding it hard to concentrate on what she was writing when he remembered what the leg she was writing on looked like. It was pretty solidly imprinted on his brain now. Creamy, plump thighs he could really sink his teeth into. FUCK. STUPID PERVERTED NATSU! This whole know what she looked like was definitely going to make controlling his hormones while talking to her more difficult.

 _Hey! I didn't mention your hair, that is one serious psychosis you've got there. And YOU told me you live with a stripper who YOU were hugging not 10 minutes ago. And I'm assuming if he strips when you're around, he's got pretty decent confidence in his body, or doesn't mind being naked in front of you, so I simply drew the conclusion that you were together. All the hot guys I knew growing up were definitely gay. There's nothing wrong with being gay you know._

 _Are you just in denial about it all? Have I hit a touchy subject ND?  
_

Hey, she was just trying to get a rise out of him now! Well, two could play at that game.

 **did it feel like I was gay when I was drawing on your** Wait, did she just call him hot? He felt her cheeks heat up again and changed what he was going to write… **chest last week? and he only hugged me because I asked him to.** Wait, shit! **FOR YOU! because you were crying!** Shit, he was doing so well at distracting her, he had totally forgotten the reason they were talking, er writing, to begin with. **speaking of which, what the hell happened?**

 _huh?_

 **the pain and all that just now?**

 _Oh! My best friend and I did something really stupid._ Well that didn't sound like her.

 **really? like what?** Couldn't have been that stupid. Nobody had been hospitalized. Wait! **you aren't in the hospital are you?!**

 _Seriously, what do you DO with your time?! NO! We're not in the hospital…but we messed with forces we shouldn't have messed with and…I think I made it worse._

 **made what worse?**

 _Our bond, or whatever. My friend did some research into reincarnation and thought it might get rid of the bond if I tried a past life regression. Something about remembering our past lives so that we could be released from… whatever THIS is._

 **hold on, what does our little issue have to do with reincarnation? or past lives?** Where the hell was she getting that?! Did she know something he didn't? Her writing got really small then and he had to lean forward to make it out through the pink hairs on the muscle of his thigh.

 _Well, I've been conducting my own research on our situation, with help from my friend, who happens to be an ace scholar, so we've gathered quite a bit of evidence and have some sound theories. It seems that the dreams we are having are visions of our past lives. Turns out reincarnation is the real deal and we are bound together from a past life experience of some kind. My friend had a theory, based on some established religious theories, that if we opened ourselves up to the past life memories and remembered them all, we would be able to escape the cycle of reincarnation and not be bound to one another anymore. So we went to a Wiccan who specializes in past life regressions. That's where we are now. Only it didn't work. At least, the way we thought it would._

Holy shit. He hadn't even thought of that. He was so focused on the what, he didn't even question the why.

 **what happened? was it supposed to be that painful?**

 _I don't think so. She seemed really shocked by the results. Apparently we've opened something called a second origin. From what I understand, normally we can only_

The writing stopped as she ran out of room, and he automatically pulled up his other pant leg to keep reading. She was nothing if not predictable.

 _open it for a short time, letting past life memories trickle in slowly so that they can be examined, accepted and overcome, a relatively painless process…but apparently our second origins have been permanently unlocked somehow instead. We got flooded by memories too quickly to really take them in, and will probably continue to get them, now that the way is open. I think anyway. That's really all just a guess on our Wiccan guide's part, but she has a lot of experience with past lives.  
_

 _Listen, I'm so, so sorry. I shouldn't have done anything without consulting you. I should have told you all of this before we tried anything this risky. I've been so confused lately…I just sort of got pulled into it. And now it's even worse than it was before! You've been so good about telling me everything you've found out and I kept everything from you. I promise, I will tell you what I find out from here on out. Especially  
_

Whoa, she was being way to hard on herself about this. Natsu could almost feel her guilt when she paused writing, as tears pricked his eyes again. He glanced around in a panic to see if any of the other guys from the house were around to see him in case she started the waterworks again. He was alone…for now.

Then he went into damage control mode. He had worked hard to calm her down, he was not going to let her get worked up again. And, Ice Princess wasn't around to give him another hug this time.

He wrote as quickly as he could, cutting her off before she could keep going.

 **HEY HEY, NO CRYING! don't worry, even if you had told me all of this before, I would have told you to go for it. I'm not exactly the most cautious guy myself and it seems to make sense as a plan of action. everyone has secrets. you don't have to tell me anything you aren't ready to share. you really showed me up on all that research though. Its incredible that you got close enough to the truth to effect what is going on with us at all. whatever the consequences, we'll deal with it, ok? no problem. because I'm** _say all fired up and I will stab you with my pen!_

He grinned at her words cutting him off this time. Angry was better than crying. Mission accomplished. Wait, what was wrong with his epic catch phrase!?

 _Thank you for saying all that. It's really sweet of you. But it doesn't change the fact that we have a-whole-nother set of issues now. Not only will we apparently get flooded by all these past life memories at all hours of the day and night, but our bond seems to have been amplified. I mean, I could feel Gray hugging you! And you knew I was crying! How will we ever have any privacy ever again? What happens if one of us goes on a date? Or even just takes a shower? I mean, I can feel how tense your shoulders are right now and the wind on your skin. You're outside right?_

 **Holy shit. yeah. when you cry, my tear ducts go nuts too…and I could feel you rolling your eyes earlier, it was crazy!** He decided to keep the blushing thing to himself, he wanted to keep some aces up his sleeve for the future. But he got to thinking of what else that amplified bond could maybe do. **Is there a strong smell where you are? Like perfume? And some kind of herb?**

 _Yes! The Wiccan we consulted is doused in something floral and her whole house smells like sage. You can smell that?!_

 **Yeah, its gods awful, can you maybe leave? It was making me sneeze like crazy earlier, and my sinuses are still burning.**

 _Of course! Hold on a minute!  
_

In about a minute, Natsu felt like he could breathe freely again. That was sooooo much better. He had felt a little like he was slowly drowning in Chanel #5. Or whatever perfume that was. Fuck if he knew.

 **thanks! that's loads better!**

 _No problem. What other "trippy stuff" did you experience when she opened our second origins?_

 **well, my head hurt a lot and I got a bunch of, I guess memories flashing by too fast to see? then I opened my eyes and everything was brighter…sort of more colorful. It hurt at first. I thought my eyes were watering when you first started crying, but I'm getting used to it now. Its kind of cool.**

 _Huh, the eye thing didn't happen to me. I wonder what that's about…  
_

 _WAIT! Have you ever studied color theory?_

Natsu snorted. **yeah, that's a solid no.**

 _You draw so well, I thought you might have taken a class or something…anyway, I had an art tutor once, who told me that women could see more of the spectrum than men could. That women were just born able to distinguish between most shades of color, while men had to train themselves to do it if they wanted to be able to see more than about sixteen colors. All the more refined shades just blended together. Maybe that's what happened! Maybe you see color like I do now and that's why I didn't notice anything! It's not like I can unlearn seeing all the different shades, but your eyes could have learned through mine!_

Huh, well that was pretty cool if it was true.

Natsu pulled out his phone to Google it. Several articles popped up confirming it.

Well shit. Yeah. That made perfect sense then. The Weirdo really was pretty impressive. Especially considering the way she looked. He had known a lot of pretty girls who didn't bother because they didn't need to. Why put in more effort, when a hair flip and a low-cut shirt could get her pretty much anything she wanted?

But she had taken all of five seconds to figure out what was happening to him. And she had figured out that whatever was happening had to do with reincarnation. He was really not pulling his weight on this one.

 **Damn, Weirdo. that's some seriously random knowledge…but I think you nailed it.** He paused, for the first time sort of worried about what he was going to say next. With the looks and the brains confirmed, it was hard not to feel a little intimidated. And she hadn't made fun of his hair. That was weird. Everyone made fun of his hair...and she thought he was hot. and sweet. Fuck, a girl had never called him that before. Well, Erza, but that was more terrifying than flattering. And she thought he drew well. Wait, why did any of that matter?

He was Natsu Fucking Dragneel! And, it never mattered what people thought of him! He let the wind blow where it wanted, to bring in the good and take out the bad. He didn't plan out what he was going to say. No filter, no problem. He wasn't going to change. He was just fine the way he was!

But for some reason, the mantra just didn't quite do what it normally did. She had burrowed into his head and planted little seeds that refused to stop growing, no matter how hard he mentally trampled on them. She felt familiar. Like someone important. Like someone that mattered. Like someone he couldn't just let walk away. She hadn't even asked him to change much (some punctuation to make reading his writing a little easier, and not to get punched in the face, seemed pretty reasonable), but lately he kept wanting to...impress her? Show that he could be better? Like some kind of dog doing tricks! His chest felt tight, not quite like he was going to have a panic attack, but close enough to make him take notice. What the hell was happening to him?

Little did he know, across town, someone else was having similar thoughts. In oddly similar circumstances.

* * *

 **So sorry, I totally intended to get Gajeel in this chapter, and then Natsu went diva and stole all the spot-light again. *sigh* Such an attention whore! But we'll be peeking in on Gajeel and Levy for the next chapter! Promise!**

 **Since these boys don't read (cretins!) I will be including language translations and the occasional TV/Movie references you may have been confused by.**

 **plameni kreten** -"flaming moron" in Croatian

 **Holy-Uncanny-Photographic-Mental-Processes-Batman!** -reference to the Batman show from the1960s, and the 1966 Batman Movie, the first one they made. It is campy and ridiculous. Robin is always saying holy-insert-something-totally-ridiculous-here-Batman. i.e. Holy-foam-rubber-convention-Batman, Holy-Non-Sequiturs-Batman, Holy-Funny-Bone-Batman, Holy-Fourth-Amendment-Batman. For a full list, Google Robin Holy Batman phrases and then hit up Wikipedia. There is complete list of all the kickass-fucking-awesome phrases he used in the original 1960s TV show and movie. **BONUS POINTS TO ANYONE WHO LOOKS IT UP AND SENDS ME A REVIEW WITH THEIR TOP 3 FAVORITES!**

 **Jebao** -"Fuck" in Croatian, not sure if I used the correct gender/tense, so if someone knows, please let me know for future reference!

 **Božica** -"Goddess" in Croatian (mmmm, bilingual Gray...steamy...yeah, I get turned on by foreign languages! Don't judge me! Not like you should be surprised, I already told you, I'm basically Levy)


	9. My Cat

**Ladies and Gentlemen, the chapter you've all been breathlessly waiting for. I give you, with no further ado...Gajeel and Levy!**

* * *

Gajeel Redfox, black-haired sex-god and ace guitar-player, stood tugging one of his lip piercings, and staring at his arm. It had already been a weird enough day, he did not need this shit. First he had passed out, with one hell of a headache, thankfully in between clients, and banged his head open on the counter that morning.

Then, words had appeared on his arm, out of fucking nowhere. Before really bothering to read what the appearing letters said, Gajeel glanced at the blunt his last customer had left behind in the small bowl he had substituted for an ash tray. He had been one pussy of a man to need a joint to get through a tattoo of a blue pegasus on his ass, but hell, whatever got them through the door and paid the bills. Little bitches were always willing to overpay for their girly ink, too. Especially compared to the badass before him who had gotten the gnarly face tattoos. He and the five friends he brought with him hardly blinked an eye the whole time. There were some weird-ass people in the world.

But now, he was thinking he should re-think his weed policy. If he was hallucinating stuff on his own skin, he had obviously inhaled a little too much of the shit. It had never affected him in the past, but there was a first time for everything. Maybe the pussy had laced it with something else. Or he had gotten a concussion when he fell over earlier. His hand went to the cut on his forehead, clotted, but sore. Didn't feel like any concussion he'd ever had…

He glanced back down at the words, half expecting to see a blue pegasus, and re-focused as he read the steadily growing paragraph on his arm, squinting to distinguish between the tiny letters.

 _Hello, my name is Levy. Before you ask, I am very real, this is not a dream, and you are not hallucinating. Through a misadventure in the service of a friend, my second origin has been forced open, which allows memories from my past life to be remembered, and apparently links me to my soulmate. Which I believe to be you, though I don't think we've ever met. In this life anyway. By forcing this link open, unintentionally, I have unwittingly created a sensory link between us, allowing us to transfer anything that can be applied to the skin, such as the ink I'm using to write this now. I have done a lot of research recently on this topic in service of my friend, so I am prepared in a way I know you are not. However, I refuse to believe my soulmate would be lacking in intelligence or understanding, so I am approaching this directly. Please write back to acknowledge that you got this message and understand it. I assume you speak English, because distance seems to be an element of the bond, but if you do not, we can converse in almost any prevalent language of your choice. I am versed in_ _français_ _, Deutsch,_ 日本語, _italiano_ , _Lingua Latina_ , _Hrvatski_ , _dansk,_ _Ænglisc_ , ελληνικά, नेपाली, ትግርኛ, _polski, português,_

Gajeel grabbed the Sharpie sitting on his sketchbook to cut her off. At this rate, she would list the whole godsdamned United Nations.

 **Just stop already**

 _Oh, okay. So I take it this means you got my message. I'm Levy McGarden and you're my soulmate. I think. What's your name?_

 **Prove it**

 _Prove what, exactly? That I'm your soulmate? That I'm real? That we're connected?_ Well, sure, whatever, that was a good place to start.

 **Yeah** There was a pause for a moment or two.

 _Okay, well, about 20 minutes ago, you fell down and hit your head. When you did, you got images of your past lives, with me in them, I assume. I have blue hair. In the torrent of images, I caught a few more risque ones pretty clearly, so I assume you did too. You're tall with black hair, right? So, at the very least, if we aren't soulmates, we were definitely, at one time, lovers in a past life. Since we are now bonded, for reasons unknown, one could easily assume it is to guide us to each other. As soulmates._

Gajeel sat down hard. Shit. He remembered the little blue-haired girl from earlier. He had assumed she was a hallucination, or dream or whatever. He could still be hallucinating though. If he hallucinated the blue haired girl once, who was to say that he wasn't hallucinating the same thing right now? Granted, something like this would require more imagination than he thought he had. Luckily, she continued and saved him from answering. Chatty little hallucination. With shrimpy godsdamned handwriting. He leaned forward and squinted as the tiny writing continued to form a perfect block of text down his massive forearm, ending far short of the edges. Her arms must be shrimpy too.

 _I am as real as you are. I can tell you anything you would like to know about the world we live in. Just ask. Then you can Google it to check me. Make sure it's something you don't already know so you can be sure I'm not a figment of your imagination._

Ok, fair enough. Hmm, what was a really obscure country he knew nothing about?

 **What is the capital of Kazakstan?**

 _Astana. I assume you meant Kazakhstan._ The answer came immediately. She apparently didn't even need to think about it. Then he realized he was already assuming she was a real person. He snorted at himself and went to Google it. Astana sounded like something his brain would make up. Well shit. The capital of Kazakhstan was Astana. She was real then. Oddly knowledgable about Middle Eastern countries, but real.

Suddenly, someone slapped him across the face. He jumped out of his chair, looking for the dumbass who had snuck in and hit him, without him noticing. The room was as empty as it was a moment ago.

What in the fucking hell WAS that!? His right hand stung a little bit too. It's not like his face hurt all that much, but there was NO ONE HERE. Was that HER?

He looked to his arm automatically for answers.

 _I just slapped myself in the face. You felt it. Proof that we're connected. Now, What is your name?_

Well shit.

 **Gajeel**

 _Nice to meet you Gajeel._

 **Whatever shrimp**

 _I told you, my name is Levy! Where the hell did you get shrimp?_

 **I saw you in my head right? You're tiny I'm not sure how I didn't crush you in our other life or whatever What are you like 12?**

 _I'm 19 you neanderthal! What are you, some kind of giant pedaphile?_

Well, she could definitely dish it as well as take it. He grinned crookedly.

 _And stop laughing at me! I'm doing you a favor here! I could have just let you wonder when you felt me taking a shower later. Or fucking my boyfriend. Guess I won't be doing you any more favors._

How had she felt him smiling? He concentrated for a minute and could feel the ghost of a frown in his cheeks, his eyebrows felt furrowed and tense no matter how he wiggled them. Huh. Kinky.

Hold on. Wait one godsdamned minute. Boyfriend? Hadn't she just said they were soulmates? That meant they were meant to be together didn't it? Like dating and marriage and stuff?

His mind obligingly brought back a memory from the many that had flashed by less than an hour ago. He held his breath as it played out like a movie in front of his eyes. But a movie he was a lucky actor in.

 _They were in a copy-room, an old one, with brightly patterned carpeting. She had just dropped his hand and locked the door behind them. Turning impossibly big brown eyes on him, her huge fake lashes blinking seductively once, she reached under her black and white printed mini dress and dropped her light pink bikini brief day-of-the-week panties around her heels. The print on the cotton read Tuesday, but, somehow he knew it was Wednesday. And that he had definitely seen the Tuesday ones before. Recently._

 _She blinked slowly up at him again, faking the doe-like innocence those massive eyelashes suggested, though the fire in the depths of her gaze gave her away. She took his hand and guided it to her hip, pushing it under her skirt. With how large his hand was, he could feel the bare skin from her waist to the top of her thigh. Her dress rode up around his wrist showing off more than a little thigh. His mouth went dry seeing a single blue curl peaking out from under the fabric. He couldn't look away._

 _"Well, are we doing this or not?" she questioned him coyly. "Because my break is over in twenty minutes, and I'm planning on getting every. minute's. worth. of. pleasure." Her gaze stayed on him as she leaned into his chest. She grabbed his bottom lip in her teeth, where it was brought to her level as he bent slightly to keep his oh-so-lucky hand where it was._

 _Suddenly a feeling of euphoria unlike anything Gajeel had ever known came over him. He heard himself saying, "Marry me," and saw her huge eyes get even wider,_ before he slammed back into real life and his head hit the floor.

Was he going to fall over every time he saw one of these stupid visions?! Who the fuck WAS this girl? Some kind of witch? But the more pressing question for him right now was, who the fuck was this boyfriend and where did he live so he could beat the shit out of him?!

Wait, WHY DID HE EVEN CARE!?

Gajeel took a minute to catch his breath, not bothering to get up from the floor. It was ridiculously clean anyway. Cost enough keeping up with the stupid health code, might as well enjoy it. He breathed deeply, trying to dissipate the red cloud of rage that had overcome him. He needed to think. To clear his head. Get the whole crazy issue out of his head. And that left only one option.

Gajeel took a final deep breath and sprung up from the floor in one smooth motion, shaking out his hands and setting his shoulders out of reflex, readying himself for a blow that would never come. He had to go see the one person who could always help him get his head on straight. Or break his nose. Whatever the situation warranted.

He looked back at his arm to see a string of cuss words complaining about slamming their heads against the floor for no reason and smirked despite himself. Then her re-read her previous comment again. His smile hightailed it off his face and back to wherever it came from. He did not want to think about her fucking some other dude. Wait, other? Shit, he didn't even know her, let alone sleep with her! Why the fuck did it matter who she fucked anyway? He growled in frustration. All the thinking was starting to hurt his head...or maybe it was the multiple head traumas...either way, he had to talk this out before his head exploded.

He picked up the Sharpie where he had dropped it and jotted off a quick message to the shrimp before flipping the sign on the door to read "Closed" and locking it behind him.

 **Just don't go fucking anyone then Later shrimp**

* * *

Levy sat on the stairs of Crime Sorciere's headquarters and thought about...nothing.

She was so done with today.

It was gray and gloomy out, though it had seemed so sunny when they had set out from Fairy Hills, ready to take on destiny, and win. They should have known better. Hubris was the most common of heroic faults after all. They had not heeded the lessons of the past, and they had been punished for it.

Levy absentmindedly fiddled with the zipper pull of her bag, at a loss for what to do with herself. Lucy was inside, having a moment with Mr. Matches, who was starting to look like a fucking Don Juan compared to the gruff beast of a soulmate she had ended up with.

Don't get her wrong, he was certainly attractive, if her past life memories were any indication: tall, dark, and just a little bit dangerous, just like she had imagined. And he seemed easy enough to reason with when you got past the atrocious grammar.

She looked back at her arm, covered from her bicep to her wrist in pen and the massive writing of his Sharpie. He had stopped communicating with her about 20 minutes ago, leaving her shocked and feeling slightly numb.

It wasn't what she had pictured. Their first encounter. She could never have that moment back again. Her first interaction with her soulmate, and the most profound thing he had had to say was that she should avoid fucking anyone, out of convenience for them both she supposed. And then calling her mean names. Well, a mean name.

Come on! She had told him her real fucking name! He should be fucking grateful. Levy's soulmate was supposed to be different! Romantic, dashing, intelligent. He was supposed to beg to be by her side, and write her glorious poetry. Not butcher the English language and insult her! She thought she had done better than Lucy, been more honest. Lucy was still sticking to her guns and denying her soulmate any real information on her. Not moving an inch. She was in such denial of the gravity of the situation.

They needed more information, not less. And to get some, you had to give some. That's how interrogations worked. Wait, how did she even know that?

She felt a moment of vertigo as her vision blurred _, refocusing again in a small room the color of three-day-old egg salad, and about as sanitary. It was lit by a single, flickering fluorescent tube, a tactic that had worked well for her in the past. He had been under that light for twenty minutes already. She was known for her psychological torture-and her healthy percentage of confession-closed cases. She had earned her place at that table- twice over considering her gender-and Black Steel, gang banger and alleged serial killer, had certainly earned his._

 _She flipped open the folder in front of her, keeping her face trained carefully to blankness as she spread the photographic evidence of The Ripper's bloody escapades across the cracked laminate. She had spent the last week staring at them until she felt nothing._

 _One moment of unprepared weakness in that room and the game was over. A murderer walked free. The Blue Inquisitor (as she called herself in her head) was nothing if not thorough. She would wring every moment of pure and unadulterated evil from the cocky man in front of her and leave him a limp rag, devoid of shelter and defense...through the use of only her words, and the mind behind them._

 _She carefully gazed at him through neutral eyes, watching his eyeballs stutter from picture to picture, searching for the slightest hint of recognition, or even horror. He gave her nothing. Yet._

 _He was used to scenes like this, so the carnage didn't shock him. But whether that was due to a life spent on the streets, or a penchant for causing pain and painting innocent victims red with a machete for a brush, remained to be seen._

 _Clearing her throat daintily, an intentional move that always worked to make the perp underestimate her further-her own small stature and blue hair paving the way on that front-she drew his attention from the photos to her minutely compassionate gaze. His eyes flickered with something for just a moment. She couldn't quite tell what it was, but she knew she was on the right track._

 _This one wouldn't respond to the cold demeanor she often employed. Chilling and factual, she usually laid out a hypothetical story so brutal and depraved it shocked shocked and scared her perpetrators into confessing their lesser crimes in comparison. It was a tactic that worked on three out of four criminals, usually the spineless ones._

 _But her strategy for Black Steel was different. As his name suggested, he was cold, fearless and calculating, used to being surrounded by other heartless people. Based on extensive research into his background, and a psychological profile she had drawn up herself, she determined that to shake him up enough to get a confession, she was going to have to give him what he least expected. Sympathy, respect, and appreciation. He was currently their best suspect, picked up, through a stroke of luck, on a minor drug possession charge, and this was their best chance to get him to confess to the notorious serial killings sweeping through Chicago's homeless population like a knife through butter. The buck stopped with her. And she planned on spending it._

Levy snapped out of her vision as the door to the house slammed open behind her, catching herself before she could pitch forward down the wooden steps. Lucy rushed out onto the porch and jumped over the steps, hardly noticing Levy sitting there, breathing hard and trying to process what she had just witnessed. Lucy strutted further away, as if on some kind of mission.

"Hey, Lu-chan," Levy started, her voice coming out in a raspy whisper, but didn't bother continuing when she saw Lucy sit down on the short stone wall around the yard, about twenty feet away. She was furiously writing something. To her soulmate.

The one that had done amazingly sexy things to her in a past life and drew all over her body with beautiful masterpieces. She was so lucky. She had no idea how much. And still she hesitated.

Levy had yearned for a soulmate, and in a cruel twist of fate she had received exactly what she had longed for.

She should have been more specific in her wish. She felt like she was in one of Scheherazade's tales, the fool of a hero unable to outsmart a jinn in a bottle.

She stared at his writing on her arm for a solid minute before numbly going for her hand sanitizer, dousing her arm and scrubbing at the words until they dissolved into gray smudges.

Levy turned her gaze back to Lucy, watching as a grin grew on Lucy's lips the longer she wrote. Levy had privately thought she was being almost stupidly over-cautious about the whole thing. He was her soulmate. They were meant to be! They would have to meet eventually, so why not start now and start being unbelievably happy as soon as possible?

But she got it now. As always, a minute too late. Real life wasn't fairy tales and Jane Austen novels.

Yeah, she had a soulmate. But her soulmate had blackened his soul with blood.

And he already knew her name.

* * *

Gajeel pushed through the dingy glass door of the gym where he grew up and let it slam familiarly behind him. Out of habit, he avoided breathing in too deep, knowing well that the scent of sweat-covered males never really left the place. It was the scent of home, but not even nostalgia made men exerting themselves smell any better. Weaving easily through the guys one-twoing the punching bags, and the jump-ropers, Gajeel made his way to the back wall, where stairs set against the wall marched up to an office that overlooked the open, high-ceilinged space. Seeing him coming through the picture window of the office, a tall, muscular man with skin the color of espresso smirked and met him at the door.

"Gajeel! It's been awhile since I've seen your sorry-ass around. Almost didn't seem like Metalicana's without you!" the burly man joked as he clasped hands with Gajeel, drawing him in for half-a-hug.

"Well, you could always rename it "Lily's" now you know," the trainer's favorite pupil quipped with a sharky grin. "This old scrap heap is all your problem now. You could at least throw on a new coat of paint or something. Really mark your territory."

Lily playfully took a jab at Gajeel, which he automatically ducked and returned. Lily caught his fist and shook his head. "What are you talking about? We got new punching bags just last month. It's a like a whole new place!" His bright white smiled widened, almost glowing against the subtly-scarred, almost-black skin of his face. "What are you doing here anyway? You finally coming back to fight again? No one's been able to give the dynamic duo a good run for their money since you stepped out to start that skin butchery of yours." His voice was almost as deep as Gajeel's, but without the just-gargled-gravel undertone to it.

"Hey, that "skin butchery"'s all I've got to my name at the moment. How about a little respect! And I ain't got time for fighting right now. I'm just about breaking even, even without paying myself for the extra hours of setup and business shit. Plus I really need to hire a front desk person who can manage to count past a hundred and knows next to anything about customer service. At this point I'd settle for anyone who didn't show up high every shift. Until then, I'm staying retired," Gajeel griped, nonchalantly steering Lily back into the office. Lily raised an eyebrow, but let himself be directed into the room, which was crammed with paperwork, file cabinets, and damaged exercise equipment, waiting to be repaired. When the door closed, Gajeel shrugged off his unseasonably heavy leather jacket and stuck out the arm with the writing.

"This is why I'm here Lil," said Gajeel. The mountain of a man crossed his arms and eyed the text on his protege, skimming it quickly.

"So, some chick wrote on your arm...and thinks she's your soulmate? I'm confused. What's the issue? Can't get rid of her?"

"The words appeared out of nowhere! I've never met her, yet I had a weird...thing today, where I got hit by shit-tons of flashback images of us, but somehow also not us, together. And then, there she is, writing on my arm, telling me how shit is and proving to me that she's real. And then I get dropped into another flashback, apparently of a past life with her, where I'm fucking proposing. It was scary as shit, and sort of great at the same time, but fuck, I don't know what to do! I've only known about the little blue-haired shrimp for a little over an hour, but I'm already looking forward to talking to her again. Fuck, I've been resisting the urge to beg her to meet me, literally anywhere, since I left my shop! What the fuck, Lil!? I am not this kinda guy! I do not get prissy about some girl! And I've never even seen her in real life! So what the fuck is wrong with me?!"

"Well, you're either off your rocker nuts, or in love with a hallucination. Only time will tell," Lily said, even and calm as always. This is what Gajeel needed. Sanity. To help him sort out this fuckfest. Lily grabbed Gajeel's arm again to read the notes more carefully this time. "You sure you didn't just pass out and get written on and then have a crazy dream or something?" With a slight frown and a disapproving glance at Gajeel's face he continued, "You haven't been taking anything, have ya? A lot of things can cause hallucinations you know…"

"Fuck, you know I don't touch that stuff. Besides, she's not a hallucination. She already proved it. Told me some fact I didn't know and it turned out to be right. I think she's telling the truth. Especially with that insane vision-or-whatever I had..." Gajeel's eyes drifted back to her tiny handwriting on his arm as he spoke, amazed at how small and perfectly formed her letters were. It was almost like a font it was so precise. "I guess, I'm not really sure why I'm here. Just that I needed to tell someone about this. To talk it through. To tell me I'm NOT crazy to feel like this. I haven't even met her, and a huge part of me wants to find her, just to see if it feels like that. Like it did in the flashback vision thing. What the fuck Lily? This is insane right? I'm crazy aren't I?"

Just as Lily was about to reply, Levy's writing, and his black markered responses, blurred and began to disappear.

"Look! She's washing her arm or something! The words are disappearing!" Gajeel exclaimed, throwing his arm in front of his trainer again. Lily stood in awe, as he watched the pen and Sharpie get scrubbed off by unseen hands. Struggling to regain his composure, he grabbed a pen from his desk and tossed it to the black-haired behemoth who even topped his six-foot-four by a few inches.

"Show me," Lily instructed. The words were familiar, taking Gajeel back to when he was a kid and just learning how to fight. After spending a few minutes going through a move Lily would turn to Gajeel and say those exact words, in just that tone. He couldn't have refused that order if he wanted to. It was ingrained in his blood now. His trainer knew best, so he thankfully relinquished control for a bit. He wrote quickly on his arm.

 **Shrimp You there?**

She didn't respond right away this time. Maybe she was in the middle of something.

Levy jerked the pen in her right hand back and forth like a spasmodic robot, almost writing on her arm, and then pulling away again, several times. What was she supposed to do?! She had just discovered that he had killed dozens of people in their past life! She couldn't just keep talking to him!

But he was her soulmate! The one person who could complete her. And she had started this. She had stupidly had her second origin opened. She had written to him. She had given him her name. He hadn't asked for any of this. And more importantly, just because he had done terrible things in a past life, didn't mean he was a murderer in this one, right?

But didn't something like that taint the soul? Every religion she had ever studied agreed that mortal sins, whatever they chose to call them, tainted the soul unless it was redeemed…

Maybe he had repented?

DAMNIT! She was so confused. Finally, deciding she was way past the point of no return, she touched her pen to her arm again, and wrote back, before she could second guess herself one more time.

 _Yeah. I'm still here._

Lily's mouth fell open. It took a lot to shake him up, but this did the trick. A big part of him had been humoring Gajeel, pretty certain that he was having some sort of mental break. He had asked him to show him, in order to prove to his stubborn former student that it was all in his head. But that had backfired. Royally. Closing his mouth, Lily regrouped.

He opened the bottom drawer of his desk and took out the rum he kept there, and two glasses. Pouring one for Gajeel and one for himself, Lily dropped the bottle back in the drawer. In silence, they clinked glasses and downed the liquor. That done, Lily gave Gajeel the pep talk he'd been waiting for.

"Well, that's that then. You've got to meet her. Not alone, because no matter how good a fighter you are, she might have friends. Find out where she lives and we'll plan out a time. No, better yet, invite her to the gym. The way you are communicating now takes too long. And writing was never your strong suit. If this girl is the one to make your stubborn iron ass sit up and listen, then she's worth investigating, and it never hurts to set you up to the greatest effect. You're comfortable here, so you won't snap as much, the way you do when you're nervous. You've been alone too long, you need a girl to spend your life with, and who are you to argue with fate? Let me know when she's coming, and I'll give you the office to talk."

With that, Lily thumped a stunned Gajeel on the back and reopened the office door, letting the cacophony of fists hitting punching bags, jump-ropes whipping through the air, and breathless words of encouragement and taunting flood-in from the lower level. Gajeel shook himself a little and grinned. Lily always kept a cool head and knew what to do next. It's why they were still so close even years after he had finished his training. He had never met anyone else who cut through the bullshit and just acted, without doubt or indecision.

"Thanks. I'll let you know when we get that set up," Gajeel trotted out the open door and vaulted over the stair railing, dropping about ten feet and landing with a boom that echoed off the hard surfaces of the room. Everyone in the room paused for a minute, trying to find where it came from.

"Don't you dare crack my floor or there'll be hell to pay, boy!" He could almost hear Metalicana's voice ring out as Lily barked the familiar words ironically. His old man had said it so many times when he pulled that trick, he still dreamt about it sometimes. There hadn't been a lot of rules growing up, but not doing damage to his pops' precious gym was definitely number one. He turned and looked up, shooting out the familiar response again, like his father was standing there next to Lily still.

"Few cracks won't hurt nothing. I'm out."

With that he headed to the door, this time fielding greetings as the previously distracted practicing boxers realized who was stomping through the room in combat boots. Only two heads didn't bother to turn to him as he passed: one, covered in pink hair, too busy hitting a punching bag like a freight train with a vendetta, and the other, black-haired and matted with sweat, concentrating on keeping the damn thing in one place. They had come in some time while he was in the office, but were already sporting a sweaty sheen. It didn't stop the pinkette from yelling out a greeting as he passed though,

"Good to have you back Lug Nuts!"

Gajeel just grinned and flipped him off as he walked by and out into the sunlight again. He wasn't back for good, but he sure had missed this place.

* * *

 _Was there something you needed?_

Levy had waited a good fifteen minutes before her temper got the better of her. How rude! He wanted her to respond, she had AGONIZED over her decision to do so, and then NOTHING back from him! It was beyond vexing. She was being VERY understanding to give him the benefit of the doubt, and he was ignoring her! So she had, tactfully, and perhaps just a little bit passive-aggressively, nudged him.

 **Oh yeah Sorry Shrimp got distracted We should meet**

Riding on the fumes of her roiling temper, she responded a little sassier than she should have, considering he had to the soul of a psychotic killer.

 _If you insist. But it wouldn't kill you to use proper punctuation you know. It was invented for a reason. Webster would be ashamed._

Gajeel chuckled at her funny way of talking. Why couldn't she just say anything outright? He wondered if she spoke that way, or whether it was just how she wrote. In the end, he could never resist poking the sleeping bear, though in this case a miniature of the species. His black cat jumped up on the arm of his huge leather chair while he wrote back,

 **yeah, shrimp, i insist. and webster can go fuck himself.**

The NERVE of him! He was writing that way on purpose! Totally forgetting the ramifications of pissing off a potentially dangerous individual, she poked herself harshly in the ribs several times, right where she was most ticklish, and had the satisfaction of feeling his abs tighten as he reacted to her prodding.

 _Well, you can go fuck yourself. Or you could just tell me where you would like to meet, jackass. And I'm only going to say this once. You will learn how to write properly when you're addressing me, or I won't respond at all, let alone show up to a meeting. Language is sacred and beautiful. Fucking respect it._

Gajeel was still suppressing the spasms and unmanly giggles from her tickle attack. The shrimp had balls, he'd give her that. His cat, Panther, gave him a look, criticizing his weakness at being caught unawares in a series of eye blinks and whisker licks.

Gajeel understood his cat better than most humans. Sometimes, he could almost hear him saying things like, "It wouldn't hurt you to be polite, you know." For some reason, he always pictured the cat talking with Lily's voice. It just fit the scarred old alley cat that had wandered into his apartment window one day and eaten a basket of kiwis. Whatever girl he had been dating at the time had a habit of leaving them everywhere. The girl hadn't stuck around, but the cat had, throwing up the kiwi just outside on the fire escape and coming back the next night.

He was exactly what Gajeel wanted in a cat: self-sustaining, cool-tempered, and always around. Fittingly, the same traits he liked in his trainer, and best friend. Scratching the place behind his ear that he knew Panther had trouble getting to, Gajeel got back to business with the Shrimp.

 **Metalicana's Gym in Magnolia work for you? It's not far from the train station.**

Levy felt a shock go through her. She knew where that was. She had grown up a few blocks from there. How did he know she lived in Magnolia?

He couldn't right? He thought she would be taking the train...

So, that meant...he lived here too! And probably nearby. They could have gone to the same school. Or passed each other at the grocery store. What a crazy coincidence. If it was one.

Levy was really starting to suspect there was something bigger going on here. The probability of all of this happening was like ten kajillion to one (ok, math was not her forte)! Almost inconceivable! Well, she would never get to the bottom of things until she grew a pair and met the guy. As far as meeting places went, it worked. It was a public place, and one she was familiar with, even if she hadn't set foot inside before. She could always bring backup if she needed it. Plus, there was a bakery across the street that made excellent cake, she could go early and stake it out.

 _Works fine for me. 1pm tomorrow?_

Gajeel ran through his mental list of appointments for the next day. He could swing closing for the afternoon. Sunday was a slow day for tattooing.

 **It's a date Shrimp.**

Gajeel grinned and tossed his pen behind him when it was clear that she was done for now. He pushed himself out of the oversized recliner and headed to the kitchen, Panther hot on the heels of his shadow. Peeling a kiwi he kept around just for the cat, he sliced it and dropped it in the bowl on the floor. That was followed by a leftover hamburger, broken into little pieces and a slice of pre-packaged salami. Waiting patiently for Gajeel to make himself a plate, Panther then tucked into the meat, saving the kiwi for last. Doing a thorough job of cleaning his whiskers and paws following the fatty meal, the cat picked himself up and jumped onto Gajeel's recliner again for a nap, resisting when the big man tried to move him out of the way.

This led to a half-an-hour of playing their favorite game, in which Gajeel tried to poke Panther in the stomach without being maimed and Panther did his best to rip off his fingers, anyway he could. The game ended with a victorious cat racing out onto the fire escape to throw up his recently eaten kiwi, and Gajeel nursing a series of puffy, red scratches. The Shrimp immediately demanded answers.

 _What the HELL was that? Were you mauled by a wild animal or something? OUCH!_

 **Nope, that was just my cat. My badass mother-fucker of a cat.**

 _Whatever, can you just try not to maim me any further before tomorrow?_

 **No promises.** But Gajeel made a mental note to try to be more careful. At least for now. If only because the thought of that creamy skin, which he could still almost feel under his fingers, bearing a single scar made him irrationally angry. Shit, he had it bad already. Tomorrow was gonna be one helluva day.

Levy got up from the stairs and stretched her back. The sun was starting its downward journey, to wake the sleeping half of the world, and they needed to head home. They both had homework to do. Particularly if they were going to spend tomorrow morning staking out the gym. She walked over to Lucy, laying a hand on her shoulder. The blonde looked up, her eyes sparkling with something for a second, before settling back into their usual brown.

"How's he doing?" Levy asked, partly curious and partly trying to find a good transition to tell her best friend about Gajeel.

"He stopped writing a little while ago. Went to the gym with his roommate I guess. Smells nasty there. But he drew me a little picture first!" Lucy squealed a little, showing the adorable cartoon dragon upside-down on her thigh, which was covered in text. Rather like her other one. They certainly didn't lose any time. "It seems we've managed to amplify the effects. Touch is transferred, as are some aspects of sight. Smell too. He's taking it all better than I am at this point. He doesn't blame me for doing this to him. Though he probably should," Lucy rambled now, the words spilling out of her. "He's so odd. Every time I think I've finally got him figured out he does something totally off the wall and I'm left stunned again. He had his roommate hug him so I would stop crying. Like, he knew I was crying, apparently because it made him cry too, which is new by the way, and he couldn't stand that I was crying, so he got his stripping roommate to hug him so I would feel it. He hugged a half naked guy for me. And he's straight. I checked. Who does that? For a basic stranger? No one's ever cared if I was crying before."

Seeming to realize what she had just said, Lucy scrambled for something to sidetrack her friend. She didn't want anyone's pity. Her eyes landed on Levy's arm and shot wide at what she saw. She grabbed the little blunette's slender arm and started reading.

"Lu, it's no big deal, really I just-" Levy tried to find some explanation her friend would accept, but was interrupted.

"Ssshhhh, Levy, I'm reading," Lucy said harshly. Levy shut up and let her read. She was going to tell her anyway, might as well be now and straight from her soulmate's arm, so to speak. After a couple of minutes, Lucy was done reading. She looked up at Levy with fear in her eyes.

"You're meeting him tomorrow?" she gasped out in a horrified whisper. "But he could be anyone! How do you know it will be safe!?" All of Levy's doubts about the nature of Gajeel's soul suddenly got moved to the back burner as a righteous, and inexplicable, need to defend him rose up in her.

"He's my soulmate. I just know, okay? I know you're worried about meeting yours, or telling him anything, or even admitting he's your soulmate, but that's not how I feel. I need to know more about him, and, since he's here in Magnolia, I'm going to meet him. It's the quickest, easiest way to resolve everything. It's my decision, so you don't have to like it!" Levy finished a little more petulantly than she intended. Lucy's eyes filled with tears as she shied away from her friend. Suddenly she looked down at her legs, at the swaths of crooked writing. Levy noticed another line of text was appearing.

 **WHY ARE YOU CRYING NOW? WHAT DID I DO? I haven't even punched anyone! WEIRDO?!**

With a wet giggle, Lucy wiped her eyes and wrote back,

 _I'm fine. It's got nothing to do with you. Just got to deal with some unrelated stuff. I'll talk to you later ok?_

 **ok, but no more crying ok? the guys already think I'm acting weird, I draw the line at spontaneous crying. I'd never live it down. so if I have to come beat up whoevers makin you cry, you just tell me where. and then give me a few days to get there, just in case.**

 _Fair enough. How about I just try not to cry again?_

 **works for me. ttyl**

Taking a deep breath, Lucy looked back up at Levy with a fierceness she had never seen in her friend's warm brown eyes before. It reminded her how short a time they had actually known each other. It felt like they had known each other forever, but even counting the time online, it had been less than a year. Lucy's eyes blazed with purpose and determination she hadn't shown since they'd met in person.

"I know, it's none of my business. Not really. But I just want you to be safe Levy. You're the only real friend I've ever had. You brought me into the world and helped me in a way no one else even tried to do and understood me to boot. So, you can yell at me all you want, you can hate that I would protect you with my life if you needed it, but I'm going to keep on worrying about you as long as you'll let me. I don't know if that is what friends really do or not, but that's what Diana and Anne did, it's what Tom and Huck did, and it's what my dad never did. So that alone tells me it's worth doing. I will always be the Sam to your Frodo, the Wilbur to your Charlotte, and the Watson to your Holmes! So, I can't stop you from meeting someone who could be your soulmate, but I won't let you go alone. I'm coming whether you like it or not!" Lucy finished with a strong voice and not the gleam of a tear in her eye. Levy stood stunned as Lucy gathered up her purse from where she had dropped it by the wall and went to walk away. "I'll see you at home, ok?"

Levy stood there for another few minutes. Just watching the sun go down and letting tears leak out of her eyes. There was only so much she could take in one day. She couldn't be strong and capable right now. She just couldn't. She felt a tingle on her arm and glanced down.

 **Are you crying Shrimp? What did I do?!**

A strangled giggle escaped her as she stared at the words, so similar to what Lucy's clueless, but kind, soulmate had written to her.

Maybe it would be ok.

Tomorrow would tell.

* * *

 **Aaaaaand, so it begins. I hope you liked this chapter. A little darker, a little more serious, but the next chapters should be 90% light-hearted! And a special thanks to KittyCrow12, who helped me solve my Panther Lily decision making problem. Because how could I possibly choose between his role as friend and his role as cat! So….both!**

 **And you guys had a smashing showing last update! We went from 84 reviews to 107, and 135 follows to 159! Crazygonuts! Still a ways to go to get your double chapter, another 43 reviews!**

 **And another 93 if you want to see our dynamic duo smashed beyond comprehension and propriety! We've got this chapter and the next to make it happen...I'm feeling pretty hopeful though…Next chapter: Inspire**

 **Levy's Helpful Index of Unrecognizable References**

 ** _français_ _, Deutsch,_ 日本語, _italiano_ , _Lingua Latina_ , 普通話, _Hrvatski_ , _dansk,_ _Ænglisc_ , ελληνικά, नेपाली, ትግርኛ, _polski, português-_** _in order of appearan_ _ce, using their native names: French, German, Japanese, Italian, Latin (dead language), Croatian (yep, her and Gray will HAVE to have a convo someday), Danish, Old Anglo Saxon English(dead language), Greek, Nepalese, Ancient Fiorian(actually Tigrinyan, but the closest I could find to what Ancient Fiorian sort of looks like), Polish, Portugues_ _e_ ** _  
_**

 **Hubris-** commonly the biggest heroic failing of Greek mythological heroes, hubris is the inability to be humble, often believing that oneself equals or surpasses a god and taking them on, resulting in a harsh lesson in humility

 **Don Juan-** also know as Don Giovanni, a legendary fictional libertine whose name is now synonymous with womanizer, he was smoother and smooth, often leaving one woman, completely unaware that he was going to meet another, very romantic, had MAD game with the ladies. The first written record of the legend was the play _El burlador de Sevilla y convidado de piedra_ ( _The Trickster of Seville and the Stone Guest_ ) by Tirso de Molina in 1630. He has been immortalized in book, poem, and play ever since by numerous authors from many countries. Including an absolutely terrible movie adaptation called Don Jon featuring Scarlet Johannsen and Joseph Gordon Levitt. Set in New Jersey. Did I mention it's terrible?

 **Scheherazade** \- Scheherazade is the fictional story-teller who makes up the framework for a series of Middle Eastern and South Asian stories, often known as _Arabian Nights_ , that were compiled during the Islamic Golden Age, who tells a new story each night and ends on a cliffhanger, so that her new husband won't get bored and kill her. As he has done countless times before. He steadily falls in love with her, as she spins her thousand tales.

 **jinn in a bottle-** Jinns, or genies, feature heavily in Middle Eastern tales, forced to grant three wishes to whomever releases them from the lamp. These malevolent wish granters are famous for misinterpreting vague questions, bringing down a curse instead of the blessing the wisher intended. There is a really fun miniseries they made back in the 90s about the Arabian Nights. Super great if you can get your hands on it. Totally worth the many hours of watching.

 **Webster-** famous creator of Webster's dictionary, Levy may or may not worship him like a god...and that the second reference description for him, so no more will be said about him!

 **Anne and Diana-** referring to the bosum buddies, the kindred spirits!, that live within the pages of Lucy Maud Montgomery's _Anne of Green Gables_ series. Most people don't know, there are seven books in this series. The first is still my favorite, but they are definitely all worth a read! Even when these girls grow older and move away from one another, they remain the best of friends.

 **Tom and Huck-** The main character and best friend of said character in Mark Twain's The Adventures of Tom Sawyer. Practically brothers who stick through thick and thin, they are a classic example of literary friendship.

 **Sam to your Frodo** - _LOTR_ by Tolkien

 **Wilbur to your Charlotte** - _Charlotte's Web_ by E.B. White

 **Watson to your Holmes** - _Sherlock Holmes_ series by Sir Aurthur Canon Doyle, note on these last three, Lucy has made herself the sidekick to the brilliant hero in multiple references. She really does think Levy is more brilliant than anyone she's ever met.


	10. Inspire

**OK, so we're at 135 reviews and 177 followers. SO CLOSE! I think we can make it! Especially since I got carried away with our characters and get a little citrusy at the end...yum. A quick recap: 150 reviews gets you a double-length, two part chapter update on Monday, 200 reviews, and I'll get EVERYONE super drunk...which I REALLY want to do, so blow me up with reviews people! I'm ready to reply to every single one! Except the guest ones! But only because there isn't a way, so please log in! My conversations with you guys have given me so many great ideas, btw.  
**

 **Small note on the beginning of this chapter...if you're a Venture Bros fan... yes. Think Mighty Monarch henchmen. You know the episode. Also, if you're somewhere you can, listen to the Mission Impossible theme while reading the first section...because I totally was while writing it...and its amusing.  
**

* * *

Over and over, the bass line for the Mission Impossible theme song ran through Levy's head until, without realizing it, she was humming it out loud.

"Dum dum, Dahda dum dum, dahda Dum dum, Dahda dum dum, dahda"

As she pulled on her most nondescript, colorless outfit (which still sported a giant super thin drapey t-shirt that sported the quote "If you feel like you're going insane and you are trapped in a dysfunctional environment, You Are Not Crazy.") and a dark drapey beret to cover her hair, Levy found herself rhythmically saying it, over and over.

"Dum dum, Dahda dum dum, dahda Dum dum, Dahda dum dum, dahda"

She packed her mini binoculars into her red purse. She probably wouldn't need them, but they couldn't hurt. Her earbuds went into a side pocket, her phone newly tricked out with spying applications (lip reading program, laser microphone attachment [she had been dying to try that baby out for a while], timed film camera, etc.) held in hand.

"Dum dum, Dahda dum dum, dahda Dum dum, Dahda dum dum, dahda"

Metalicana's Gym was Google Mapped and ready. She drummed out the back beat on her kitchen counter as she passed.

"Dum dum, Dahda dum dum, dahda Dum dum, Dahda dum dum, dahda"

The walking directions indicated 12 minutes of travel time. She went staccato for a chill verse.

"Dm dm, Dahda dm dm, dahda Dm dm, Dahda dm dm, dahda"

Walking out into the hall, closing her door with a flourish, Levy turned to the door across the hall.

* * *

Lucy adjusted the oversized sunglasses covering the better part of her face in the mirror.

She tweaked her sleek blonde ponytail, and tugged at the twee midriff mini vest that barely covered the crop top tee underneath. The black skinny jeans were a little warm in the heat. Definitely not her style, but that was the point. No one could recognize them. Declaring herself impeccable _(Ladies do not place a time limit on perfection!_ ), she grabbed a banana from the bowl in her kitchen and headed to the door. As she approached, she heard something coming from the other side. Curious, she placed an ear to the door.

"Dum dum, Dahda dum dum, dahda Dum dum, Dahda dum dum, dahda"

Lucy grinned. Catching the tune (Levy had introduced her to Mission Impossible last night-apparently the first one was the only one worth watching) she added in the bit that was missing. The theme had been stuck in her head all night long, so she definitely knew it by heart.

"Duhnana! …...Duhnana!"

"Dum dum, Dahda dum dum, dahda Dum dum, Dahda dum dum, dahda"

The singing on the other side of the door got louder.

Lucy threw open the door before belting out her part again,

"Duhnana! …...Duhnana!"

She closed the door behind her and locked it, clipping her keys theatrically onto a chain wrapped around her hips like a belt. As one, they turned towards the end of the hall with the exit and linked arms. They made it about four steps.

Then tripped over their ridiculously tall platform wedges.

"Ok, so flats."

"Yeah."

They simultaneously picked themselves up off the floor and went back into their apartments to change their footwear.

* * *

Clad more appropriately, the girls got to the bakery in eleven and a half minutes (h _aHA Google Maps, we win again!_ ), staking claim on a table in the corner by the front window, with just enough curtain to hide behind. Lucy took the corner seat, already drooling over the menu. This was going to be one expensive day.

After a decent spying-energy-sized breakfast of fresh chocolate-filled croissants, and a rousing version of The Pink Panther Theme, joined in by the owners of the bakery, since they didn't have any other customers yet, the disguised co-eds settled into their stake-out.

The gym had a glass front wall, dusty, but still transparent enough to see some of what was going on inside. A black Hercules approached the front door and unlocked it. He turned around to breath in the sunshine. Levy snapped a picture with the her kick-standed phone. She had it set to look like they were watching something on it. Which they totally were. Just not on YouTube. _Hehe._ Zooming in again, she took another. _Perfect._

The man turned back to the store and went inside, barely visible as he climbed the stairs at the back. It was only ten o'clock in the morning, so they weren't expecting too much action yet. Levy plugged in her phone in the convenient nearby plugin and set it to record.

Then they got to work on homework. Why waste the down time of a perfect quiet morning?

Lucy finished her homework in the first hour and pulled out the fabric bound journal that housed her attempts at a novel. There were 22 in all so far.

All less than ten pages.

She just couldn't seem to find a plot that interested her enough to keep her going. They all fell stagnant, characters cliche and bland. So, today, attempt 23!

She opened to a new page and prepared to place pen to paper. Then her soulmate sense tingled and she felt his nose wiggling. Looking at her bare wrist, the words weren't long in coming.

 **where are you?! it smells delicious!**

 _Breakfast. Nothing beats fresh croissants!_

 **man, that sounds SOOOOO GOOOOOOOOD!**

 _Tastes good too!_

 **seriously?! the one sense that doesn't seem to transfer at all?! oh gods, why have you forsaken me? what have I done to deserve this torture? in what way have I offended you? that temple fire was an accident! I swear! please don't leave me to pine for the land of french desserts!**

Lucy snorted and covered her nose with her hand quickly, hoping no one had heard her. _(Ladies do NOT snort!)_

 **wait, did you just snort? like a pig? you!?** Godsdamnit. He could feel everything now. She had forgotten for a second.

 _Shut up! I did not._ Deny Lucy. Deny deny deny! _(Snorters do not get boyfriends!)_ Wait, that wasn't one of Miss Aquarius' phrases...but it definitely sounded like something she would say. If they were friends maybe...instead of pupil and tutor.

 **no, you totally did! it was adorable!** Wait, what?

 _Adorable? Why? It was so unladylike…_

 **what does that have to do with anything? it was just...like a really cute feeling. you must have a super tiny nose or something. whatever, it's no big deal.**

 _No, you've got to tell me. Did it really not bother you?_

 **nah. making a girl laugh hard enough to snort is totally awesome. just a guy thing I guess. we think we're pretty funny with each other, but, uh, when it's a girl laughing it seems like such an accomplishment or something...idk...come on everyone knows this stuff! it's like dating 101!** But it's not like we're dating...or anything...

 _I wouldn't know. I've never been on a date._

Why the hell had she told him that?! That was not something she wanted her eventual soulmate to know! Gods, he was going to think she was so inexperienced! Hell, she was inexperienced! She really had to get a date. And soon. He had probably been on loads of dates. He walked around train stations half naked for gods' sakes. That body alone probably had women dropping at his feet.

Most of the things she had been sheltered from-great movies, naughty books, fanfiction-Levy had been cramming into her in their free time, so she would understand context in everyday conersation a little better, but dating just couldn't be crammed for like that. She could name the top five transportation companies in the world, and name the famous battles of WWI, but that didn't help at all when she was trying to flirt! She was woefully behind in so many aspects of life. And dating was just one of those things Levy couldn't help with. Unless Lucy wanted to practice with Jet or Droy, she was tapped out in that department. Levy was pretty much in the same boat as her. And it turned out they were terrible sailors when it came to the boat of _love_.

 **you're lying right?**

 _No, I don't lie._

 **ok, now I don't know what to react to first... you** **never** **lie?! wait, no, definitely the dating thing. you, queen of the top-heavy platinum blondes, have never been out with anyone? ever? what, do you live in a convent or something?!**

 _Something like that. Not nuns, but about as celibate. I had other priorities growing up. And gee, thanks, no one has ever commented on my breasts before. So original._

 **but you're 19 right? that's a whole year of legal freedom. still, no dates? is it because you're such a weirdo?**

 _Hey! I just haven't had a lot of free time to meet people! The day we ran into each other I was moving to my very first apartment! It's been hard work paying rent. I've never had to worry about that before. Plus school_

She abruptly stopped writing. Shit! Was that too personal? Had she given something away!?

She slumped further into her chair, looking at Levy's makeshift security camera as she stuck her arms between her legs, out of sight. She could feel more writing appearing, then stopping. Her heart was beating really fast. Had she really almost told him school in Magnolia was different from being tutored? What the hell!? Then he would know for sure where she lived! That was so close! Yeah, he had seen her getting on a train to Magnolia, but that didn't mean that was her last stop. Or that he even remembered. This would have confirmed it 100%.

As she stared at the tiny screen monitoring the gym across the street, avoiding her own problems, two things happened at once.

The first, captured all of her attention, as Levy glanced up at the screen, in between angry math problems, and suddenly wrapped her tiny elbow around Lucy's neck, pulling her face closer to the phone. Her whispered squeal of "That's him!" drowned out the sound of the bakery door opening as a tallish guy came in, in a loose red tank top and a pink and black beanie, with tufts of salmon hair sticking out, almost indecipherable from the hat itself. He approached the counter and ordered four dozen chocolate croissants.

"Wow, throwing some sort of brunch?" the sales lady asked, eyebrows shooting into her hairline.

"Look, Lucy! That's him! With the really long black hair!" Levy whispered right next to Lucy's ear.

"Nah, just craving them. It's like I'm smelling them everywhere I go this morning. I'm starving and it's driving me crazy!" the pink-hatted guy said with a smile.

"That's him? That's not hair, that's a fucking mane! Levy, he's enormous! He could eat you for breakfast! You can't go meet him alone!" Lucy whispered back, leaning forward to squint out the window, hiding partially behind the curtain, arms leaning on the chair between her legs for balance.

"What are you writing? To do list for the day? I do that all the time!" The sales lady struggled for something to fill the silence as she used a server to move each delicate pastry. The boy was scribbling on his arm in illegible chicken scratch.

"It will be fine! He's my soulmate, remember? He won't hurt me. I know it. Plus, it's in a public place with a glass wall for gods' sakes! And you'll be right here to call the police if something goes down. Can't go wrong!" Levy struggled a little to keep her voice enthusiastic. No joke, he was a REALLY big guy. He could probably lift her with one hand…around her neck. Gulp. But he wouldn't. He was her soulmate. HER SOULMATE. Levy could do this. She could!

"Yeah! Uh, something like that. Sort of," the hatted guy chuckled nervously and crossed his arms, hiding the two-toned writing up his forearm. Two boxes filled, two to go. His mouth watered as he handed the guy working the register a bundle of jewels.

"But, come on! He's even bigger than the black guy who owns the place! Plus he's probably friends with everyone in there! It will be you in a sea of raging testosterone! You should let me come with you! At least for moral support, if you still insist on doing this!" Lucy had been trying to convince Levy to let her come as back-up all morning. She had gotten self-defense training from a master from a young age. She probably couldn't handle taking the massive Goliath out, but she could definitely slow him down if need be.

"Ok, then. There you go, four dozen pastries! You paid my husband already right? Ok! Then they're all yours! Let me get you a bag! Enjoy..." the shop owner trailed off, a little stunned by the gorgeous grin on her customer's face. Wow, he had been attractive before. But when his eyes really lit up like that...talk about eye candy!

"Lu-chan, I got this! We talked about it. It's just something I have to do!" Levy said stubbornly, furrowing her brow at her friend.

"Thanks lady! These smell amazing!" He opened the top box and inhaled four of the croissants without hardly blinking. Shoving another three in his mouth, he grabbed the bag in his left hand and used his right to finish writing whatever he had started at the counter. As he walked to the door, his peripheral vision caught on an expanse of pale skin. His eyes were snared by the creamy exposed lower back of a blonde girl, banging her forehead repeatedly on the table while her friend with the hat threw an arm around her and whispered something fiercely to her. He winced. He could almost the banging on his own forehead. Those were pretty hard looking tables. Remembering that he was already trying to multi-task, he grabbed another couple of croissants, shoved them in his mouth, flickering an appreciative gaze one more time to where he could see the indent at the base of her spine, her skin sloping smoothly in and up from the low waistline of her jeans as she leaned forward. Hot. Feeling heat rush to his cheeks, he dragged his eyes back to the writing on his arm, ate another croissant, and pushed out of the bakery door.

Lucy's face was flushed with frustration. Why was Levy being so stubborn?! This was a really dangerous idea to begin with! Why was she rejecting back-up!?

She lifted her head from the table just as the bells over the door chimed behind an assumedly happy customer. The croissants did taste amazing. She could still taste the chocolate on her tongue, even though it had been an hour since they finished eating. She glanced back at the phone screen in front of her and gasped.

Uh oh. Not good.

"Levy! We've been made!" Lucy quickly slid her chair further into the corner, behind the curtain turning her head away from the window.

Levy looked at the screen, which showed her soulmate, very clearly still standing outside the gym, still holding the door half open.

Staring right at the bakery.

Right at their window.

Right at Levy.

She froze and slowly lifted her eyes from her phone, looking at him through the window. Their eyes met and he lost his grip on the door, dropping it right in front of the pink-hatted guy about to go through the door carrying two bakery boxes and a big ball of cardboard in a plastic bag over one arm. There was a minor hubbub from the bakery box guy, as the top box almost fell, but neither of them noticed as Gajeel strode across the empty morning street, not taking his eyes off of her. He stopped in front of the window, and squatted down to her eye level, two feet and a transparent barrier away. God he was tall. And hot. Really hot. The three lip rings on the left side of his mouth distracted her for a moment. His hand came up to tug on the lip around them absentmindedly, and broke her daze. Returning her gaze to his eyes, she slowly stood up from the table and came around the table to stand a little closer to the window.

He straightened, following her movements.

A little belatedly, she remembered to smile, and lifted a hand to wave, unnecessarily. Her cheeks turned red, but her eyes stayed unabashedly locked on his. He broke out into a smirk, lifting one side of his mouth to expose exceptionally white teeth.

"Hey there Shrimp," he muttered to himself. The laser mic picked it up and projected it through her phone speakers. Caught in the moment, she didn't even argue with him. She muttered back with a smile, feeling weirdly peaceful,

"Hey there Soulmate"

* * *

Levy went with Gajeel over to the gym, to have some privacy while they figured things out, and Lucy found herself alone in the bakery.

She was at a loss for what to do now, since she could just barely see Levy's blue hair through the picture window in the upstairs office, and she seemed fine. She suddenly remembered what had been happening right before Levy's soulmate had shown up. She glanced around the bakery to make sure no one was watching her, and bent her head to read her arm under the table. The sun went behind a cloud and she had to push her sunglasses out of the way to make out the words.

 **school? what about it? I would think that would be a great place to meet guys. I'm still not buying that you've never had a date. just doesn't seem possible. girls that look like you never have trouble getting a date.** Well, if someone hadn't been making her act like a crazy person for weeks on end...

 **I mean... I guess it should be about more than just looks though right? It's just that you're pretty cool, even if you're kinda weird. hell, Gray's half in love with you and he hasn't even seen you...I mean, I guess I kind of haven't either, but well, you know, I kind of have...too...**

 **Um, all I'm trying to say is the guys at your school must be pretty dense if no one has asked you out yet...that's all I'm saying. just... don't worry about it. it will happen.**

 **you still there? did I offend you or something?**

 **Weirdo?**

 **OK, well, I'm gonna go workout for a bit now. don't say it, I promise not to start any fights.**

 **spoil sport.**

Lucy sat back in her chair and brought her arm into the light to read what he had written again. She tried to keep a straight face, but the huge grin that spread on her lips couldn't be contained.

Natsu, punching a heavy, sand-filled bag, felt a grin pulling at her lips and smiled. He couldn't help it. The feeling was contagious. It was like trying not to laugh when someone was rolling around on the floor laughing in front of him. How could he not share in the happiness? He kind of hoped her smile was because of what he had written. Wasn't like it had happened right away, or anything really suggested she was smiling at his words, but he paused long enough in punching to undo the wraps around his wrist a little and check, hoping to see something new written there.

Lucy felt fabric being pulled across her arm. What a weird feeling. Maybe he was drying his hands, or taking off gloves or something. Either way, it meant he was looking at his arm again. Right now.

Without thinking about what it meant for her, or what could happen, for once, she acted on a pure wish to make him as happy as his words had made her.

She had often wondered, particularly now that she lived out in the world, why no one ever seemed to ask her out. Somehow, he had figured it out. And made her feel better. It was so….nice. And he thought she was attractive. That didn't hurt.

 _You have an hour...starting now. Please try not to get hit in the face. And you better win._

Natsu stared at the words, trying to figure out what she was saying...then he got it. His grin grew enormous as he yelled at the top of his lungs, "YES! FINALLY! Someone fight me! Right now!"

He had several takers. He hadn't fought in weeks and some of the other guys were getting cocky, forgetting the poundings they had received in the past and hoping he was going through a slump. Something had to be going on. Real fighters could not survive on punching bags alone. Especially not a fighter like Natsu.

He pulled on his gloves and took them down one at a time. Playing it safe, but not pulling his punches. Poor guys. He wasn't even giving them a chance.

He didn't want her to regret it. This was his shot to show her that he could fight and not get her hurt.

So she would stop freaking out about it.

And, if he was being honest with himself, he was a little high on the idea that she could feel him winning.

He was showing off for her again.

Whatever, he finally got to punch some people out! It was like breathing again after being underwater!

All the stress he didn't realize he had been carrying with him, about this whole second origin thing happening, melted away and his mind turned off. He was where he belonged. In the fire of the fight. In his element.

After the seventh guy, they quit volunteering. Natsu had been hard to beat before, but easily distracted by taunts or challenges. His opponents could usually get in a hit or two once in awhile. But today? He was hyper-focused. They had never seen him fight like that before. Except maybe against Gray. Or Gajeel, way back in the day. And that was usually because he actually had to work to keep up. This was unreal. When he ran out of opponents he hopped out of the ring and checked the time. Twenty minutes left.

Ten minutes or so back to campus...eight if he ran.

Just enough time. He set an alarm on his watch to make sure he got every second of his hour.

With a sheen of sweat coating his skin and a shit-eating grin stuck to his face, he grabbed his workout bag and ran out the doors of the gym. He didn't notice the hat fall out of his bag as he ran down the sidewalk, and barely heard the sound of the bell chiming at the bakery across the street as a busty blonde girl backed her way out of the door, waving both hands at the owners, fellow book lovers, who kept shoving food at her, insisting she was too skinny.

Lucy had tried to get some writing done, but all she could do was feel the adrenaline rushing through her and her fists pounding into opponent after opponent. It was nerve-racking at first, not knowing where or when she could be in pain. She braced herself and held her breath for a whole minute. But it never came.

Huh. He really was good. Then his growing excitement and adrenaline caused her to get antsy. He had so much energy! It was catching. Bouncing her knees alternately, she found it even harder to write. So she stopped and grabbed her phone, glancing to the office where Levy and Gajeel were still talking. She had texted her friend.

 _How's it going? You doing good? Do I need to come get you?_

And when she had gotten no response, she had decided: she was going in!

Turning around to face forward after leaving the bakery, she looked up the one way street to make sure there weren't any cars coming and crossed, not bothering to look the other way. When she reached the gym door, she saw a hat sitting on the sidewalk. Pink, with a black stripe running around the middle, parallel to the edge. She looked around, but didn't see anyone around, except a guy jogging way down the street. Man, he was really booking it.

Hmm, maybe someone inside would know whose it was. She shoved it into her purse, absentmindedly.

She pulled on the handle of the door, stepping into the gym, and letting it woosh shut behind her. No one looked up right away, focused on helping a couple of fighters on the floor of the padded ring back onto their feet. They both had black eyes and red puffy skin that suggested the swelling would only get worse. They must have had one hell of a fight if all of _that_ had happened with gloves on.

She walked toward the back of the gym, where the stairs were, not realizing the men stopping to stare at her and elbow their buddies as she passed. The sweat from his fights, and the summer heat, still dripped down her back and the adrenaline rush was really distracting. She paused before going up the stairs, giving one guy a chance to set his hand on her shoulder, trying to get her attention to say something. Probably a stupid pick-up line. She'd never know.

The minute the hand landed on her shoulder, panic spiked through her, fed by the adrenaline already burning through her veins. After that split second, where she stiffened and drew herself to her full height, her training kicked-in. Grabbing his hand, she ducked back under his arm, sandwiching his hand between both of hers and twisting, hard.

The six-foot-two, heavily muscled boxer with spiky sea green hair, who had dared to touch her, squealed like a baby, dancing on his tiptoes and trying to pull his arm away without luck. Snapping out of the moment, Lucy quickly released his arm before she broke anything and took a step back. Every wide eye was on her, thick silence permeating the space. It was a little creepy.

* * *

Natsu stood frozen on the pavement, hand over his heart as he felt her own, panicked, spike of adrenaline subside. She had done...something. Something physical.

It felt like a fighting move, but that couldn't be right. She definitely didn't seem like the fighting type. But the harmony of her muscles. It had felt...so...familiar. Like when he nailed a combination, or crept under someone's guard with a perfectly executed right hook. So weird. He snapped out of his reverie and checked his watch. Shit, ten minutes left. He had to get a move on.

* * *

Lucy smiled awkwardly and stepped back again, running into the railing for the stairs. Her heart fell at their astonished faces. This was why she never got dates. She really was a weirdo. Guys did not want a girl who would beat them up just for trying to get her attention. What would she do to them if they tried to kiss her or something? That was just too much for most guys. Well, she thought, there went another crop of decent choices.

She turned to go up the stairs, only to see Levy and Gajeel standing in the open office door, staring down at her. She carefully made her way up the stairs, head turned down, avoiding all the eyes on her. Levy met her halfway.

"Wow Lu! I didn't know you could fight like that!"

Gajeel glared over her head at the men in the room, quickly scaring them back to their workout routines.

"That wasn't fighting Lev, that was just a hold. Self-defense, that's all. It's so drilled into me, I didn't even realize what I was doing!" Lucy giggled nervously, rubbing the back of her neck with one hand. "I wish I could say it was the first time I needed it, but unfortunately, I've had a lot of opportunities to practice…how's it going with you guys?" she changed the subject awkwardly, almost wincing at the abrupt topic shift. But Levy didn't seem to notice.

"Oh my gods Lu, it's incredible! It's like I've known him for years. It's so weird. Like...I don't know! I can't even think of any words to describe it!" She turned to him in wonder, catching the tail end of a soft smile on his face, quickly hidden away again in a smirk, but undeniably there.

"Well, that's great… I'm really happy for you! But you could have texted me back then...I was a little worried about you...so I came over. If you're good though, I think I'm going to leave. He's working off some adrenaline, so writing is pretty much impossible right now. I think I'm going to run home and work out. I already smell like his sweat, so I might as well do some yoga or something."

"He?" Gajeel spoke to Lucy for the first time. Levy seemed to remember her manners then.

"Oh Gajeel, this is Lucy. Lucy, meet Gajeel. Lucy has a similar...situation to ours. She was the friend I was with when this all happened. Her bond started a few weeks ago though," she finished in an undertone, trying to keep their conversation from reaching the men below.

"Yeah, and my...uh...guy...is a bit of a loose canon," Lucy hedged, uncomfortable talking about it so casually after weeks of hiding it from people. "But I gave him permission to blow off some steam, so he's taking full advantage."

"Permission? You already got him that whipped? What a pussy," Gajeel muttered the last bit under his breath.

Lucy's hand reared back and slapped Gajeel across the face before she realized what she was doing. Levy let out a cry and a hand went to her face. Gajeel and Lucy's eyes immediately went to her, worried.

"I'm so sorry Levy! I totally forgot for a minute!" Lucy cried, apologizing to her friend before rounding on Gajeel again, "But you! Don't you dare belittle his efforts! He's a born fighter. A good one, apparently, but he hasn't fought in weeks because _I_ was afraid of getting hurt! So he's not whipped! He just fucking cares enough not to hurt me. If you aren't willing to do the same, then I don't want you anywhere near her," she said fiercely. "Got it, Lennie?"

With that Lucy pivoted on her heel, hugged a stunned Levy quickly with another whisper of apology, and trotted down the stairs, ignoring the audience quickly turning back around, pretending, poorly, that they hadn't just watched the whole bizarre scene, even if they couldn't hear most of what was being said. Gajeel muttered, "Lennie?" and Levy replied quietly, "Book reference. I'll explain later."

Lucy strode out the door, forgetting that she still had the pink hat stuffed in her bag. Lily leaned against the window next to the door, watching as the beautiful blonde pushed through the doors, totally oblivious to him. She had spirit alright. If he had read the situation on the stairs even halfway right, she had a hell of a lot of courage too.

Not to mention the lock she had put on Orga. He was not a small guy. Or a weak one.

A thought hitting him, his eyes swept the room, landing on a slender red-haired woman way in the back of the gym, in a corner, but impossible to miss if you knew what to look for. She was staring out the window, watching the girl walk away, a thoughtful look in her eyes. Noticing Lily looking at her, she gave him a little smile and made her way over. The guys were careful not to meet her eye as they got back to work. They were used to seeing her around.

And she had trained half of them.

Unwillingly of course.

"Lily," she said, serious as always.

"Erza," he returned, just as serious.

"Who was that girl just now?"

"Couldn't tell you. Friend of Gajeel's new girl I think. Impressive though."

"Certainly. If you see her around again, let me know. I would like to get to know her better."

"Will do," Lily responded, sweating a bit on the blonde's behalf. That poor girl. Everyone regretted catching the Titania's attention at some point. She had impossibly high standards. Word was she had gotten that nickname because she was even harder on her female trainees than on her male ones. And she was only 22 years old. Lily shivered just thinking about it.

Erza smirked to herself and returned to her corner. An interesting girl indeed.

* * *

Natsu burst through the door to Fairy Tail with five minutes to spare. He ran down the hall and pulled open the door to the room he shared with Gray, guys sticking their heads out of doors all down the hall at the racket he was making.

Gray looked up from his political science homework just in time to get punched in the face. So hard, in fact, that he flew off the couch he was sitting on and hit the floor before he knew what had happened. A collective gasp came from the crowd behind him. Gray stared up at Natsu, shocked.

"But, what about _her_! You bastard! You promised!"

"And I didn't break my promise, popsicle breath! Momentary stay of sentence. I have," Natsu looked at his watch again, "three more minutes to fight whoever I want. And I owed you one for kicking me in the balls!"

Gray was on his feet in an instant.

"That was your idea, you idiot!"

"You gonna fight me for the next three minutes or not, ice dick?"

Gray didn't waste any more time. He threw a punch that Natsu caught and returned, falling into a rhythm that both realized they had been missing since the Weirdo had entered the picture. Grinning like maniacs, they battled it out at double speed, neither landing a solid hit anywhere.

Then the alarm went off on Natsu's watch.

They both froze, looking at the beeping wristwatch, then looked back at each other, still grinning. Natsu dropped his stance first, shaking the sweat off his hair in droplets, like a dog.

"Til next reprieve then, douche," he said as he headed into their bathroom to shower.

Gray straightened up too, grin fading into a smug smile.

"You're so whipped, Tabasco breath," he muttered under his breath. "But then, I guess, so am I, which is pretty pathetic considering, so I really can't say anything…" He shut the door to their room and went back to his homework, rubbing the mounting bruise on his jaw.

In the hallway outside their door, swamping Bacchus as he counted out the winnings, the brothers of Fairy Tail wondered what had inspired Natsu to break his non-violent streak. They might never know.

* * *

Lucy finished out her yoga routine with a downward dog and stretched out her muscles. She was a little sore, probably from his fighting, but nothing she couldn't handle. She was just letting out her last deep, relaxing breath, like the toothpick in the video told her to, when she felt it.

Holy shit. He was showering.

She felt the almost too hot water running over her head, soaking into her scalp, trickling down her bare chest, over her stomach, down her thighs. It was a really odd sensation to have while semi-clothed, face to the floor in one's living room. It was sort of relaxing, soothing...She could feel his fingers massaging in shampoo, the feeling almost luring her to sleep...until he started soaping up.

Shit. This was so very, very wrong. Didn't he have any idea she could feel him doing this?

Frozen in place, she closed her eyes, lost in the sensation of hands rubbing a slippery bar of soap over her skin. She could feel the wet soap transferring to her skin, slippery on her arms and chest. She gasped as his hands roughly crossed over her breasts, rubbing under her arms and slowly down her sides. That tickled a bit and she let out a giggle, her abdomen muscles spasming.

The hands stopped, though the sensation of running water continued. The soap seemed to dissolve off her skin again.

Had he figured out she could feel it?

She ran a hand over her exposed arms, trying to rid herself of the water her brain told her was there, but wasn't. Eventually, after what felt like hours, but was probably closer to seconds, she couldn't take it anymore.

Heading to the bathroom, she turned on her shower and stripped off the sports bra and stretchy capris she wore for yoga. Biting her lip, she hesitated, then slid her bikini briefs slowly down her hips and dropped them to the floor. She could feel his breath catch.

Ok, so that was kind of fun... She was so going to hell. No! She was just taking a shower, like she did everyday! But, knowing that someone else...that _he_...could feel every touch on her skin made her feel so...hot. And the way he seemed to stop breathing when she ran her fingers over her skin made her feel desirable...sexy. Really, really sexy.

The water finally hot enough, she stepped into her own shower and soaked her hair, massaging in strawberry scented shampoo until her locks were well loved and rinsing it out again. Then she grabbed her loofah, coating it with vanilla scented body wash. Taking her time, she ran the rough sponge slowly over her shoulders...down her chest...into her belly button. That tickled him. She smiled, closing her eyes and trying to picture him in the shower with her.

She felt a flicker of guilt. She really shouldn't be doing this. That flicker slowed her hand with the loofah until it stopped moving. She was practically violating the guy here...yeah, he had started it, but he didn't seem to realize what he was doing to her until she had gotten ticklish. And he hadn't really moved since she had started stripping...maybe he wasn't into it… She should probably just hurry up, get clean and get out.

But then he moved his bar of soap again, fingertips caressing the sensitive skin under her breasts and around her nipples. Tracing over her stomach, sending shocks of sensation to her core as they ventured over her hips.

Ok, he was definitely into it. And two could play at that game.

Firming up her grip on the loofah again, she lifted her foot onto the side of the tub and ran the loofah from the inside of her ankle, in a smooth line, up her calf, past her knee and to her inner thigh. Just as she reached the inside of her thigh, she felt him mimic the movement with his soap, drawing a line from her ankle to her knee and up her thigh. Then, after pausing for a deep breathe, they both repeated the motion on the other leg. Slower than before, but perfectly in sync, eyes closed, both breathing together, harder than necessary.

Then she could feel fingers caress her ankle, traveling up after the loofah, barely touching, but just enough to cause swirls of soap to disappear. She watched fascinated through half-closed, hazy eyes as she could follow the progress of his fingers up her leg, following the soap. She could almost see his handprint on her inner thigh, smoothing away the water. He tightened his grip and the feeling made her want to squeeze her legs together as a coil of muscle in her core tightened and twitched.

She had basically stopped breathing at this point, lost in fantastical sensation. Her fingers lost their grip on her loofah, and it feel to the floor of the shower unnoticed. With soap slick fingers, Lucy closed her eyes and drew small slippery circles on her inner thigh, climbing steadily higher. With her other hand she crept northward over her ribs, cupping her own sizable breast and squeezing. A moan escaped her as she felt his hand on her other breast mirroring the movement.

Was a simple shower supposed to feel this amazing? Her fingers drifted over to play with the patch of golden curls covering her core, swirling her fingers through the soft hairs as he continued to massage her breast. She could feel her heartbeat pulsing between her legs, blood rushing to heat her up. And then, just as her fingers brushed over a very sensitive bundle of nerves, she felt something indescribable. It was like something was inside her. Squeezing...the touch and pressure exactly where her body had been luring her fingers. She moaned at the feeling, as the fingers caressing her moved, somehow reaching a deeper part of her. It was the most incredible thing she had ever felt. Her own fingers convulsing from the overwhelming sensation, she pressed down on that bundle of nerves and she almost came right there. His fingers halted movement for a breath of time and Lucy was able to break through the fog with a single thought.

Was he...doing what she thought he was? Did it feel that incredible every time he..touched himself?

She had never done anything like this. Ladies did not touch themselves...there!

But, right now, she sure as hell wasn't a lady. And it felt so good. Too good to be bad...

His fingers starting the stroking motion she could feel inside of her again.

Hell, who was she kidding, it felt like a fucking religious experience. No wonder so many people had trouble keeping it in their pants. It suddenly made a lot more sense to her. Eager to feel the feeling of euphoria again, she pressed on the hard knot of nerve again, her wet fingers sliding on her slippery folds and inside her a bit.

Holy shit, that was new. And great. And just...fucking great. She slid her fingers in and out, mirroring the rhythm she could feel him using. That coil in her stomach tightened an almost painful amount and her fingertips tingled, like there wasn't enough blood flowing to them. His pace increased, just a continuous feeling of pressure and warmth inside of her. And then with a final push of her slippery fingers, she felt a tingle at the base of her spine, and was falling off a cliff of pleasure. Waves of heat hitting her as her legs clenched and unclenched uncontrollably. She almost fell, catching herself on the wall of the shower with her palms, panting as though she had run a marathon, weak knees pressed together as her thighs rubbed slowly together, back and forth, slick with the hot liquid that ran down her thighs.

That was just...wow. Kdlsajhfldkahgirhoiaghroiahdsiof. There were no words.

She bent down and picked up her loofah, using the lingering soap to clean the... juices off her inner thighs. Trying hard to ignore the hands that she could feel braced, gripping on her quads, like he was catching his breath, she washed her face and then turned off the water. He turned off the water in his shower too, and they stood in the steamy silence, eyes closed, neither willing to break the unbelievably hot moment floating in the air around them.

Lucy was the first to grab a towel, breaking the tension as she rubbed the drips of water off her skin. Wrapping herself in the towel, she staggered her way back to her bedroom on unsteady legs, getting dressed, languidly, unable to rush the warmth spilling into her muscles from deep in her bones. Suddenly struck by the idea that she never wanted to forget a single moment of what had just happened, she opened her notebook and began scribbling furiously. She wrote the afternoon away, completely oblivious to the sun traveling across the sky in the window in front of her. She had finally found her inspiration.

* * *

Showered and clean, Natsu slung a towel around his hips and sauntered back into his room, thankfully Gray-less, trying to keep his mind off what had just happened, so he didn't have another...problem to take care of...again. Fuck. Think of something else! Anything else...

He had had a pretty damn good morning. Great food, great workout, great fights, great punch right to the ice princess' face. And he had made her laugh so hard she snorted.

Then the most amazing shower sex he'd ever had...by himself. FUCK! Don't think about it! Don't think about how it was better than all of his one night stands...that he could remember. Don't think about how that shower had felt better than anything he had ever done with anyone else. Ever. Yep, not thinking about hunting her down and fucking her so hard she couldn't walk. Nope, definitely not thinking about that. At all.

Fuck.

* * *

 **So, I tortured you with some near misses, but then...showering… So, you're welcome. ;)**

 **And a special thanks to KittyCrow12 for giving me "Ladies do NOT snort!" like a million (so really what? like five?) chapters ago. Finally got that gem in. Knew it would happen eventually!  
**

" **If you feel like you're going insane and you are trapped in a dysfunctional environment, You Are Not Crazy."-** quote from Holden in _Catcher in the Rye_ by J.D. Salinger

 **black Hercules-** no, I'm not going to explain who Hercules is. You should know. If not, get out. No, I'm actually going to throw a little art reference in here. There is a statue of Hercules, currently housed in a museum in Naples, where he has so much muscle that it seems to be weighing him down. It is known as the Farnese Hercules. That is what I'm picturing here. Just ridiculous-crazy-ripped.

 **Goliath-** referring to the biblical behemoth defeated by the comparatively much smaller David

 **Lennie-** referring to one of the main characters in the novella Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck, a hulking man with a mental disability who cannot control his own strength, often killing the small animals he dotes on by accident and causing problems for the brother who takes care of him. I won't say anymore about the plot, because this is one that really is ruined by spoilers, but I'll just say, it's not a flattering reference for Gajeel, and it's really sad in the end.


	11. Moon Drip Part One

**Alright, so while we hit 200 followers, and way more than 150 reviews, you guys stalled out at three away from 200! SO CLOSE! So, in celebration of that, and in anticipation of the fact that we will most certainly hit 200 reviews when this DOUBLE LENGTH chapter, I began the drinking process and Thursday's post, Moon Drip Part 2 will be all kinds of crazy drunken for everyone! Maybe even Erza...hehehe. Send me some love, because I worked my little fingers off this weekend through a nasty bout of fibromyalgia to give you these glorious 12,000 beauteous words for you fabulous people! Totally worth it in my opinion!**

 **A special thanks to Lkityan02 guest reviewer for correcting me on the correct use of Mandarin. I appreciate it and took it off the crazy Levy language list in the chapter entitled My Cat. For those equally ignorant on this juicy little factoid, Mandarin is apparently the spoken language, not the written. The more you know right? I really appreciate your guys' dedication to helping me make this as factual and realistic feeling as possible. After all, 400 eyes are better than two...unless they're all on one person...then that's just creepy...yeah I'm looking at you Argus!**

 **So, Enjoy! Oh, and a side note, I had to pull in a lot of characters that aren't part of Fairy Tail Guild in Canon...because without girls, it gets a bit sparse...it will come out later, but the Quatro Cerberus guys joined after their own fraternity was shut down due to abysmal grades (average 0.62 grade point average...Bacchus was keeping them afloat and had a bad semester) and the tower of heaven crew joined up because Erza recommended it to them. There, logically explained, so get to know these random side characters just a little bit better! Because honestly, doesn't everyone everywhere just want to be a member of Fairy Tail anyway? Alright, shutting up now.**

* * *

Natsu, Gray and pretty much every member of Fairy Tail fraternity living in the house were woken abruptly by the squealing sound of feedback. Which could mean only one thing.

Someone was using their shitty amp and mic to make an announcement to the house.

At 6am.

On a Saturday.

Oh, and that person was going to die. Very Soon.

"Attention, brothers of Fairy Tail!" Warren's voice could be heard in every corner of the house, accompanied by another squeal of feedback that woke even Bacchus from his still drunken slumber.

And now they knew who their target was. House rules were very clear about breaking the sanctity of a Saturday morning, ever since the well-remembered beastly rampage of Elfman Strauss in '13. Visions of maiming and dismemberment danced in their minds like sugarplums at Christmastime. Pillows were dragged over heads by some, random possible-blunt-force-trauma-weapons reached for by others.

"Apologies for the early hour, but time is of the essence! Gildarts is coming!"

And like magic, the men of Fairy Tail were instantly awake, plans for Warren's punishment all but forgotten.

"He will be arriving at the airport at 1900 hours, so we've got limited time to prepare. Adjourn to the dining hall in ten minutes for preparation assignments. Warren out."

Natsu and Gray rolled out of bed and barely bothered to land before scrambling for semi-clean pants in the laundry detritus scattering the floor. 1900 hours was 7pm, which gave them only 13 hours with which to prepare. They had managed, barely, with 12 hours notice last time, but not by much. And the ice luges had been terrifyingly unstable, resulting in more than one nasty concussion. A visit from their most prestigious alum only happened once every few years, the interval this time longer than the last, at almost three years.

He had last come shortly into Natsu and Gray's freshman year, freshly initiated members, but already building a reputation for themselves. However, he had been in no way prepared for what a visit from Gildarts actually entailed. No one could comprehend the mayhem and destruction that was a Gildart's Welcome Home Bash who had not laid their own eyes upon it. And from the moment the last drunken sorority sister was shooed from the premises...three days later...Natsu and Gray had started planning for his next arrival.

Now, their time had finally come. Natsu grabbed the small, red leather-bound notebook he kept under his mattress, while Gray pulled a sketchbook stuffed with far too many extra pages and held together by an enormous rubber band from his desk drawer. This time, they would be ready.

They never knew when word would come that the jet-setting alum would have a layover, or miracle-of-miracles, a free weekend, to spend at his old stomping grounds, but at a moment's notice, every brother of Fairy Tail knew what was expected of him. It was part of the initiation pledge, after all.

Classes would be skipped. Meals would be eaten on the job. Concern for the law and personal safety would be suspended. And most importantly, campus police would be kept in the dark for as long as possible.

Uncharacteristically focused, the upperclassmen of Fairy Tail rounded up the wide-eyed freshmen members and pledges that had been pulled from their various beds around campus, distributing donuts in an organized fashion. Romeo personally delivered Natsu's box of dozen jalopeno-honey-glazed crullers. They were on a clock here, but Natsu was an essential cog in the machine. Plus no one else in their right mind would eat them.

At the exact stroke of ten minutes past six, the eldest currently enrolled member of Fairy Tail, rarely seen lately as he finished his master's dissertation, Mystogan Fernandes, cleared his throat and the room fell silent. As the most senior member, he held the needed experience to guide them through the trial ahead. The men of Fairy Tail placed their absolute trust in him. He had witnessed not one, but three Gildarts Welcome Home Bashes, and survived unscathed; an unprecedented feat.

"Alright brothers, and the uninitiated," Mystogan paused as he gave a blue-headed nod to acknowledge the bewildered group of pledges shoving their faces with cream-filled long johns. "We've got less than thirteen hours to make this happen, so shut up, pay attention, and report to your designated squad commander following the meeting, and we may just pull this off. Here are your assignments: Gray, ice luges. Grab a team and get to work. Fairy Tail never makes the same mistake twice, so there will be a lot of pressure on those frozen shot slides. Crisp, cold and fucking incredible. We're counting on you. I heard a rumor that the chemistry lab just obtained a large quantity of dry ice recently, so you should touch base with Leon about getting your hands on as much as possible. During the party itself, you will be official designated driver, per recent house ruling, but you will also be tasked with picking up Gildarts from the airport. Jet has graciously volunteered Little Red for the honors, so treat her like the fucking lady she is." Gray traded a serious look with Jet, silently assuring him that his vintage Ferrari would be in excellent hands.

"Loke, you're on invitation and circulation. We need to fill this house from top to bottom. A Gildarts Welcome Home Moon Drip Bash has never hosted less than 200 people. Let's double that. But remember to keep it below the radar until the last moment. Keep in mind we're talking about Gildarts here, so think female to male ratio 3 to 1 or higher, and make sure we keep the freshmen to a minimum and away from the guest of honor. We do NOT want a repeat of '08. Networking with the other houses will be essential. I would start with Blue Pegasus. If we've got them, we've got the sororities. And we _need_ the sororities on board. You have the full bargaining power of Fairy Tail behind you, but don't promise anything we can't deliver. In addition, in an unprecedented turn of events, Gildarts will be bringing his daughter with him. She just turned 21 and she will be your number two priority during the party. Keep her drunk and happy, but conscious. Number one will be keeping her away from Gildarts. You all know the legends of the Clive, and no doubt that would be a shock for a young-un like her...no daughter should see her father that way. So, Loke, we're counting on you. That being said, reign in your sluttier tendencies. Remember who her father is and act accordingly." Loke nodded with a gulp. He did not want to be on the wrong end of protective-father-Gildarts-Clive. He wasn't known as the Crash Wizard of international boxing for nothing.

"Bacchus, booze, obviously. And I'm talking more than just the Dueling Bar setup with Elfman. We need the Moon Drip. It is imperative that this detail is not overlooked. There has never been a Gildarts party without it. Call Galuna's immediately and see how much they can get us in 13 hours. Mira might have some stashed somewhere over at Satan's Soul too, so coordinate with Elfman on that. Get at least one back-up bartender for when you pass out, or for when we need you placing bets. Natsu informs me it is going to be a busy night for betting. And we can't having a Dueling Bar with just Elfman manning his end. Gray and Bacchus, keep in contact with the setup crew as you go, so we don't have a repeat of 2012. No one wants to see that again." The eldest members of the house cringed. Ice luges set up on the bar had seemed like a no-brainer...until they started melting...and sliding everywhere. However, the impromptu game of ice luge floor hockey had been pretty legendary...if dangerous. "Though hopefully the dry ice will solve any similar problems."

"Natsu, as you know, are on entertainment. You'll get the house credit card for only the previously agreed upon budget, so borrow where you can. Pick your team first before anyone else gets dibs. And remember, we want interest and excitement, not just destruction and arson. You were entrusted with this duty by Gildarts himself three years ago, so the pressure is on. Expectations will be high." Natsu smirked and patted his notebook. He wasn't worried. What he had planned would go down in Fairy Tail history.

"Max, you were unanimously elected head host this time around. Work carefully with Loke to anticipate crowd control needs, and don't forget to do sound checks! Feedback has become a problem in the past, which is an unacceptable mood killer, so don't forget your basics. Natsu will be keep you updated on events and times as soon as they are set."

"Which leads me to Vijeeter, you're on music prep. Coordinate with Max, so we keep the party on schedule and rolling. We need at least three days' worth of music from trance to top 40. Four different genre playlists to mix with should have us covered. Alum Bickslow is lending us his equipment and his DJ expertise for the night, but won't have time to prep before he gets here, so I need you in constant communication with him, making sure he can step right in when he arrives. His equipment will be here in an hour and sound checks start in two."

"Jet and Droy, you're running setup, and consequently, pledge supervision duty. Lead them through KP and get this house looking and smelling spotless. Remember guys, it is safe to assume there will be girls in every room of this house, at some point, so hide your porn and delete your browser histories." The men nodded solemnly. It was standard pre-Fairy Tail party practice. Along with updating their wills and writing a letter to their guardians. They lived on the edge, but that was no reason to be inconsiderate to their loved ones. "Furthermore, find the time to declutter your rooms in between your other duties so that the pledges can come through to disinfect and vacuum. Pay particular attention to the pool. It's swimming season and drunk sorority sisters somehow always end up naked in the pool so let's make sure it's up to code and algae free."

Natsu piped up while Mystogan was taking a breath, "With what I've got planned, it will definitely be in use tonight." Several curious looks were shot his way, but he just smiled smugly to himself and stayed focused on the blue-haired super-senior as he continued.

"We have no word yet on the length of this particular visit, so prepare yourselves for every eventuality. I want everyone loading up on water and carbs now, because it's a liquid diet for Fairy Tail members from the minute Gildarts hits the porch. House rules. Nab, you're on munchies. Cheap, greasy, and non-perishable for the most part. Check with Natsu for any supplies he might need. Fruit wedges and garnishes will be taken care of by the bar, but try to synchronize your grocery runs to maximize time. Body shots are a time honored tradition and must be carried out properly, using lime and orange wedge chasers. Which reminds me, Loke, we need at least a dozen volunteers for the body shots. Toned, tanned, friendly, and over the age of consent. Bacchus, don't forget to leave room in the bar setup for them. A cramped body shot, is a less than perfect body shot. We're leaving nothing to chance. Ok, that should be just about everything. Any questions?"

"One," Loke spoke up. "Who's on Titania duty? And the sooner the better, if I'm going to hit up Fairy Hills for the requisite non-Greek eye-candy with Hibiki."

Mystogan smirked, "My poker chip was drawn from the Fish Bowl of Destiny this time around, so I will be off premises in a little under an hour and will be handing off the reins to Freed, as second in seniority. I will be available by cell, but calls should be kept to a minimum and conducted in code. In fact, let's just let Freed handle any calls to me. Go to him first with issues and he will determine if a ruling decision is required. We all know the problems an angry Titania can cause if incited, so for a party this important, I'm not taking any chances. I have a few ideas to keep her from alerting campus security, and more importantly the chief of police, but this is my first personal encounter with the red-haired menace, so I am welcoming advice from those who know her best. Natsu, Gray, I've got some ideas to run past you, see me just following the meeting."

The initiated brothers in the room respectfully saluted Mystogan and said as one, "Your sacrifice will not be in vain," as had become tradition over the three years Erza had been a Magnolia University student.

"And that's it. Get to work, and I'll see you on the flip side." Mystogan finished, handing the mic back to Warren.

Gray and Natsu approached Mystogan and waited while he had a last word with Freed about house fire code regulations and how to set the fire alarms to 'test mode'. Gray took the moment to make a necessary call.

"Hey, Leon, it's Gray. We've got a situation. Gildarts is coming. How much dry ice can you get your hands on in the next hour?" Gray greeted his cousin, who also happened to handle stocking the chemistry department supply room as part of his campus work study.

Mystogan finished with Freed and turned to Natsu.

"So, I think I've got a way to keep her off our backs for at least the next 13 hours. There was a pervert seen on campus trying to lure girls onto his yacht yesterday, and he managed to escape the authorities. I'm thinking it's the perfect situation to keep her busy tracking him down, with me to assist of course. A little philanthropy for Fairy Tail in the mix couldn't hurt. What I need from you guys is details: weaknesses, likes, dislikes, etc. Anything that will give me an edge with her," he said, giving Natsu his full attention as Gray continued his phone call.

"No Leon, don't you dare send Tobe! We'll spend half our work time in the hospital! The guy is a walking disaster! He can come to the party later, but that's it!"

"Well," Natsu replied, thinking over his answer. "I think the perv is a great distraction; nothing catches Erza's attention like public safety. I mean, as far as weaknesses, she has pretty bad stage fright...which doesn't really help much. Oh! She will drop anything to go clothes shopping, so if you need a quick distraction, that's always a good go-to. There's one company in particular...Heart something?"

"Heart Kreuz," Gray said putting his hand over the microphone on his phone.

"Yeah, them. She owns ridiculous amounts of their stuff. She can't resist giving you advice, so again, that's a good one to keep her distracted and happy. She hates rule-breaking, as you already know, and cussing, so keep your behavior and language clean and you shouldn't have any problems staying on her good side...let's see...what else.." Natsu trailed off as he wracked his brain.

"Cake," Gray said suddenly, covering the microphone on his phone again to add in his mono-syllabic suggestion, before returning to Leon. "Fuck no dude, I don't care how good she is. Have you seen the shit she's into now? The last thing we need is a coven of fucking witches coming to get us when she forgets to tell them where she is! Ultear is out, no matter how talented she is with ice. We are not that desperate. Not yet. Chelia's in, and what's his face with the eyebrows, but that's it!"

"Oh yeah! Cake! She fucking loves the stuff. Like in insane amounts. And that's coming from me. She beat me in a cake-eating contest once. She especially likes anything strawberry flavored. All the bakeries in the area know her by name. She even has commandments that she recites about cake. 'Thou shalt not disrespect any desserts in my presence. Thou shalt not waste the heavenly gift that is cake. Thou shalt not steal or destroy my cake under any circumstances,' she's got tons of them. And that last one is very important. You know how in Gremlins, if you feed the little furry dudes after midnight they go totally fucking crazy and evil and try to kill you? That is pretty much what happens to Erza if you fuck with her cake. It's a tried and true distraction, but there are a ton of ways to fuck it up, so if you're in a tricky situation with her, adding cake to the mix might not help so much as get you impaled. I would definitely use it as a last resort." Natsu gave him a grave look, Gray taking a moment to copy the look. Mystogan needed to know what he was getting into. Messing with Erza Scarlet was a serious business. "Oh, yeah, and totally forgot to tell you, she carries like a million concealed weapons. Mostly sharp and pointy stuff. And before you ask, it's all legal. Somehow. We really have no idea how she worked that out. We suspect she has some sort of weird connection with one of the city council members...or is blackmailing them...could be either…" Natsu trailed off, still contemplating how Erza had managed to convince the city of Magnolia that she should legally carry multiple switchblades...let alone where she had found a weapons manufacturer to custom make them for her.

Natsu was surprised to see a smirk of amusement on Mystogan's face. Maybe he should explain again...if he wasn't trying to run away in terror, then he definitely hadn't been thorough enough...but Mystogan was already talking again.

"Fair enough. Those are really helpful insights. It should be a cinch to keep her away from the house."

"Well, actually," Natsu began again with a cocky smirk. "You should probably plan on keeping her away from campus entirely. My entertainment plans are going to cover quite a bit of ground." He finished with maniacal laughter. Mystogan raised an eyebrow and Gray rolled his eyes with a knowing grin, finishing his call and hanging up the phone.

"Whatever flame-brain. Just keep the campus police in the dark. I'm off to the culinary building to meet Leon. They've apparently got a blast chiller that might be big enough for the luges. Should cut our molding time in half." He saluted Mystogan lazily again and swiftly gathered his chosen team to leave the house.

Natsu did the same as Mystogan left to hunt down the Titania. "Romeo, Reedus, Rocker, Nobarly, Mickey, Sho, aaaand...Simon, get your asses over here! You're with me." The guys he named, swiftly surrounded him. "Alright, this is going to be an event the likes of which Magnolia has never seen, and you're going to be part of the team that made it all happen: Team Natsu. But in order to make it happen, we're going to need some supplies. First off, Rocker, you've got access to the locker rooms right? We need every pair of the hockey team's ice skates you can get your hands on. Drop them off in my room when you've got em. We're shooting for at least six pairs in various sizes. The more the better. Leave now and report to me when you're done for another duty. Here, take a walkie talkie and set it to channel seven. Romeo, we need fireworks. I'll be making some for the show at the end of the event, but for the purposes pf my plan, we also need about 50 bottle rockets, 20 Roman Candles, and at least one Screaming Lady Chaser. Here's cash, and you can take Gray's car to get them. I swiped his keys earlier without his knowledge, so if you can find someway to leave the bottle of cinnamon scented shaving cream I've got in my freezer in his trunk when you're done with is, it would be appreciated." Natsu wasn't going to pass up a golden opportunity just because Gildarts was coming.

"Reedus, I know you've got a GoPro camera, and I'm sure we can borrow Jet's, but I'm looking for at least four more, and the more you can get the better. Use my authority to assemble a team if necessary. We don't have the budget to buy new ones, so beg borrow and steal. We'll return them when we're done. Once we've got em, we're going to need to attach them to helmets and link them wirelessly to several TVs. Sho and Simon, that's where you come in. I want you to scour the house and get every TV we have available set up around the Beast in the basement. We'll need one for each video camera we can get. Sho, I know you've got the tech skills to make it happen. Let Reedus know if you need anything else to make it all link and he'll find it for you. Simon, you're the muscle, and setup. I want the wall around the beast to look like the biggest game of Mario Kart the world has ever seen on at least half a dozen screens. Use whatever furniture you can find, or wall mounts, but the overall look is essential. It needs to be larger than life. Nobarly, I need you to buy as many cans of shaving cream as you can get your hands on and the largest tarp you can find, length over general area if it comes down to it. Mickey, you're heading to Metalicana's to borrow their sumo suits. Tell Lily I sent you and he should give them to you no problem. He should have three sets and we need all of 'em. Don't forget to invite the guys there to the party. Gildarts got his start there, so he's got friends who will want to know he's in town. But, if Erza is there, do it quietly. That goes for everyone. Erza Scarlet CANNOT see you doing any of this or it is game over. And I'm dead. I've got to talk to Nab about getting the groceries I need, so get on it. I'll be around. Oh, shit! Before you go, take a walkie talkie!" Each of the guys eagerly grabbed one pf the little black devices Natsu pulled from a bag at his feet. There would always be something about walkie-talkies that spoke to the kid in every man, no matter how old. "Alright, synchronize to channel 7. Let me know when each task is complete and I will give you another. One last thing, so that you understand the unprecedented feat we will achieve today. Here's the plan." Moving over to a framed map of Magnolia on the wall of the dining hall (conveniently marked with every good fast food place in the area), he opened his little red notebook and pulled out a folded piece of paper. Unfolding it a ridiculous number of times, it was revealed to be piece of tracing paper, which he spread over the map. As one the group gasped and grinned like 8-year-olds. They were going to go down in history.

Excitement stoked, each frat boy set off to complete his task. Natsu carefully refolded the master plan, tucked it in his book and had a chat with Nab before setting off for the chemistry lab. He had kickass fucking awesome explosion science to do.

* * *

Levy followed the directions written on her phone screen to the letter. She was nervous and excited to see Gajeel's business. Though it had been a week since they met face to face, neither had had enough free time between work and school schedules to spend anymore time together in person. And after a week of filling up their mutual limbs with text, then their test message inboxes, and several missed opportunities to see each other, Levy had finally expressed an interest to see her soulmate in his element. She knew he owned his own business-impressive for someone in their twenties-but he had refused to tell her what it was, claiming it was a surprise. He hadn't even told her what to look for. He had texted her written directions from campus, with the address conspicuously excluded and told her she'd know it when she saw it. Which seemed like a pretty stupid thing to say when she had no idea what she was looking for. So, with a curious mind churning through possibility after possibility, she triple checked the instructions and continued carefully towards her destination.

She was really wishing she had never agreed to his request that they do no research of each other online. It had seemed fair at the time, getting to know one another the old fashioned way-through sensory-linked skin, texting, and past life flashbacks...right...old-fashioned-but now it felt like Levy was walking into a final exam in mathematics without studying. She hadn't even been able to research any of the flashbacks she had had, because she wasn't sure if that counted! It was killing her!

The Majestic Bookworm had compensated by, instead, finishing all of her research papers for her classes for the semester, re-reading some of her favorite childhood novels, the " _So You Want To Be A Wizard"_ series, and translating the week's newest chapters of her five favorite manga from Japanese into twelve different languages for 12 different illegal websites. The Majestic Bookworm was all about bringing excellent literature to the international masses, and if they couldn't do it legally in a decent time interval, then she would do it for them.

Levy took a right at the next intersection, seeing the cute little houses she strolled past falling away for the blockier, more industrial buildings of commerce. She fancied herself an explorer, venturing out into the wilds of Magnolia with nothing but her phone and wits about her. There were only two directions left, so she had to be getting close.

With every shop she passed, she tried to picture Gajeel owning it.

A shoe store? Nope, definitely not the type, and there was no way he owned a Reebok chain.

Law offices? She snorted when she thought of the hard-core pierced and tattooed Gajeel standing head and shoulders above the opposition in, for some reason, an entirely white suit. It was simultaneously ridiculous and weirdly sexy. But he clearly wasn't one of Crawford & Seam Associates, so her eyes wandered on.

Bakery, chiropractor, barber...nope, nope, and definitely nope. That wild hair hadn't seen a pair of scissors in years...for a moment she mused about what he would look like with short hair as her eyes drifted across the street. And then she saw it. The smile instantly fell from her face. Her knees weakened and she fell on her butt, right there on the sidewalk between the Heart Kreuz boutique and a Baby Gap. Was this some kind of cosmic joke? Did he know more than he let on?

There in front of her, white words on a stark black sign, were the words Black Steel. It was a piercing and tattoo parlour, a glistening glass store front showing a classic black and white checked floor and brushed steel front desk, backed by a full-sized wall mural of a black and gray dragon with vivid red eyes, breathing silver flames. It was a beautiful and eye catching shop design, but none of that reached Levy as she sat on the warm concrete trying desperately to take it all in stride...and failing. Miserably.

Over the week they had spent getting to know each other, there had been one unspoken, taboo topic: the flashbacks. Gajeel had brought it up at during their time in Lily's office at the gym, but had quickly back-pedaled seeing the color drain from Levy's face. He hadn't mentioned it again, wanting to earn a little more of Levy's trust before bringing up what was clearly a touchy subject again. Levy had done her best to forget what she had learned in her flashback; keeping herself so busy that her mind only had time to send her flashes of moments. By sheer force of will, she kept herself from experiencing any more visions of that particular past life. She was determined to give the scary-looking, but secretly amazing, man she had met a chance. She had all but blocked out the images of blood and gore from her association with him, until it all seemed like a bad dream. Because what else was it really, except an exceptionally real feeling bad dream? Right?!

But as Levy sat, bruised bum stinging, and saw the nickname of the criminal, she still vividly remembered interrogating, blazoned across a sign in graphic black and white letters, she felt hounded, and betrayed. She had given him the benefit of the doubt; assumed that Gajeel didn't know, or couldn't remember what his past incarnation had done, but here was evidence to the contrary! How could it not be related? Had he named his studio after the mutilating murderer of Chicago out of some sick joke?! A way to remember, or even fantasize his past kills?!

As Levy fell to the concrete, paralyzed by terror and cataclysmic pain at his perceived betrayal, Gajeel paced in the back room of his studio, fretting about what Levy would think of his profession. He had been crazy busy all week, and most of the morning, just finishing sterilizing his equipment from his last scheduled client before getting her text saying she was heading over. He glanced around the back room, not really seeing any of it, and headed back across the narrow room again, tugging at his lip rings.

There were still some days, usually days when business was slow, when he wondered if he had done the right thing-selling his dad's gym to Lily, a completely paid off, successful business, and using the money to buy and remodel a building in order to follow his crazy dream. It sounded so cliche and stupid when he thought about it that way. But most days, he looked around and saw what he had built, all on his own, and the pride out-weighed the doubt. Especially since he didn't really give a fuck what anyone else thought of his decisions anyway.

This time was different though. Her opinion _had_ come to matter, more than anyone's ever had, except maybe Lily's, and the possibility of the pert and perfect little shrimp of a scholar wrinkling her tiny nose at his dream had been plaguing him all week. It was why he wouldn't tell her ahead of time what he did for a living. He was particularly proud of the impression his eye-catching shop made when viewed from the street and he was hoping that it would help ease her into the idea of dating a tattoo artist. Not that they were dating yet...fuck, he hadn't even had a minute, with the sudden influx of work coming his way, to ask her out. But if everything went well today, that was the plan.

She had sprung this visit on him, sending him a text when he was barely awake, and he had missed her so much during the week-like where the fuck had that come from anyway!?-that he had immediately sent her directions, jumping at the chance to talk in person again before fully realizing that it meant she would find out what he did for a living.

But it was too late now. She would be here any minute, and she would either love it or hate it. Or hate it and pretend to like it, which would almost be just as bad, but would at least show she cared...or she could...fuck! This was so stupid! And not like him at all! Worrying was for pussies. Wouldn't fucking help anything. So, gathering his resolve around him, he stepped through the metal chain curtain of tiny steel balls that separated the front desk and design consultation area from the sterile work area, preparing to face the little blue-haired spitfire who had invaded his life. But when he looked out the front plate glass windows and saw her, sitting on the sidewalk across the street, white-faced and staring wide-eyed in horror at the sign for his store, he forgot everything he had been worried about and bolted out the door. He was across the street and kneeling next to her before the guitar riff that played automatically whenever his door opened could finish wailing out its final notes. He just sunk down next to her and stared at her, hands hovering around her as if he wanted to grab her and shake her. He doubted that would really help the situation.

Slowly realizing there was a tall, toned hair factory (her soulmate really did have an incredible amount of hair) kneeling beside her, Levy steeled herself and turned to look him in the face, eyes focusing on his own deep crimson ones, flinching as she remembered the fierce, haughty gaze of Black Steel, cold and deadly gang leader. But focusing on the eyes actually in front of her, she saw nothing like what her mind summoned for her. Instead, she saw concern, and doubt, and...warmth. Slowly, as she kept her eyes locked onto his, tears began to well up and spill over, swiftly wiped away by giant, rough fingers even as mirrored tears spilled from his own eyes. That seemed to be over the realm of what she could handle right then, as she really broke down, grabbing his tight black Metallica t-shirt in her tiny fists and burying her face in his shoulder. He carefully gathered her up, like she was unbelievable fragile, and carried her across the street into his studio, ignoring the curious eyes of passers-by lingering on them. He flipped the sign to closed behind him and headed for the back room. He tried to set her down on the red leather, antique-looking chair it had cost him a ton to have custom-made, but her sobbing got louder and she clung to his shirt even tighter, so he turned and sat down himself, wrapping his arms around her tiny frame snugly, and waiting out her tears. Sure, this really could have gone better, but he had a beautiful woman sitting in his lap and clinging to him, so, it definitely could have gone worse...probably. He relaxed back into the chair and stroked her hair. He could already tell it was going to be another confusing afternoon.

* * *

Lucy was having a pretty rotten day so far. She had been awoken an hour early by a mysterious squealing noise that she had now convinced herself was all in her head, she had discovered that she was entirely out of milk when she went to make her morning cereal, and before she had been able to run out and get any, or come up with an alternate breakfast plan (since she had eaten the last of her strawberry pop tarts too!), she had been called in to sub for not one, but four different work study students, all of whom had called in sick first thing in the morning with the same explanation: food poisoning. It sounded like bullshit to her, but she promptly threw all of her take-out menus away, just in case, and changed into work clothes, rushing to make it to landscaping duty before the sun fully came out and made the itchy work even more miserable. She had finished trimming the bushes in the rose garden like a pro (her mother had been particularly fond of roses), cleaned up after the previous night's evening baking class in the culinary building and was about to head out to the campus bookstore to help them shelf the back-ordered textbook shipment that had finally arrived, but had stopped several times on her way out of the building to peek through doors into the culinary arts studios to see if anyone had left something scrumptious to help tide over her ravenous stomach. What she saw instead was a couple of really attractive guys,-one tall, dark and brooding hottie and one prematurely silver fox-a short guy with eyebrows that were in serious need of a plucking and a cute hot-pink-haired girl in a mini skirt, frantically filling pans with boiling water and stacking them in a huge steel contraption that looked like an industrial freezer. After a moment of observing the two hot ones expertly moving several massive cake pans into the freezer and pouring water from kettles into the pans, as they argued constantly, she shook her head and hurried away to her next job. Magnolia University was one weird place.

Making it to the campus bookstore in record time, Lucy was shown to a cart stacked high with shiny new textbooks, presumably the back-ordered ones they hadn't been able to get in before the semester started. Going through the pre-order list, she counted out the ones to be set aside for pick-up and shelved the rest, later returning to the reserved copies and sorting them out by order and name. She had only three or four left to do when she was thrown onto a register for the first time, during the lunch rush while everyone else was on break, checking out a skinny dark-haired dude with what looked like a spiked dog collar around his neck, for literally every can of shaving cream the store's tiny emergency toiletries section had. She had also told him, with bewilderment, that they did not carry tarps, large or otherwise, when he had asked.

What the hell was with people today? Did she miss that it was some weird stoner holiday or something?! She went for her phone, to look it up, only to discover that she had left it at home. Because this day just couldn't have gotten any worse if it tried.

Finishing her book sorting when she was finally replaced on the registers by another student coming on shift, Lucy bought a package of pop-tarts and a strawberry soda from the vending machines in the entry of the bookstore, scarfing down the sugary foods, and raced across campus to the AV Rental Room, already late for what she was hoping would be a boring afternoon of signing out school-issued tablets and video cameras for class projects.

Except, as she huffed and puffed her way up the three flights of stairs at the library to reach the site of her next substitute work study shift, she was met by chaos and the campus police. Tracking down the supervisor of the room, a harried looking grad student who seemed like he hadn't slept in days-pretty much the norm for every graduate student on campus-she found out that a group of ninjas,-seriously, she couldn't make this up if she tried-dressed in black from head to toe, had infiltrated the AV room, tied up and blind-folded the student employee holding down the fort over the lunch hour, and made off with the four GoPro sport capturing video cameras, and the flat screen TV from the breakroom. The mysterious thieves had neglected to take thousands of dollars worth of laptops, tablets, and high-quality film cameras, leaving behind a note saying that all stolen property would eventually be returned, probably within a week.

A special branch campus police, the Garou Knights (because campus police weren't drunk enough on power without giving them special units, insert eyeroll here), represented by Officer Cosmos, a busty woman with light pink hair, had been sent to investigate and was viciously accusing the pale, terrified freshman (who had been overtaken and tied up by the alleged ninjas) of planning an inside job from the very beginning. Watching the scary woman interrogate her prey, all Lucy could think about was how she had hardly ever seen a pink-haired person before she had bumped into ND that day at the train station, or really since, and today she had come across two, unfortunately neither of which were male. It's not like she expected that she would be lucky enough to be on the same college campus with Mr. Matches himself, but it did make her wonder if maybe they were related to him somehow...pink hair was just so rare…though she was willing to bet the mini-skirted chick in the culinary building dyed hers...that kind of vivd tone just didn't occur naturally.

Finding a quiet corner to sit and avoid the wrath of Officer Cosmos, Lucy pulled her trusty pink highlighter from her bag and jotted off a question on their de facto communication board (AKA her left forearm).

 _Do you have any pink-haired relatives?_

* * *

Natsu was just securing the wick on the last massive firework shell in front of him when he felt the juicy tingle of a liquid highlighter writing on his skin. Over the last few weeks, he had become an expert at identifying the Weirdo's favorite writing tool by touch alone. He carefully finished securing the base of the final wick with paper tape, sealing off the shell, ready for ignition, before trying to see what she had written. Most of the chemicals contained in the compact bundle in front of him were highly flammable and slightly unstable, and he didn't have time for a hospital visit today. Just as he cut the tape and went to look, static and Romeo's voice came over the walkie-talkie sitting on the heavy lab table in front of him.

"Sand area for fireworks setup and bonfire logs stacked and ready. Reedus and team have arrived with the GoPros and another flat screen. Sho is linking them into the system now. That makes ten on the last TV count. Requesting next mission assignment for I and Reedus. Romeo over."

Natsu grabbed the walkie and held down the talk button.

"Good work guys. Romeo, and Reedus' team, hit your rooms quickly to make sure you've done what you need to so the pledges can finish up cleaning the house. If someone could stop by my room and feed Happy that would be great. Once you are finished there, Romeo, I need you to hide Roman Candles," Natsu paused as he consulted the unfolded map in front of him, "at the west entrance to the library, the south entrance of the English building, the main entrance to the culinary school, and by the track next to the Precht Center. Four rockets at each location, well hidden, and four stashed near the pool back at Fairy Tail, when you've done that, come find me and mark the hiding places clearly on the master plan. Reedus, I want you to focus on the aesthetics and lighting in the basement setup with Sho and Simon. We've got some black-light bulbs and colored party-bulbs left from last year's Halloween bash. You know what I'm looking for, so I'm trusting you to make it look amazing. Natsu over."

"Oui, Natsu, it will be superb, Reedus over," the French exchange art student assured him over his own walkie.

"Awesome. As for the rest of Reedus' team, if Rocker and Mickey have hauling and bungee-cording the mattresses together for the Sumo wrestling ring under control, head to the athletic building and do your ninja magic to get us a parachute to cover the monstrosity. And, hey, while you're there, see if you can borrow of some of those floating pool basketball hoops and their stash of balls. I'm thinking a game of human water-polo is in order. Natsu out."

"AYE SIR! NIN-NIN! Fairy Tail Ninja Assault team out!" Natsu heard a group of guys yell into a single walkie.

"Alright! Good luck guys! I'm heading back to the house with the finale show shells now. I'll check on your progress and lend a hand where needed." Natsu checked his watch. "We're doing decent on time so far, but keep up the pace, there's still a lot to get set. Someone get eyes on Max so I can find and update him when I get back to the house. And double check with Bacchus that enough Moon Drip has been set aside for the relay shots. Natsu, over and out."

"AYE SIR! TEAM NATSU OVER AND OUT!"

With that Natsu grabbed a large plastic foldable crate from a closet and started carefully packing up his newly made firework shells. When they were ready for transport, he sat back and put his hands behind his head, grinning with excitement. They were running right on time. This was definitely gonna make Fairy Tail history.

Then, remembering what he was doing when the walkie went off, he brought his arm down to read the Weirdo's message.

Weird. As usual. He grabbed the red Sharpie he had been using to label the fireworks and jotted off a reply.

 **nope. I'm the sole surviving pinkette of the fam. my dad supposedly had pink hair though.** Seeing an opportunity to find out more about his mysterious bonded blonde, and eager to keep her from questioning him further, he followed up with a question of his own.

 **what about you? you have any blonde relatives? or just weird ones? particularly any crazy sisters? Gray could use a blind date.**

She must have been waiting for his response because she wrote back right away.

 _HA! Everyone in my whole family is blonde! As in for generations. But no sisters, crazy or otherwise. Just me. I have a cousin I haven't spoken to in ages, but she's more of a dirty blonde. Why? Is Gray partial to blondes? Remember, I'm still totally single if he's looking for volunteers._

Natsu immediately regretted mentioning Gray.

 **naw, he actually hates them. thinks they're all bimbos. plus, he only dates crazy chicks, so you're out of the running, unless you've got another personality hidden away in that weirdo mind of yours.**

 _What my weirdness doesn't qualify me?! What a shame. Guess I'll just have to keep waiting for someone to man-up and ask me out._ Was she hinting at something? She was the one who refused to give him her name!

 **nope, you definitely aren't weird enough to date Gray.** Natsu paused, debating whether to write what he really wanted to.

He never got the chance.

 _Shit gtg, it's my turn to be interrogated!_

What the fuck? Where was she?! The police station? This was a seriously weird conversation to have from lock-up...he started to ask her, but stopped himself. If she was being interrogated by someone, it would not help to have more words appearing on her arm while they watched. That would definitely be bad for both of them. So, he recapped his marker and turned back to his tote of fireworks, biting his lip in thought. He wondered if she would be able to see them tonight from her prison cell...SHIT! He hadn't told her what would be happening tonight! If he didn't warn her what was coming, she could be in serious trouble, especially if she had been arrested! Damnit, he had been so focused on the Gildarts Bash plans, he had totally forgotten about her involuntary involvement by association in the whole thing, until she had written to him. And now he couldn't tell her, without possibly getting her into worse trouble! What could he do?

Having a moment of brilliance (it was just his golden hour, what could he say?), Natsu took off his right Converse high-top and his sock. Uncapping his Sharpie again, he left her a message she could check later:

 **write me when you can, need to fill you in on something going down tonight. It's really important!** Then he added, **hope everythings ok!**

There. As soon as she was free to talk, he could tell her what to expect about tonight, and chances were good she was wearing shoes, so except for some possible squirming if she was particularly ticklish, whoever was interrogating her couldn't possibly see that he had sent her a message. Feeling pretty proud of himself for a job well-done, Natsu gathered up his box of shells and headed to his frat house, his head already back in the game.

* * *

It was the moment that the guitar riff signaled the door being opened that Gajeel realized he had never locked it. Glancing at the sleeping girl in his lap he leaned over as far as he could without disturbing her, and saw Lily standing in the doorway, looking at the wall mural. Waving his hand around to get his attention, Gajeel gestured that he could come on back. Pushing the heavy chains to the side, Lily stepped through, raising his eyebrows when he saw Levy. In one hand he carried a bottle of very expensive rum, in the other a pair of low-ball glasses. Setting them down on the stainless steel counter running down the length of one wall, he pulled up Gajeel's usual chair, a padded adjustable rolling stool and explained in a low voice, "Gildarts is in town for the night so the gym cleared out. Thought I'd come over and give you a belated opening present. No business is complete without a bottle of rum and a pair of quality glasses in a bottom drawer somewhere. What happened to the little pixie?"

Trying to keep his voice equally hushed, Gajeel shook his head in bewilderment and said, "I have no fucking clue. She was coming over to hang out for a bit and see the place, and when I came out of the back she was sitting on the sidewalk across the street staring at the sign like it had killed her mother. Scared the shit out of me. She went so pale I thought she was gonna faint. So I went to see what was up, and next thing I know she's sobbing her eyes out on my shirt and won't let go. That was," he checked the exposed gear wristwatch he had gotten from his dad as a graduation gift, and continued, "two hours ago. She conked out pretty quick. All the cryin' must've gotten to her or something."

"Huh, wonder what happened."

As soon as Gajeel had started speaking, the vibrations rumbling through his chest under her cheek had woken Levy from her surprisingly deep sleep, but had also almost lulled her back to sleep again, until she heard another voice talking with him. Realizing that she was not only curled up on Gajeel's lap, but also so precariously positioned in front of a witness, her eyes fluttered open, looking up by reflex, which put her inches away from her soulmates own face, looking down at her sudden movement. She jerked back in surprise, falling out of his lap and the chair before he could get his arm back around her.

Once again landing on her recently abused ass, she winced. All that extra padding didn't seem to be doing her any good. What was the point of having all that junk in your trunk if it didn't keep your tailbone from getting bruised? That was just a bastardization of evolutionary development if you asked her. Picking herself up, she lifted her head and realized the two extremely tall men she had heard talking were now also standing and looking down at her measly five-foot-and-three-quarter-inches frame like some sort of giants discovering a hobbit for the first time. She blushed involuntarily. She was even wearing heels and she still felt like a midget next to the Brobdingnagians in front of her. Then Levy remembered why she had been asleep in Gajeel's lap to begin with. And her blush got deeper. How the hell was she going to explain her bizarre behavior without telling him about the flashback?

"So, I'm gonna head out then. It looks like you two still have a lot to sort out. It was good to see you again Levy. Hope to see you around the gym again soon. Every woman should know how to protect herself. And self-defense classes are on the house for any friend of this guy," Lily said, grasping Gajeel shoulder in farewell and stalking, strikingly like a jungle cat, out of the room. The two bonded soulmates kept their heads turned toward the swinging chain curtain until they heard the familiar guitar riff signal he had in fact left the building. Then, as though previously planned out, they slowly turned to look at each other. Taking a deep breath, Levy made a start.

"I guess you'd like to know what all that was about, huh?"

"Yeah, that'd be nice, shrimp. Can't say that was the nicest feeling thing to witness."

Levy wandered over to the counter and used her arms to lever herself up. It helped a little, making her feel like she wasn't quite so small in the world, even though her legs swung hitting the cabinet doors, nowhere near the ground. Grabbing his usual chair of choice, Gajeel sat on his stool and rolled himself slowly over until he was seated right in front of her. With the stool height adjusted to a middle setting, Gajeel's head came up to her nose. Carefully removing her sharply heeled shoes, Gajeel set them on the floor and pulled her feet to rest on his knees. Then he let go and leaned back a bit. Waiting.

It was a little weird seeing him from that angle, and to calm her trembling fingers, she reached out and ran her finger through a few loose strands that had fallen out of his headband.

"Levy...what's going on?"

She sighed, he had a right to know.

Noticing the bottle of booze sitting so invitingly beside her on the counter, she cracked the seal and poured herself a glass. Downing it in one go, she refilled it, set her shoulders as the warmth from the alcohol spread through her belly. Thankfully it was excellent rum and went down pretty smooth. With a final sigh, Levy poured him a glass and, handing it to him, began to tell him about her first full flashback.

* * *

It was 6:45pm by the time Lucy shuffled out of the library, worn out from the unnecessary interrogation Officer Cosmos had put her through. She hadn't even cared when Lucy had pointed out that she had arrived after the events of the robbery and clearly had no involvement whatsoever. Some people were just too zealous at their jobs. And wore way too much perfume. All she could think the entire time was how much ND must be sneezing from the heavy floral scent.

In the end, the only thing that could stop the crazy tirade and set Lucy free was a call from campus police headquarters, that she overheard coming from the massive radio all campus police carried, alerting Officer Loves-The-Smell-Of-Lilies-Way-Too-Much to another sighting of the band of thieving ninjas, fleeing the Precht Center for Physical Arts with a parachute and various sports equipment. Honestly, it all sounded like a massive prank to Lucy. The campus police were just wasting their time, and getting jerked around to boot. After the last hour she had spent, she thought they fucking deserved it.

But either way, it wasn't her problem. She planned on taking a long, hot bath and then having a massive grilled cheese sandwich for dinner, going to bed early and, hopefully, waking up the next day refreshed. She kicked off her mud flecked tennis shoes just inside the door, heading to the bathroom in her socks, starting to run the water for her bath. She stripped off her shirt and gym shorts, throwing them neatly into her hamper and grabbing the pen that now inhabited a place of honor in the cup with her toothbrush. Over the past week, since their first shower...encounter...she and ND had fallen into a fairly steady routine.

They had found that if one of them tried to shower, while the other didn't, the odd feeling of being rubbed down, not to mention the weird appearance and disappearance of soap and shampoo, made it a very awkward experience. So instead, they had agreed that they would try to shower together, usually in the evening, as that allowed Lucy to dry her hair in the evening and wake up later in the morning. But before getting in the shower or bath, they let the other know and gave them 15 minutes, to request a different showering time, or to get ready to hop-in too. So, having a pen in the bathroom had become essential. And the plan had been working well. Really well actually.

Lucy wouldn't have admitted it to another living soul, and especially not to him, but it was the best part of her day, their showers together. They hadn't ever talked about it-what had happened in that first shower together-but, it had become a bit of an addicting habit that had repeated itself...pretty much every day since. They never mentioned it in their various random communications, and Lucy certainly hadn't even hinted at it to Levy-it was just TOO embarrassing-but after the mind-blowing experience of that first time _together_ , it had just been something that seemed to happen every subsequent time they showered.

The feeling of his hands, coated in soapy water and sliding over her skin always made her lose her mind and search for release. It was getting to the point where it took her 30 minutes to bathe, and a quickly scrawled, **shower?** was all it took to turn her on. It wasn't ladylike in the slightest, and she honestly didn't give a fuck that it wasn't. It was invigorating. While always she had the option to postpone their shower until more convenient, often she tended to welcome the excuse to hurry, racing home whenever he let her know he was up for it, flinging clothes everywhere as she ran through her apartment to get the water running, or dancing around waiting for the tell tale feeling of his hand testing the water to know she could get started. He was having a terrible effect on her ability to keep her apartment tidy...and on her will power. But he hadn't postponed a single shower yet either, so maybe he felt the same way… There had even been a couple days that week where they had both been home for the afternoon and she may have suggested an extra...shower...or two. From his response, both physical and written, she assumed he enjoyed their shower time as much as she did. At least she hoped he did.

So, she reached for the pen with a thrill in her belly, and quickly wrote,

 _Up for a bath?_

as she pulled off her socks. When her right sock came off, she saw a message in red marker and suddenly remembered the tickle she had felt, earlier, of him writing on her foot while she was being questioned by Officer Cosmos. Reading the message, her brow furrowed and she grabbed her pen again to ask about it.

But before she could put pen to skin again, she felt an odd burning sensation running down her throat. It felt a little like when she used to have champagne at her father's business gatherings-trying anything to combat the boredom-but about ten times hotter. About a minute later, a wave of fuzzy giddiness followed. Lucy sat, almost falling, down on the edge of the tub and closed her eyes, trying to figure out what was going on. She renewed her grip on her pen and began to write.

 _I just saw your message. What's going on? Are you drinking right now?_

A few minutes later, she got a response.

 **FINALLY! I was worried you wouldn't get back to me in time! yeah, there is this huge party going on tonight, that I'm sort of in charge of a big part of, and I have to drink. house rules. normally I've got a really high tolerance, but we're drinking something special with a crazy high alcohol content and there will be a ton of crazy shit going down tonight. sorry I forgot to warn you sooner, I hope you don't have anything important to do tonight...or possibly for the next few days. Its probably going to be a pretty long party with some kind of crazy party games. I'm not sure how drinking will work with the bond how it is now either but I guess we'll find out? also, I can't really shower at the moment...can you give me like 20 minutes? I've got a few things to do and then there will be a lull before the crazy shit starts going down.**

 _Are you going to be able to tell me what you're doing before you do it?_

 **I promise I'll do my best. I might not always have a chance to. are you home for the night? I really don't want you wandering around alone if you get really drunk from the moonshine…** Moonshine?! Where the hell did he live? Kentucky? Alvarez?!

 _Yeah, I'm home. It's been a long day, so I was just going to shower and then go to bed early. I can wait 20 minutes though._

 **awesome. I don't know how much sleep you'll get, which I'm sorry for in advance, but I'll hurry through my final prep stuff so I don't hold up your shower. and, um, fair warning, drunk me is an evil horny bastard. I'll try really hard not to go there, but if you feel anything, uh...happening, I'm really really REALLY sorry. I honestly don't seem to have any control of it. I try not to get drunk anymore because of it, but this is a bit of a special case. three years coming, actually.**

Lucy didn't know what to say.

How did one ever respond to something like that? She could read between the lines. He was basically saying, 'Oh, yeah, I might be having drunken sex with a random stranger tonight, which you would probably feel happening, my bad, hope you don't mind.'

What the fuck? What _could_ she even say to that?! And he didn't seem to even think he had any control over it!

It's not like the issue hadn't been sitting in the back of her mind. One of them was bound to go on a date and get frisky with someone eventually, so they would have to deal with it at some point...but for some reason, just thinking about it happening now, like more than possibly tonight sometime, gave her a twisty feeling in her gut. He was _her_ soulmate damn it, even if she wasn't ready to spend the rest of her life with him yet!

The twisty feeling got worse. Although, that may have been result of the repeated burning sensation running down her throat. This time it made her cough a bit. What the fuck kind of moonshine was he drinking?! He was only two shots in and she was already feeling warm and a little fuzzy...er.

Getting back to the topmost issue at the exacty-kind-of-moment...wait, was that even a word? Did it even matter? Right! The issue right now! Sex! Wait, why was that an issue again?

Lucy seemed to be getting sidetracked...it was hard to think straightly...or even diagonally. Hehehehe. That was funny. Her thoughts kept skilling around, jumping from one thing to another. Wait! The thing...the problem!...what was the problem?...right! He was horny! That was the problem! He slept with people when he got drunk! But didn't want to?...or something?...but she could help with that! Clicking her clicky pen a few times, because it made such a fun clicky sound, Lucy giggled again and offered to help. She really loved helping people solve problems. It was so niiiice!

 _I can help! when you get horny and stuff let me know and we can shower or seomthing and I'll help and then you dont have to sleep with some random hussyslut! perfect right? problem solved!_

Natsu rubbed his eyes and stared at his arm again. Had she really just written that? Little Miss upright-and-proper-Weirdo was offering to masturbate for him-with him?-if he got drunk and horny?! He had to be hallucinating...that Moon Drip was really potent stuff. The ceremonial house chalice was being passed for the third and final time, per tradition, before Max officially opened the doors to the crowd gathering outside. Gray would be driving up with Gildarts any minute and then he would have an hour or so to himself while everyone got good and hammered before the big event he had been organizing all day kicked off.

Max handed him the chalice and he took another healthy swallow of the potent moonshine that was only made by Galuna's bar in Magnolia, a secret recipe protected by generations of the bar's owners. You could always tell it was the real stuff under a blacklight, where only genuine Galuna Moon Drip glowed a bright purple. Gildarts himself had discovered the drink, back when he lived in Fairy Tail, before becoming the epicly awesome famous boxer he was-gods Natsu wanted to fight him so bad! But he definitely couldn't do that now cause of the Weirdo...bummer-and it was served, without fail, whenever he came to visit. The best way to drink it was ice cold, chilled perfectly as it was poured down an ice luge, but it was tradition to pass the chalice to ensure every Fairy Tail member was properly soused by the time Gildarts joined the party.

Natsu let the new gulp of Moon Drip run down his throat, relishing the rough burn it left behind. It had been so long since he'd had the stuff, and he didn't remember most of his time while drinking it, but he knew it had been legendary. There were still some people coming up to him and telling him stories about that fucking amazing night.

And, that time, he had been but an untried minor! Now he could hold his liquor!...he was the Demon King Dragneel of Magnolia! No drink could defeat him!...at least normal drinks…

Hopefully he wouldn't do anything too crazy to the Weirdo…

Wait! the Weirdo!

She had written something awesome! what was it? Natsu blinked down at his arm and read her uncharacteristically grammar-poor message again.

Holy shit that was real.

What should he do?! The hottest girl he had ever not-really-met-before was offering up her body to him for the night...damn, if only he knew her in person...or..and!?...had nothing else to do for the night!

But, he had THINGS to do...important things...that he had been planning…for YEARS...

SHIT! He still hadn't responded.

 **holy shit that is super nice of you to offer to dothat but what if i can't write at that point anymore or whatever Its a bit difficult now even and its probly just goin to get worse as we go…**

 _Hmmmmmmm...mmmm...ms arereally fun to write rite?! rite right?...right write? Write right?! That's IT! Anywayzzzz...mmm..zzzs are fun TOO! RIGHT! Horny problems for ND, why don't we just do it now, like usual, inthe shower and maybe that will keep you from getting horneeeeey? or we could come up with a sign! Like you just grab my boob when its gettingbad, or i could just SHOWER ) every couple hours and then you'll be covered! or i mean if you really want todo that with some other girl, just you know tell me and I'll idk like go find someone to fuck at the same timeorsomething? idk, whateveryouwantodo…ive never done anything like this before cuz im still a virginandeverything so...just whatever you think would work I guess..._

Natsu blinked and walked, reasonably straightly, to his room, just as Bickslow cranked the music up and Max opened the front door, letting in the first wave of screaming girls. He had to get this figured out soon...that was a lot of bare leg and cleavage coming through the door…

FOCUS NATSU! Focus! The chick he'd been obsessing about for weeks was talking about fucking someone else! And she was still a virgin, so that was totally NOT a good solution... for her to do to that just to make him feel better about ending up in a one night stand! NOT OK!

That was a sobering thought. Because fuck it, no one else was gonna touch her. Period. Hell, he technically didn't even get to touch her. She was too perfect, and perky and cute...and hot with the boobs and the legs and…she shared his skin! And that would be weird! It would be like doing another dude. Natsu's skin shivered in horror at the thought. He wondered if that's what it would be like for her if her made it with some random girl...wait, so that would be like her doing it with some random girl...huh...well that didn't seem so...SNAP OUT OF IT YOU EVIL BASTARD! NOT OK!

 _areyoustill there ND? NDNDNDNDNDNDND? we cant write for toooomuch longer, so hurry up and decide what to do Pinkie? ND the Pinkie! HEHEHE your name rhymes! Wellnot your REAL name but like the name that I have tocallyou becuase I dont know ur real name u know?_

 **OK, so don't sleep with someone else! I dont care what else we have to do just DON'T go lose your virginity to some random stranger! that would totally be awful and shit!...but I cant write too much longer so what if I give you my phone number and we can talk that way? Andthen you just call me and we can dowhatever if I start doing something bad...tho I think I might be crazy to turn down hourly handjobs, so yeah...but um thatisnt necessary and itmight make doin anything or uuuh thinkin really hard... heres my number 2-777-277-2222. we can talk then instead of write! and I can shower now!**

Lucy ran out of the bathroom, tripping on the rug, barely catching herself then frantically pulling stuff from drawers in her kitchen before remembering she did not, in fact, have any paper in that room to write on. So she ran to her desk instead, where her writing notebook was sitting open, and carefully copied the phone number he had written into its pages, double-checking twice to make sure it matched what was written on her arm. And then she felt the tell-tale water hitting her hand and raced back to the bathroom, tripping out of her underwear and flinging her bra over the toilet, totally forgetting she had intended to take a bath, splashing into the half-filled tub and flipping the water to shower instead.

Apparently getting drunk also made Lucy pretty horny. This was going to be one hell of a night…

* * *

 **Ok guys, I made it through. That drunk typing almost drove me off a cliff with its terrible grammar, but I made it! Here are some things that you might not have gotten...anything else mysterious that has not yet been explained will most likely be revealed in Thursday's update, cleverly named: Moon Drip Part 2!**

 **Argus-** character in Greek mythology that is covered in hundreds of eyes, used a a watchdog of the gods usually, due to his eyes rarely sleeping all at once. His weakness was music, which put all of them to sleep. And yes, I totally just catalogged a reference from my author's note. BOOM, that's how it's done!

 **Ice luge-** an ice sculpture that has a windy channel running over it that allows a shot of liquor to be cooled by the use of gravity when poured into it, while the recipient of said shot waits at the bottom of the sculpture, mouth open to receive the perfectly chilled shot. Oh, and it's super fun. And totally something Gray should have summoned up for the real Fairy Tail a LONG time ago.

 **Dueling Bars-** a figment of my imagination, wherein there are two bars set up on opposite sides of a room, with really kick-ass bartenders who try to outdo each other's tricks and toss stuff back and forth. This will be in full swing next chapter...hopefully.

 **KP-** term used in the military as an abbreviation for what was originally called the "kitchen police" or "kitchen patrol", used as punishment duty, those on KP duty are in charge of cleaning, which is how I use it here.

 **Gremlins-** A movie that still creeps me out too much to watch, but my husband (the King of the Movie Buffs-we have about 1200 movies right now I think) assures me that if one feeds one of the furry creatures in this movie after midnight, they turn evil and try to kill you. So, basically perfect Erza without cake analogy

 **Blast chiller-** a crazy cool thing that professional bakers might have in their kitchens that basically works like a super cold freezer and chills things twice as quickly

 **Mario Kart-** if you don't know what this is, good for you. You have managed to find a rock where no one will ever find you to hide under.

 **So You Want To Be A Wizard-** a book series that I still absolutely love by Diane Duane about the existence of magic in a real world setting. SUPER great though. Magic in that world is 100% based on words and language, so when you say something in the magic language, you can effect the world and change it. Just go read them. While you wait for my next chapter!

 **Crawford & Seam-**just in case no one gets this, I had a clever moment. Crawford Seam was one of the heads of the Magic Council before it got blown to hell.

 **Hobbit-** yep, you all know this already. Enough with the LOTR reference descriptions!

 **Brobdingnagians-** one of the lesser known parts of Gulliver's Travels, in which he travels from the land of the Lilliputians (the tiny little people) to the land of the Brobdingnagians (giant people). All of these are allegories for all kinds of stuff, but for the purposes of this story, Levy=tiny, and Gajeel and Lily=HUGE in comparison


	12. Moon Drip Part Deux

**And, with two hours to spare, I give you, your update! *breathes hard and falls over***

 **Special thanks to a particular guest who reminded me to step up my game. You're right. I'm better than strawberries. I AM! Michelle (or Gonzales either) is not in fact Lucy's cousin, as for the most part, I am a manga canon instead of anime canon kind of fan, BUT you challenged me to revive the real Michelle from her perpetual coma. And use a particular reference. Challenge accepted. She awaits you beyond. Please for the LOVE OF GOD create an account. I want to chat with you so badly it hurts. You are inspiration gold. That was exactly what I needed. There will be higher standards from here on out. Keep me honest and on my toes! For all those working to become better reviewers (and I appreciated that response BTW to the other guest I've been communicating with), this content was what helpful critical feedback looks like. Don't get me wrong, offerings at the altar of the Riot are always appreciated and will continue to reward you with responses and bonus materials, but if you genuinely question something or think I can do better, lay it on me!**

 **And, don't ask me how this happened, because I'm still trying to figure it out, but this chapter is actually almost the same length as the last one! So, YAY, double chapter! enjoy!**

* * *

Gray was already at the end of his rope...and they hadn't even gotten to the party yet.

When Mystogan had mentioned that Gildarts' daughter was coming, he had pictured a perky, sheltered co-ed with a mug like her father's: broken nose and all. Sure, he had grown up in Gildarts' gym, so he had been around the famous boxer more than once over the years, when he dropped in to visit (hell it was the reason Natsu and he had joined Fairy Tail in the first place), but their boxing hero had never brought his daughter with him. Apparently she had spent her formative years with her mother before she died, and now she spent most of her time spending Gildarts' money. At least according to Lily.

So when a gorgeous, buxom brunette wearing a blouse so sheer it showed off her electric blue sequined bra sidled up behind ginger boxer, his first thought was that she was a call girl. And he kept looking for the poor schmuck of a daughter who had to witness her father being the massive pervert he was. From the legends of Gildarts Clive at the gym, and the house, it certainly wasn't outside the realm of possibility.

His second thought, when Gildarts had introduced the hottie as his daughter, was that Loke was in trouble. Serious trouble. Because instead of the blushing and preppy innocent they had been anticipating, Cana was a force of nature. From the pinch she gave his ass within moments of being introduced, to the flask she swigged out of the whole way to the car, Cana Alberona was definitely not what he had in mind. Yet, as she passed a flask over to her father as they made their way to the parking lot, he realized the error was definitely his.

Because she was 110% Gildarts' daughter. She was loud, a huge fan of the opposite sex and could really hold her liquor...to the point he found himself glancing back at her in amazement as he drove, more than he should. Where the hell was it all going? They had stopped at a Duty-Free Liquor store on the way out of the airport where the pair had each bought a 750 of "something expensive and at least 80 proof" (those were the exact instructions they gave the bewildered sales person). And Cana's had been empty by the time they hit the car! Yet her behavior hadn't seemed to change one iota from the slightly tipsy state she had arrived in. It was mind-boggling. When he had ventured a question to Gildarts about when to cut her off, her father had just laughed. A lot.

The whole thing was freaking him out. He had lost his shirt somewhere between the arrivals gate and the car, which he had immediately regretted as the brunette had taken the opportunity to feel him up. Not something that normally bothered him from a random chick, but it was a first to have her father standing right next to her while she did it. Gildarts' only response had been to laugh, scoop her up over his shoulder, and carry her the rest of the way to the car.

Their easy, touchy-feely familial affection had Gray's skin itching. But, his usual coping mechanisms, stripping and fighting, were not possible while driving a car. Particularly one with manual transmission. His fingers tugged at his father's necklace, that he never took off, and he felt her breath ghosting over his ear as she hugged him again from the back seat. Didn't she realize how dangerous it was to distract a driver?! Finally Gray couldn't take it anymore.

"Put on your fucking seat belt!"

"Psh, why bother? This car is so old, I doubt it even has airbags!" Cana countered, running her fingers over his ribs. Thankfully Gildarts stepped in.

"Cana, hun, put your seatbelt on and quit torturing the poor kid."

"And why do you think it coming from you is going to make any difference?" she retorted.

Gildarts just held up his half empty bottle and shook it. She huffed, buckled up and took the bottle from him, finishing it quickly.

How was she even still conscious?!

As they pulled up to Fairy Tail after the longest drive of his life, she barely waited for the tiny vehicle to come to a stop before taking off her gladiator stilettos and climbing barefoot over Gray's lap to leave the car. Gildarts just laughed.

"Seriously though, shouldn't you be concerned she's going to get alcohol poisoning?" Gray took the opportunity to ask Gildarts, quietly. Gildarts, smiled and explained.

"Gray, a few years back, she got into a pretty bad car accident. Same wreck that killed her mom. It damaged her liver and they didn't have any donors that were a match. So, I tracked down an experimental solution: an artificial liver that wasn't even patented yet. Pretty sure it wasn't strictly legal, but she was dying, so I didn't really care. Turns out, the thing works better than a normal liver. Even converts alcohol into energy somehow. These days, I wish I'd gotten myself one too. In any case, she can't get alcohol poisoning. Unfortunately, she also can't get particularly drunk. Bugs the heck out of her. So she chases the buzz in other ways. I should probably be more worried about her, but hell, I'm no saint."

"So she just drinks constantly because she can?"

"Uh, no, she drinks constantly because she loves everything about alcohol. She grew up on a vineyard with her mother, so she loves the fuck out of the stuff. More of a beer drinker since she set up her own brewery last year, but she's always trying to track down something her super liver can't keep up with. Only reason she agreed to come with me at all was to try out the Moon Drip. She's really hoping it will do the trick. Hey, do me a favor, don't tell any of the guys. She LOVES drinking them under the table. Makes her day."

Gray grinned, thinking about Bacchus. Shit, he was gonna have to get video of that.

"You boys getting out of that car at some point or do I have to come back and drag you out?"

Gray jumped to hear Cana talking from right next to him, her crossed arms leaning on his open window frame. It gave him an excellent view of her cleavage. She lowered her voice to a whisper and said, "You mention my super power to any of your friends and I'll make you wish you'd never been born. Now escort me inside. I'm a fucking lady."

Gildarts laughed and exited the car followed swiftly by Gray.

As they walked up the stairs onto the porch, barely feeling the thump of bass already through the patio tiles, Gildarts finally adopted a fatherly stance, and Gray almost sighed in relief. He was finally going to lay down some rules for the wildcat lacing her shoes back up.

"Cana, sweetie, now remember...no glove no love. I am not old enough to be a Grandpa"

Gray's relief evaporated. Was this what parenting looked like now? He didn't really have a frame of reference, but he was pretty sure this wasn't normal.

"Gildarts, papa, daddy dearest, you're a hypocritical jackass, and I love ya. What do you think I brought a purse full of condoms for? So right back 'atcha. Hope you brought your own, cause I am too drunk to become a big sister and you aren't getting any of mine. But, I betcha a thousand Jewels I get laid more, and more quicker, than you do tonight. And no dad-glowering to cock-block me this time. These pussies are already gonna be terrified of you, and there's hero worship written all over this place, so you hardly need the handicap," Cana scoffed, with a competitive gleam in her eye.

Gray could do nothing but look-on in stunned silence. Gildarts' already flushed face seemed to battle with the effort to try to be fatherly, which swiftly lost to his competitive spirit.

"You're on! First one to five?"

Cana grinned as she perused Gray's unclothed torso up to his steel gray eyes. "Lower than usual, but you are getting old, I'll go easy on you. Deal."

Without even looking at each other, as though they did this all the time, the father daughter duo high-fived perfectly, Cana finishing off the Gildarts' bottle and breaking it against the porch railing to seal the deal. She snaked a hand around Gray, grabbing his ass and squeezing, propelling him into the mass of humanity just inside his home.

Shit. Cana Alberona was on a-whole-nother level. And it was too late to run.

Gods save Fairy Tail.

* * *

Gajeel threw back his drink and interrupted Levy as she finally got to the part of the story where she agreed to meet him at the gym, finally unable to hold his tongue any longer.

"So, let me just get this straight. At the same time I was having porno flashbacks to the 60s, you were reliving your past life as a cop, interrogating a gang banger version of me, for multiple gruesome murders or some shit...and you still wanted to meet me? Holy fuck why?! Do you have a fucking death wish?!"

Levy's eyebrows furrowed. He didn't seem to be getting it. Why was he not more concerned that his soul was corrupted by a past of villainy and gore? Didn't that matter to him?!

"I was a badass special agent with the FBI, thank you very much! And _that's_ what you're coming away with? That I'm the idiot who wanted to meet her soulmate? Your soul is in danger! According to Ultear, when my second origin opened, my aura turned black and practically consumed me, remember?! That cannot be good! Why are you not more worried about that?! I mean it all turned out fine and you're not going to murder me in my sleep, so what's the issue?!" Levy huffed to blow away the stray curls that had fallen out of her headband into her face. She really needed a haircut...or to get some ponytail holders or something. Wait...did he just say... "a 60s porno?"

Gajeel looked uncomfortable as he rolled away from her and refilled his glass, leaving her legs dangling again.

"You are not getting away with not explaining that, so don't even try!" she warned, sticking out her closest leg to poke him in the ribs, successfully surprising a very unmanly squeak from his throat.

Eyes wide, she froze for a second doubting if she had actually heard it before dissolving into giggles. She drew her legs closer to her chest in reflex as she just kept laughing and laughing. Gajeel wasn't about to stop her. She was giving him one helluva view.

Levy knew she was a giggly drunk. It could have been worse. She had done extensive preparation last May for college parties, with a few of her high school girlfriends, draining her parents' liquor cabinet, before they all went off to separate colleges in far away places. One of the girls had turned out to be quite the drunk cryer, but honestly, no one had expected anything less of Juvia. She pretty much cried at the drop of a hat anyway.

Her parents hadn't even really cared that she had stolen all their booze. They weren't huge drinkers to begin with and were more confused by her sudden interest than anything. But once it was presented as a research experiment, they had jumped into project mode and restocked to help her repeat the experiment to test her results, taking extensive notes. She expected nothing less. Sure, they weren't typical parents, but they were all hers and they trusted and understood her like no one else could. She had missed them like crazy these last few months.

Her parents had tried to argue that they should wait to leave for Costa Rica until she was settled in at school, but she couldn't stand to watch them going over their trip plans once more time. When she was little they had just taken her out of school for their research trips and gone as a family, but the last couple years had been so full of placement testing and extracurriculars for her, there hadn't been a good time. They were scientists and explorers to the core with a wanderlust that she just hadn't inherited. So she had made them go. They deserved to be happy, doing what they loved. She was an adult now, she would be fine on her own. But no matter how happy for them she was, it didn't mean she wouldn't miss them.

Eventually the giggles faded, reminding her that Gajeel still hadn't answered her. So she aimed another poke at his ribs, this time getting her foot captured by his massive hand for her trouble and almost being pulled off the counter.

"Stop stalling Gajeel! I'm not letting it go!" she exclaimed as she flailed her other leg around, aiming to give him a good kick to let her go, but failing as he evaded all her efforts.

"I know, Shrimp, I know." he replied with a smirk and a sigh. Finally catching her other foot and pulling them into his lap, rolling up close to her again, so she could sit comfortably the way she had before. "But, you can't try to kick me again! That pervy flashback just happened! I didn't ask for it! Remember that…" Levy nodded easily in response, content now that she knew her curiosity would soon be satisfied.

"Ok, so right after you contacted me that first time, on my arm, I had a flashback to you, uh, pulling me into a copyroom for a quickie. And I guess you had slept over the night before…"

"How do you know that? Did you get a flash of us doing it then too?"

"No. You little perv. You were wearing day of the week underwear...and you had on the pair from the day before…and I remembered seeing that particular pair before!"

"That certainly sounds like something I would do! Well, if I did stuff like that!" chortled Levy as she went off into another round of giggles, taking a sip and then leaning forward to brace herself on his shoulders. When she finally could calm the laughter rolling around in her ribs again, she looked up to find her nose was now inches away from his. Her gaze snapped to his, watching his pupils dilate with interest, until just a rim of deep red bordered his almost black eyes.

"You have really cool eyesh…eyes" she automatically corrected her slur, taking a moment to get it right as she set down her glass and her hands came up to his face to keep him from moving so much, so she could get a better look. It didn't seem to work as his eyes swum in her vision again. She leaned forward even more until her forehead met his. "Will you quit moving? And dilating your pupils? I'm trying to see what pattern your iris has!"

"Shrimp, I'm not moving. I think that might have more to do with the booze. And if you want my pupils to quit dilating, you should maybe try not uh...fondling me with your foot… not that I mind," he said with grin and a pointed glance to his lap, where her wanton little toes were rubbing back and forth on his inner thigh and something...else. She jerked her feet back, feeling her face get hot. Thank god she was probably already flushed from the liquor.

"Um, uh sorry!" she said to the ceiling, slowly bringing her gaze back to his face where his pupils were receding from the additional light that they got when she pulled away. Immediately forgetting her embarrassment, she grabbed his face again and got a good look at the striations in his ruby irises before they could disappear again. "Ah! Stream Type! Interesting, I had you pegged as a Shaker!," she exclaimed, devolving into giggles again, for pretty much no reason, closing her eyes and resting her forehead on his again as she laughed.

"What the fuck you goin' on about?" Gajeel asked, amused and content to let her do whatever she wanted as long as he got a front row seat. Her giggles felt so weird in his chest. Like he was doing crunches, while drinking something carbonated. It tickled a bit, but felt sort of nice too. Made him want to join in laughing. Plus, every time she started giggling, she lost her balance and had to lean on him. No complaints there. Levy pulled herself together again with a Herculean effort.

"I read this really poorly cited book once on how the patterns in your pupil indicate personality traits. I thought it was super funny, but I was curious if it would work, so I always look to see when I get the chance. You're a Stream Type. It meansh...MEANS...that you have straight lines or streaks in the color of your iris, which would make you a kinesht… kinesheti… KINESTHETIC… YES NAILED IT!...type..which has a way of holding the world together. Intuitive, grounded, friendly...though I'm not too sure about that last one...hehe." She laughed at the mock glare he gave her. "Letseeeee, what else…? Stream types have great balance and have mastered stillness...and they learn by doing. I guess that does fit you pretty well...but I thought for sure you'd be a Shaker type…"

"What's a Shaker type like?" Gajeel asked, trying to keep her talking so she didn't realize she had started curling her fingers into his hair. He was figuring out that when Levy's mind got going, her body just went on autopilot and did things without its permission. Which seemed to be enhanced when she was drinking. He thought it was pretty hilarious. But that could be the buzz he was rocking talking. He hadn't gotten tipsy off two glasses of anything pretty much ever, so he assumed it was her tiny body processing everything that was making him warm and mellow.

"Well, a Shaker is a movement type." Her body gave a little wiggle in demonstration and Gajeel grinned. "There are little freckles and rounded shapes in the iris. I figured, what with growing up around the gym and the boxing and stuff you'd be more a movement kind of guy...but then I guess that wouldn't make shense for you. You're pretty unshakable!" Levy lost herself in laughter again at her own terrible wordplay, causing her hands to slip from his hair and down to his shoulders, still leaning her forehead on his. Apparently she was past the phase of even noticing her slurs now. Gajeel brought a hand up to her hip to steady her as she swayed on the edge of the counter, teetering.

"Well, that seems like a bunch of bullshit to me," Gajeel said, tilting his head up a bit so that he could rub his nose on hers. Her body immediately caught on to the motion, giving him Eskimo kisses and giggling again. He felt a little dizzy, like he'd had a couple cases of beer. She was a serious lightweight.

"I know right?! So shtupid! But totally fun to pretend right?" And with that she pulled back a little with a huge grin that lit up her eyes and made her whole face glow. She looked like a fucking fairy, blue curls framing her flushed cheeks. And just Gajeel couldn't resist anymore, the booze telling him to just go for it already. So he closed the tiny gap between them, kissing her firmly. If nothing else went according to plan about this bizarre fucking day, at least he had finally gotten to fucking kiss her.

Gajeel's fingers gripped the counter hard on either side of her hips as he resisted the urge to pull her onto his lap. Turns out, he needn't have bothered. Within moments of their lips touching, she had flung herself off the counter and onto his lap, lacing her fingers into his hair again. He caught her, barely, and pulled her snug against him as her legs wrapped themselves around his waist, her back arching as he supported her neck with his other hand and deepened the kiss.

Yeah, his day just got a helluva lot better.

* * *

Mystogan had been tailing Erza for the better part of the day, thankfully, not needing to intervene and keep the serious redhead from campus as she went from store to store at the mall, collecting shopping bags. Natsu and Gray hadn't been kidding when they said she loved shopping. It had been close to six hours since he had managed to track her down and she just now seemed to be contemplating one more cinnamon roll before heading to the parking lot. He supposed it would be too good to be true to expect her to just stay at the mall until they closed and then visit a sick relative or something for the rest of the weekend. He smiled. That would have been easier, but not nearly as much fun.

He was actually really looking forward to tracking down the perv, but he didn't want to blow all of his distraction tactics before the party even started. Who knew how long Gildarts would be staying this time? So he bided his time.

There was a small part of him that wished he could be at the party. Even managing to get through three Gildarts Bashes, he still had very little idea what had happened at those parties. He remembered the set up, the prep work, and what came after they woke up, but from the first sip of purple elixir to that first crack of a dehydrated, sleep crusted eye, it was a complete blank. Just like everyone who indulged in Moon Drip, he had no memory of his own experiences during imbibing. He just had what others, who had not dared to try the glowing drink, could remember from their own drunken hazes. Or the occasional DD. Rarely was Fairy Tail lucky enough to have a member as committed to staying sober as Gray Fullbuster.

There was always photographic evidence of course, and the disasters tended to make themselves known somehow, like the year the ice luges collapsed the minute they were removed from their molds, leaving misshapen chunks of slippery ice and water to trip-up literally everyone in the vicinity. Or the year they weren't kept cool and they slid off onto the people waiting to catch the Moon Drip. The hospital had filled in the blanks for that one when the bill came for several ER visits over concussions and broken teeth. Those ice luges really seemed to cause more trouble than they were worth…but alas, traditions. The cornerstone of fraternity life. Well, that and video game tournaments.

There was a bigger part of him, however, that was intrigued by the woman he had been casually stalking all day. Everyone in Fairy Tail seemed to be terrified of her. Hell, everyone on campus was. Even the girls she strove to protect tended to yell their thanks from afar instead of shaking her hand. He heard she had quite the grip.

They had never had an excuse to meet face to face, so though he had seen pictures, and her bright-haired figure from a distance, he had been ill prepared for the vivid, petite woman who devoured cinnamon rolls and sugar cookies alike. In neat bites. With a fork.

Hearing Gray and Natsu tell stories of growing up boxing with her at Metallicana's, one would expect to find a 40-foot-tall monster capable of destroying mountain ranges. Which was obviously an exaggeration, but still. The previous mental image of the fierce Titania just couldn't seem to reconcile with the woman drooling on the window of Heart Kreuz over a new pair of boots. She seemed like a bit of a let down, to be honest.

So, when he subtly followed her out the exit and into the parking lot, as he had been doing all day, he was not expecting the fist that came at him from nowhere, which he barely dodged, or the switchblade hovering over his crotch, which he didn't. He went completely still, hands raised in peace, and waited to see what she would do.

"I thought someone was following me. You picked the wrong woman to mess with, you pervert. Prepare to be castrated."

Ok, so letting her draw her own conclusions was a terrible idea. Noted.

"Whoa! Erza, calm down. I am not a pervert. I've been trying to track you down all day," he said, telling a tiny white lie, which seemed to make her eyes narrow slightly. Interesting. He was an excellent liar.

Moving slower than Droy on freshman move-in day, he reached up to remove the sunglasses and cap he had thrown on to keep his distinctive blue hair and facial tattoo under wraps.

Now, he knew his look was a little odd, but even so, her reaction was almost insulting as she immediately backed up, arms going limp and mouth dropping open in a gasp. He scratched his head in confusion...his hair wasn't that weird...

Then, the next thing he knew she was hugging him. He froze as her arms wrapped tightly around his neck, pulling his head to her chest, and tried to figure out what the hell was happening.

"Um, what are you doing? Did I forget that we've met before? Because I am totally drawing a blank, but I am in a fraternity, so that unfortunately happens occasionally…" he mumbled, awkwardly trying his best not to touch the woman who was shoving his face into her ample cleavage. This from the chick who worried so much about perverts? Who taught this woman how to hug?! He was pretty sure he needed to see a chiropractor now. He experimentally tried to pull away only to hear his vertebrae give a crack as she tightened her substantial grip.

"Jellal! How is this possible? What are you doing here? Where have you been all this time?! How dare you not remember me!" Erza burst into tears as Mystogan's face grew pale.

Shit. She knew Jellal. Well...that complicated things.

* * *

Natsu stepped out of the bathroom feeling warm, fuzzy, and sated. Showering with the Weirdo would never fucking get old. Ever. Dragging his foggy, but thankfully no longer totally blasted, mind out of the damp room, where it still lingered over the events of the last half hour, he hung up his towel to dry and went to his dresser for clean underwear. The pledges had done a great job, even folding and putting away his laundry. He hardly recognized the place. Apparently they had blue carpet. Who knew? Those guys were definitely going to be initiated if this was any indication of their dedication to the house. He opened the drawer, going to grab a pair of the black boxer briefs he had taken to wearing lately, but then he paused as he remembered what he had planned for the rest of the night. Digging through the neatly rolled underwear (jeez, did one of these guys pop out of Martha Stewart or something?) he saw a flash of orange and red. Grinning, Natsu pulled out the ridiculous silky flame-printed boxers that he had been wearing the day he lost the bet with popsicle breath. And the day he had bumped into the Weirdo. They were embarrassing to walk around a train station displaying, but for what he had planned, they were perfect.

Pulling them on and grabbing a pair of folded black jeans (were jeans even supposed to be stored folded?) and one of his Fairy Tail t-shirts from some event last year, black with a white house symbol ready to glow the minute it was exposed to the black-lights all over the house, he got dressed. He grabbed his walkie talkie and hooked it onto his pocket. Finally, he gelled his hair out of his face, already almost dry and standing up in the crazy way it usually did. The stupid stuff didn't even look half bad tonight. At least he'd look decent for the cameras. His watch alarm went off just as he was strapping it to his wrist. Half an hour to showtime.

Grinning his face off, Natsu wrapped his scarf back around his neck and pulled his door shut behind him. Still inside the pocket of his other jeans, his cell phone lit up and a few notes of the Rocky theme rang out, notifying the empty bathroom he had a new text message.

* * *

Lucy was feeling pretty good, overall. She was warm, clean, and thanks to the three grilled cheese sandwiches she had just finished eating, and her recent shower, satisfied in every way. Her buzz was even beginning to wear off, which meant that ND hadn't had any more to drink. She wasn't naive enough to think he wouldn't, but she was enjoying what she thought of as the calm before the storm. If she was lucky, she'd sleep through the whole thing. Hopefully. Her still hazy mind thought back to what he had jotted down before their shower...and then she remembered.

That dick! To be fair, it was kind of sweet of him to not want her to go out and lose her virginity to make his possible future mistakes less awkward (dear gods, why had she offered to do that in the first place?!), but damnit, she was a free, single, hot specimen of womanhood and she would go have a one night stand if she wanted to!

She didn't really want to, but that was beside the point! What made him think that he could go out and fuck random people, but gave him the audacity to tell her she couldn't do the same?! She would give him a piece of her mind!

She stalked over to her desk for a pen and saw her writing notebook lying open to a mostly blank page, a single sloppy phone number staring up at her from the page. Oh my gods she had totally forgotten. He had given her his phone number.

In the grand scheme of things, a text message was actually a hell of a lot less intimate than writing to one another on a limb (not even making it onto the venn diagram for what they had just finished doing), but the idea of knowing his phone number at all just felt so..personal, that she almost blushed. Which was so stupid! They had basically just jacked-off in synchronization, she could handle a little light texting conversation. No problem.

So she tracked down her phone, where she had left it charging that morning. Once she retrieved the beloved hand computer, she swiftly went to her contacts and added his number. When it came to the name blank she paused, debating.

She still thought of him as Mr. Matches sometimes, even though she knew his initials...

But, if she really wanted to, she knew she could get his name. All she had to do was give up her own. Was she ready for that?

Maybe after talking to him in person. Maybe then it would feel...right.

Settling for ND, she saved the contact and opened up her texting app, stuck again when she went to write. This was a big moment. Their very first text message. It should be something monumental, or at least something that didn't make him think she was a total spaz.

So, she settled for something classic.

Cool.

And, appropriately, carrying a healthy dose of deja vous.

 _ **Hi.**_

Yep.

Nailed it.

And then she waited for a reply.

* * *

Gray had barely zipped up his jeans before he was unceremoniously shoved out of the supply closet Cana had claimed as her own personal sex dungeon. Before he could even register what was happening, she had locked lips with another lucky and willing victim and locked the door.

Damn, this chick made him look fucking clingy. But hell if it wasn't some of the best closet sex he'd ever had. Gray chalked it up as a win and went to go find Loke. He could not let him miss out on action that hot. Plus, he was totally on Team Cana now. Fairy Tail had been tasked with keeping her happy, and if all it took was throwing some horny frat brothers her way, he was happy to oblige. She was absolutely going to win that bet.

* * *

Levy's mind was running around and doing cartwheels as she struggled to remember everything she had ever read about making out. Which had been quite a bit when you included her guilty pleasure romance novels. Thankfully Gajeel had taken charge of the kissing, so she could take a moment to assess what her body was doing. Which seemed to be some kind of purr, as she hummed in happiness for a few seconds. Then, as his hand moved from her hip to her generously endowed ass, and he moved her hair to kiss her neck, she wondered if this was anything like what he had witnessed of their past life in that copyroom. With that thought, a dizzy, drunken wave made her sway, and when she opened her eyes again, _they were heavy with fake lashes, and revealed a small room with brightly patterned carpeting and fluorescent lighting. And a very horny (if the hardness pressing into her stocking covered thigh was any indication) version of Gajeel sucking on her neck._

 _Holy-Aqua-Net-Batman, she was in his flashback! The one he was talking about! In the copyroom. Because that's what she was sitting on. A shiny new Xerox machine._

 _And that was all that she was able to think coherently before she felt herself take the lead with the short, hair-gelled, and sans-piercing Gajeel standing between her spread legs. He let out a low groan, deep in his chest, as she snaked a hand into his dress shirt, expertly undoing the buttons and finding a path to get to the toned muscle beneath his cotton undershirt. Damn, she was even pretty good at this. Present-Levy tried to sit back and analyze what Past-Levy was doing, picking up tips from herself, (because, hell could there be a better source?!), but she found herself getting swept up in the moment, as Past-Gajeel found her core with his fingers and thrust into her slick center, rubbing her clit slowly with his thumb. When Past-Levy moaned and felt a shiver run through her, Present-Levy was right there with her._

 _Holy hallucination! He was more than pretty good! Past-Gajeel had definitely passed into the realm of greatness. Present-Levy was no stranger to the joys of an orgasm, but it was a horse of a different color when the fingers getting her off weren't hers. And so freakin massive. She was wound tighter than a clock on Sunday and all it took was a firm swipe of his thumb before her fingers tingled and a wave of warmth swept through her, whiting out her vision for a moment. And in that moment she was blinded, she heard Past-Gajeel whispering in her ear. "I can't wait to marry you."_

* * *

Being as gentle as he could, while still making any kind of progress, Mystogan peeled Erza's arms off of him and took a step back, working really hard to meet her overflowing eyes, and barely, just barely, succeeding.

Fuckin' Jellal. Was there anyone he hadn't hurt? Clearing his throat, he started. Gods he hated when this happened.

"Erza, you're mistaken. I'm sorry, but I'm not Jellal Fernandes. My name is Mystogan Fernandes. I'm assuming he didn't mention that he has a twin. He never does." The last bit came out a little harsher than he expected. Jellal had been doing this to him since they could walk, so he really thought that he didn't have any anger left to spend on his doppleganger's bullshit, but seeing the powerful woman who had been threatening his manhood only moments ago crumpled and weeping in defeat sparked a hot starburst of fury he didn't know he still had. "I didn't know you were acquainted with him. I would have approached you differently. You have my sincerest apologies."

As Mystogan spoke, Erza's eyes went from shock to confusion to devastation and finally to a blank, serious, emotionless mask. It seemed the Titania had returned. She wiped the tears from her skin, nonchalantly and replied,

"Then, it is I who must apologize. I did know about you, now that I think about it. It's just been a very long time since I was told. A lifetime ago. I should apologize twice actually, for bringing up such a wound that is still obviously so painful after all this time. I am so sorry for your loss." With the last words, Erza bowed her head in a sign of respect.

Aaaaaand she'd lost him. Sore wound? His loss? What the fuck had Jellal told her?!

"Um...thank you? But I would hardly call his incarceration a wound...or that great a loss. He kind of got his own self thrown into prison...and I guess two years _could_ be considered a long time…" he trailed off as she straightened again, the look of confusion returning and her eyebrows scrunching together. It was kind of cute actually.

"What are you talking about? Jellal died 16 years ago in a fire. My logic left me for a moment when I saw you-you look just like him-but I was there. I watched the building burn. And I've never seen him since. I would say we must not be talking about the same Jellal...but you're clearly the brother he told me about all those years ago."

Shit.

She was one of them. The kids who had been taken like Jellal.

He had vague memories of the event itself, but for the most part he just knew what happened from Jellal's stories and what the news and kids at school said afterward. Their parents had done their best to keep it from him, but they were only human. More than a decade ago, when Mystogan and Jellal were..nine maybe?..a crazed cult leader had kidnapped more than a dozen kids, from all over Magnolia.

It had taken three weeks of manhunting to track down the culprit and in that week he had killed half of them and maimed the rest. When the feds had finally followed the maniac to his commune, the hostage situation had turned nasty as an all out war between the cult members and the local cops broke out. In the end, when it became clear that he wasn't going to survive, the leader had set himself and the house with the kids in it on fire.

Led by one little girl, most of the kids were able to escape his clutches, and the building before it collapsed, though several were killed in the collapse and Jellal was discovered in the wreckage, badly injured, and sent immediately to the hospital. When he had finally woken up, after weeks of surgeries, he had refused to see any of the other kids, or even Mystogan. He was never the same. If Erza had been one of those kids, then she had gone through worse than hell.

Suddenly Natsu and Gray's vague stories about her made more sense. They must have all met in therapy. It didn't take a rocket scientist, which he was one semester of dissertation editing away from becoming, to figure out that his two brawling frat brothers, who both just happened to have separate, massive trauma in their pasts had met while working through said trauma.

And, it made sense that there would be others. Group therapy was pretty typical in the treatment of mental distress in children. At least in Fiore. He remembered that his parents had tried to get Jellal to go to something like that. It was too bad he hadn't. It might have helped before the fucker threw his life away. And now, yet again, he had to deal with the fallout from his brother's actions.

"I assure you, we are talking about the same Jellal, but it would appear you are under a massive misconception. Jellal didn't die in that fire. Our parents kept his name out of the press and pulled him out of school, but he is still very much alive."

* * *

Taking Cana to this party was the best idea good old Gildarts had had in a long time. There were so many people to do and drinks to see, it was like Cana-heaven. After beating the pants off her old man in under and hour-he was only up to three, fuckin' amateur-she had decided to explore the house. Overall, no surprise, her favorite room had to be where they had what they called the Dueling Bar setup.

Basically, they had turned what was clearly their dining hall into party central, but they must do this a lot because there was a built in bar on each end of the room. Each fully stocked and under-lit bar, complete with bar stools, was manned by an attractive and talented man who seemed to know every bottled flipping, drinking pouring trick she had ever seen. Even a couple she had never seen before, which was impressive. While they did said tricks, they kept up a steady stream of competitive insults and verbal jabs, goading one another to steadily step it up a notch, keeping the hordes of thirsty party-goers entertained while they churned out drink after drink in record time. It was ingenious and beautiful to behold. Particularly since they did it all under black lights, incorporating glowing components into as many drinks as they could. She would have to see who had come up with that. It would be a killer attraction for her brewery. She smirked. Her money was on the Half-Asian bartender at the far end of the room.

While the huge white-haired body builder seemed to specialize in tricks that tested his stamina, balancing a line of shot glasses down his arm while he filled them, juggling all the ingredients for a drink while he carefully added each until the drink was mixed, stuff like that, the other guy was in a league of his own. His hands were faster than she could follow, trick-shotting ingredients into glasses using crazy Rube Goldberg-esque machines made of nothing but bar supplies; bottles, spoons, glasses, garnishes. And the most impressive thing, in her professional opinion? For every drink he made, he managed to slip at least a shot of hard liquor to himself. He had mixed drinks for dozens of people and still seemed completely unaffected. Cana licked her lips in anticipation. Sure it was always fun taking down the featherweights who thought they could drink any girl under the table, but the best conquests were the heavyweights. Particularly those that really knew what they were doing, and this guy looked like he was drinking water.. She was definitely going to have to track him down later.

On the wall connecting the Dueling Bars were the legendary ice luges. Gildarts had told her all kinds of stories about them, some about the crazy shapes that Fairy Tail had made over the years, but most were horror stories about the epic ways they had horribly failed and injured people.

Cana had seen a lot of ice luges since she started drinking at the vineyard when she was 13, but these were something else entirely from the basic blocks of ice she was used to. Works of ice luge art, was more like it, settled over a massive clear plastic basin of dry ice, floating in water, which caused vapor-filled bubbles to form and pop, creating a magical layer of fog over the end of the room. Someone had done a nice job with the lighting, too, each arranged beneath a recessed light, giving them the appearance of being spotlit.

There were five in all, in almost constant use as glowing shots were poured in by the dozen. The bookend sculptures on each end were identical, seemingly simple sculptures of the house symbol, until you got close to the massive blocks and discovered an Escher-like pattern of channels both inside and outside the luge for the booze to flow down, ending neatly out at the bottom of the fairy's tail like a straw, ready for tasty consumption.

The two creatures flanking the center sculpture were totally different, almost alive, with a crazy amount of detail, in the shapes of an ice tiger, in mid-roll with a channel in it's stripes for the liquor that eventually flowed out of his extended tongue, and an ice dragon, sleeping and covered in ice shavings like snow. That luge was entirely internal, but seemed to light up in a complex pattern that could be seen through the ice as the Moon Drip made it's way through before spilling out of an extended claw.

But the real piece de resistance was the centerpiece. An unbelievably detailed castle with turrets, a moat of flowing Moon Drip, and topped with an impossibly delicate ice flag, a tiny Fairy Tail symbol carved into it. It must have taken hours to construct.

Didn't her dad say that they had only had a day's notice of his coming?! What, did these guys just have ice sculptures sitting around waiting to become luges?!

She personally tried out each one reverently and took three dimensional video all five. She was not above stealing any detail that would attract customers to her bar. When Gildarts had warned her that Moon Drip made people forget, she had not even considered abstaining. She couldn't pass up the chance to try a rare and powerful liquor. Who knew, maybe it would actually give her a buzz. And what were the chances it would affect her anyway? Still, just in case, she took pictures and video of every moment so she could recap later. This place was a goldmine of ideas. She had helped herself liberally to the exotic beverage. It tasted a little like grape jelly, which was surprising, considering the high alcohol content. She had been itching all night to get back to her lab at her brewery and reverse engineer it. Every time she thought she had it figured out though, the liquor would catch up to her and she would lose track of what she was thinking of. Maybe it would have a lasting effect after all. She couldn't wait to try to duplicate it for her regulars. They would love it.

Sure, the brewery and connected bar had started as a way for Gildarts to buy her love, something she encouraged on a daily basis, but it had grown into a challenge for her and she was proud of the microbrews that kept her clientele coming back. What she was missing though, was the flash and excitement that Fairy Tail seemed to produce from their very pores. She glanced over to the bar at the end of the room again as a chant of what she assumed was his name started up to cheer on the Hasian (half-asian! Ha! She cracked herself up sometimes.) bartender who was assembling a three-layered margarita, using six blenders, four shot glasses, a pool cue that someone must have brought up from the basement and a series of drink stirrers...while blindfolded. She smirked and couldn't resist anymore. She cheered with the rest of the crowd as he removed his blindfold, took a shot of sake off out of the bellybutton of a bikini-clad blonde, and presented the margarita to the overdressed brunette who had ordered it. Cana admired her Louboutin heels and said a prayer for their passage. She would never risk a pair of ten thousand Jewel shoes at a frat party, but then she was raised by a woman who did her own laundry. She doubted this bitch had ever seen a dryer sheet. Laughing at her stupidity, Cana grabbed the thousand Jewel note she had won off old papa-bear and hopped up to sit on the bar, holding the bill between two perfectly manicured fingers, catching his attention easily due to both her top and the bra beneath it fluorescing like a neon sign under the blacklights as she got comfortable on his work space. His eyes met hers and his eyebrow went up.

Alright Bacchus, God of Debauchery, let's see what you've got.

* * *

Natsu was dying to join the crowd and be the life of the party. It was what came most naturally to him. So far the guests had been contained to the house, mostly around the bar and ice luges, getting well lubricated for the main event, but as soon as he gave the word, Romeo and Max would open up the doors to the backyard and the basement and the wheels of his machine would turn. He had forgotten how much fun it was to get totally sloshed, and the Moon Drip he had had earlier had almost completely left his system, so he felt like a normal drink wouldn't push him back over the edge like it had. Seeing the massive crowd surrounding Bacchus and some chick on the far bar as they went shot-for-shot, he headed to Elfman's side instead. While he was still continuously pouring, it was a lot less busy and you could actually get to the bar. Natsu waved a hand to get Elfman's attention and then leaned against the long counter to wait while his white-haired frat brother finished the drink he was working on, shaking drinks in martini shakers gripped in each massive bicep. Almost immediately Natsu heard his name being shrieked in excitement by a familiar voice.

"Naaaatsuuuuuu Dragneeeeeeeel! Come give me a hug before I strangle you!" was all the warning he got before he was almost flattened by a white-haired matchmaking demon. OR as, he liked to think of her, Elfman's hot meddling older sister. What he wasn't expecting was that she would be coming from off the bar itself, where she had been serving as the vehicle for body-shots moments before. Catching her and steadying himself so they didn't end up on the floor, he grinned and tried to extract himself from her Revlon Red talons.

"Hey Mira! I was just going to get a drink and get to work, so I don't really have time to chat with-"

"So Natsu, are you dating anyone right now?" Mira didn't care what he had to do, this was clearly more important.

"Um, no, but it's kind of complic-"

"PERFECT! I brought someone I want to set you up with! She was my Little in the sorority before I graduated. Michelle! Get your rich butt over here and meet this fine piece of ass!" Mira screamed, right into his ear. He really hoped the Weirdo hadn't heard that.

How such a tiny woman could make such a big noise was beyond him. He cringed and rubbed his ear, trying again to explain to the bane of all Fairy Tail bachelors that he wasn't interested.

"Listen Mira, I'm not dating anyone, but there is someone that I kind of have a...uh… thing with. So I'm not interes-" He was cut off abruptly again by her squeal of joy as she threw her arms around him again.

He would give Mira one thing, she had exceptionally squishy boobs when they were being used to forcibly suffocate a guy. Under normal circumstances, honestly, not a bad way to go. But when he was already hyper aware of what the Weirdo must be thinking as he struggled for air, crushed against her massive breasts, he went into panic mode. And of course, just as he had managed to extricate himself, yet again, from her clutches, the chick she had been calling over showed up downing a massive tri-colored margarita like she thought it would grow legs and run away if she took a breath. Finishing the drink, the brunette, (or maybe her hair was maroon? The black lights made everything look funny...) Mitchell-or-whatever-her-name-was set her empty glass on the bar and eyed Natsu.

"Well, aren't you a cutie. And your hair is hilarious. How did you get it to glow like that? Do you dye it? I didn't know hair could get that pink!" Distracted from his avoidance of Mira by the girl's comments, he tugged a strand of hair in front of his face and was horrified to discover that it was, in fact, glowing under the black lights. OH COME ON! WHAT THE FUCK?!

With a wordless roar of frustration, Natsu slumped over the bar, lightly hitting his forehead repeatedly on the surface. Behind him he could hear Imitatia-or-whatever and Mira talking about him again. All he wanted was a drink! Was that too much to ask for when he was standing at a bar?! In a frat party?! FULL OF DRUNK PEOPLE?!

"I don't know Mira, he seems kind of weird. And I've got high standards you know. As a member of the prestigious Lobster family, I cannot just date anyone. I have standards."

"Oh. Oh really. Well, I'm sorry Pinocchio, I was distracted from your complaints by the three extra inches your nose just grew. What were you saying? You sleep with anything that has a pulse and aren't good enough for him? Yeah, you know what, you're right, I don't know what I was thinking." Mira delivered in a voice so sweet it took Michelle a full minute to realize she had been insulted.

"Heeeeeey! I'm-"

And that was when Elfman lifted Natsu's head up by the hair and set a drink in front of him. Natsu didn't even care what it was. He drank it down in one gulp. Mmmmm, straight Fireball. Thank the gods for Elfman. He felt the heat of the cinnamon flavored whiskey warm his belly nicely and held the glass out for another. Elfman poured a generous second helping and then went back to mixing drinks. Natsu watch alarm went off again. He drained the second glass too, and walked away from the cat-fight waiting to happen. He had to find Max and Romeo. It was time.

* * *

The next thing Levy knew she was back in Present-Gajeel's studio, still feeling the shockwaves of Past-Levy's climax thrumming through her, a rather shocked looking Gajeel still holding her on his lap while her legs tried to strangle his hips. He had pulled away from kissing her and had slightly dazed eyes as his mouth hung open, a glazed but elated look in his eyes.

"Did you just…?" He seemed too stunned to finish.

Levy blinked a couple times and tried to figure out what he could be talking about…

HOLY SHIT! Holy-fucking-shakespeare-shiva-christ! There was no way. Had she orgasmed while she was reliving the flashback? No way!

But, from the way he was looking at her, that was definitely what he was thinking. Eyes widening, she quickly rushed to explain.

"I got sent back to your porno!" Shit, come on Levy, use your glorious words, that did NOT come out right! "I mean, your flashback! In the 60s! The copyroom and everything! I was just there. Like two seconds ago. And you um, well, uh, kind of...got me off." She cringed as she said the end, unable to look into his eyes, especially knowing that he had just witnessed her doing exactly that..with seemingly little stimulation.

"Wow. Ok, yeah...so...yeah, that makes way more sense, I guess." Gajeel shook himself like a dog shedding water for a second and tried really hard to refocus his eyes. But all he could see, over and over in his head was the petite woman on his lap, throwing back her head and moaning, coming completely undone as she clung to him. For a second there he had thought she had orgasmed just from making out with him. Not gonna lie, there may have been a verse of God Save the King running through his head as well...It was by far the hottest thing he had ever seen. Ever. In his life. Shaking his head again, praying that it would work better the second time than it had the first, the other ramifications of her revelation hit him. Then she knew about what else happened...but, maybe not? "Did I, uh, happen to say anything to you while I was, uh, you know…?"

"Yeah, you did actually," Levy said as her eyebrows furrowed and she struggled to remember. "You said you couldn't wait to…" She trailed off as she realized what it was she had heard. Her eyes snapped back to his and she finished in a whisper, "...marry me?"

Gajeel cringed and looked away, taking one hand off of where it was resting on her butt to scratch his neck, almost sheepishly. Her eyes narrowed as she watched him.

"Wait, did you...did you propose to me in there?! In a fucking closet?! What the hell?!" Levy yelled at him suddenly, hitting him upside the head. He leaned back trying to get away from the blue-haired devil straddling him.

"Well, you said yes apparently! So it couldn't have been that bad!" he yelled back, before leaning just a hair further and losing his center of gravity. The rolling stool slipped out from under him and he fell to the ground, trying to keep all of his weight on his shoulders so he didn't crush her legs, still clinging to his hips. Her knees still landed pretty hard on the linoleum tiles, the rest of her weight braced on her hands, which rested on his chest. They each took a breath, staring dumbly at each other before they both broke down laughing, Levy collapsing onto his chest as it shook with merriment. They did nothing but laugh for a solid two minutes.

Finally their laughter died down to a low rumble that seemed to vibrate Gajeel's body uncontrollably, and Levy untangled herself from the sprawling pile of Gajeel limbs and hair lying on the floor, brushing off her skirt and pulling the scarf from her disheveled hair. She grabbed her glass off the counter and took another swig, gathering her courage around her like a blanket. Turning, and recovering her balance quite nicely after almost drunkenly falling over thankyouverymuch, she smirked down at the still chuckling tattoo artist below her.

"So," she began as she walked closer to him. "The very first time you ever saw me. Before we had even really met, you proposed to me…"

Gajeel looked up at her and followed her with his eyes as she sunk back down to her knees and straddled his hips. She leaned over, caging his head with her tiny arms.

Levy's heart was beating at double time as she struggled to remember how it felt when she was exuding sexual confidence as her past incarnation, biting her lip to keep it from shaking. The look of absolute wonder in his eyes as she had straddled him had been worth every suppressed shudder. And she wanted him so badly. More than anything she had ever wanted in her life. More than a complete extant Shakespeare folio with notes in the margins. She drew in a steadying breath and looked him right in the eyes again as she quipped,

"You could have just started with asking me out, ya know."

Gajeel thought that sounded like a pretty good idea.

* * *

After the shock-of finding out the boy Erza had been kidnapped and tortured with was miraculously still alive-had worn off, and the anger at his abandonment had been taken out on a defenseless tree (that thankfully wasn't Mystogan), the fiery red-head had turned out to be excellent company. Predictably, she had taken to the perv hunt like a mermaid to drowning people and, after he had convinced her that they should start at the marina, instead of campus, things had gone pretty smoothly. Mystogan was even enjoying himself.

They had already collected some promising leads and had agreed on a plan of action. Their target, a creepy dark purple- or blue-haired (eye-witness accounts varied) man had been seen frequenting the local bars over the last couple of weeks, chatting up women. He always left early and he always mentioned his yacht, so they were pretty sure he was their culprit.

"Ok, so let's review what we know," the redhead started, ticking off the facts on her fingers as they matched steps purposefully down the row of bars. It was really nice not to have to shorten his stride to help her keep up, like he did with everyone else. "We know he's an S-class pervert, having attempted to sexually harass and/or assault multiple women from campus. We know he claims to have a yacht, though no one at the marina could say where said yacht was right now. We know he is tall and good-looking. We know he spends most nights at the bars trying to convince women to come back to his alleged yacht. We know he has a facial tattoo and his hair is either dark blue or purple. What is with this city lately? Are the salons running a special on primary-colored hair dye or something?" She looked at his own hair in question. It took him a moment to realize she was actually waiting on him to answer her.

"I wouldn't know. This is just what my hair looks like. What did you think Jellal dyed his as a ten-year-old?" Mystogan instantly regretted mentioning his twin, seeing a stab of pain cross her face briefly, almost not even there. But he had seen it.

"Hmm, well then maybe there is just something in the water here, because there are some seriously odd natural hair colors in this city. I even have a friend with naturally pink hair."

"No kidding? And what about yours?"

"What's weird about my hair? Red's a perfectly normal hair color!" Erza flipped the switch from pleasant to threatening in a heartbeat.

"Uh, yep, you're right, don't know what I was thinking! It's a lovely, perfectly natural shade of red. That tons of people have." Mystogan quickly backpedalled. He seemed to have hit a nerve. "Hey look, there's Galuna's! Let's see if they've seen our perv!"

And, just like that, they were back on track. It was really nice to work with someone who could focus for longer than five minutes. Mystogan loved Fairy Tail, but a large part of him was definitely ready to move on to adulthood and stop fucking around. And he missed Laxus. The only other student left from his pledge class had been kicked out of the house for some crazy incident last semester when Mystogan was studying abroad. While they still hung out on a regular basis, it wasn't the same as being roommates. And house events had grown less bearable. Laxus always knew how to cut through the bullshit. Even if he was a broody Russian bastard. He was Mystogan's broody Russian bastard of a wing-man.

"Excuse me sir," Erza said politely, speaking to the exceptionally short man behind the bar. Mystogan took a minute to admire his majestic sideburns. "Have you seen a man come in here, about six feet tall, with dark blue or purple hair and a facial tattoo next to one eye?"

The bartender gave her a look for a moment like she was crazy before gesturing to Mystogan.

"Um, honey, I think he's standing right behind you. Sonny, you should take your girlfriend home before she has any more to drink." Mystogan resisted the urge to roll his eyes. Erza turned to look at Mystogan, head cocked to the side as she mused that he did weirdly meet the description she had given. If the other people they had interviewed hadn't already clearly not recognized him, she would have considered him a suspect. But, logically, the other eye witness accounts cleared him. Mystogan narrowed his eyes at her. Had she just seriously considered that he was the perv they were looking for?! She had already turned back to the bartender.

"My _associate_ is not the man of whom I speak. We're looking for a thinner man, a pervert who has been assaulting women on campus and trying to lure them onto his yacht."

"OH! You mean Bora then," the bartender said casually as he pulled a mug from under the edge of the bar to polish. "Guess I always thought of his hair as more...indigo. He stops by most nights. Tends to sit in that corner booth over there. He's partial to our Moon Drip. Orders it all the time for the girls he picks up." Mystogan struggled not to show surprise and recognition at the name of the drink he had ordered someone to purchase in large quantities just that morning. Damn, he really did seem to have a lot in common with their target.

"Thank you for your help, sir." Erza said politely before turning to Mystogan with a gleam in her eye. She didn't have to say anything. He returned the sentiment with small smile tugging at one side of his mouth. The next step was clear.

Stakeout.

Bora didn't stand a snowball's chance in hell.

* * *

Lucy couldn't believe it. The NERVE of this guy!

First he tells her he might sleep with someone tonight, like he didn't even know what his own self would do. Then he forbade her from doing the same, like he was her father or something. Then he gave her his phone number, but wouldn't answer it! She had sent him like 12 text messages, with no response, so she had even tried to call him, but still, nothing! Not even a voicemail message to give her his name. The next thing she knew she heard some chick yelling something about a girl in his ear and then she felt like she was being suffocated by boobs. She knew the feeling well. She was always had to be careful when she laid on her back because gravity plus her enormous bazingas equaled almost instant suffocation for Lucy.

THEN, when the motorboating party had finally come to an end and she could breath freely again, he had thrown back what had to be multiple glasses of something cinnamon-flavored. While the taste had not transferred at the time, the burn certainly had, and now she kept burping in cinnamon flavor. It was UNACCEPTABLE. He wasn't even drunk! The cinnamon shit didn't even seem to be having an impact, so what the fuck was he doing shoving his face into some girl's breasts?! How rude! And PERVY! And inconsiderate of their situation! Incensed, she grabbed her highlighter and wrote a message on her arm, in capital letters.

 _WHAT THE HELL IS GOING ON?! TEXT ME BACK JACKASS!_

And she started pacing, looking back at her arm every three seconds, waiting for his response. After ten minutes had passed, she was done waiting. That was it. Two could play at this game. She grabbed her phone and made a call.

"Levy? Hey, it's me. This day is just unbearable! He's being fucking impossible! I need to go out. I just need to get the fuck out….are you ok? You're breathing kind of hard." Lucy paused to here Levy's answer. She was totally making out with Gajeel. Jogging her ass.

"Ok. Well, yeah, of course he can come. And I don't care where. It just needs to be loud, smelly, and full of hot guys to make out with."

"Where?"

"Sounds perfect. I'll see you guys in an hour? Great."

Lucy grinned a sharky smile with no warmth to it. She was done letting this day fuck with her. With the warm thrum of alcohol in her system, she turned to her closet and pushed her way to the back, past the everyday stuff, to where she kept all the expensive designer clothes she hadn't been able to part with when she ran away. Now, what to wear to a blacklight fraternity party...

* * *

Natsu frantically covered his arm as bright glowing words very obviously began to appear under the black-lights. He just couldn't fucking win! Why did she always have to write in HIGHLIGHTER?! And what the fuck was she complaining about?! He hadn't even done anything. His phone hadn't gone off all night. His hand went to his pocket, only to find it empty.

Shit. His phone. It was still in his other pants.

Romeo gave the signal to Max and he flipped on his mike, standing in front of the double doors that led to the fraternity basement. Romeo took his position at the doors to the back patio.

Well, shit, there was no time to grab it right now. Or a writing utensil of any kind. FuckfuckfuckfuckdamnshitfuckdamnitFUCK! He did NOT have time for this!

"Alright everyone! Everybody having fun?"

The crowd shoved into every inch of Fairy Tail's main floor roared it's approval.

"Everybody nice and DRUUUUUNK?"

An impossibly louder shout came from the crowd. Natsu allowed himself a little grumpy, "NO" under the noise.

"Well, ok then. It sounds like we're good to get started on the main attraction. Ladies and mother-fucking bad-asses, Fairy Tail presents to you the first ever, never before tested, never before attempted...Grand Moon Drip Games! What the fuck is that, you might be asking?"

Max turned and put a hand by his ear, the crowd, revved up and ready, answered gamely,

"WHAT THE FUCK IS THAT?!"

Max grinned. He had them right where he wanted them.

"Great fucking question! The Grand Moon Drip Games, conceived and constructed by our own Natsu Dragneel, will consist of six teams competing in three different events to prove that they are not only the fastest, strongest, and hungriest men on campus, but also the manliest, the craziest, and the DRUNKEST! The inflatable Sumo Wrestling event will be held in the rec room off the main area in the basement and is a single man event. Human Water Polo will require two two-man teams consisting of a rider and a "horse", and will take place in the pool. And last, but not least a five man team will undertake, the Three-Mile-Underwear-Only-Triathlon-Relay that will span across the entirety of the campus with undisclosed challenges along the route. But what the fuck are the rest of us supposed to do, you're all asking yourselves, right?"

"WHAT THE FUCK ARE THE REST OF US SUPPOSED TO DO?!"

"FANFUCKINGTASTIC QUESTION! Below these doors, a den of gaming the likes of which this campus has never seen lurks. Each event on site, and each team on the relay will be supplied with a camera that is hooked up to a corresponding television in our Gambling Den. And yes, you heard me right. We will be watching and betting on each team's progress, as the games go on, from the safety and relaxation of our twenty very comfortable assembled sofas. Anything is up for betting, from cash and dares to clothing and valuables, and I really mean everything. We will be keeping track of all progress and bets on our usual 108" gaming tv most of you already lovingly know as The Beast. So, before we can set off the ceremonial Screaming Lady Chaser and send Jet running around the house with the Epic Torch of Gildarts to begin the Games, we need you to gather and register your teams with Natsu Dragneel, the architect of this crazy-fucking-plan by the Dueling bars. And now, without further ado...Gildarts, get your ass up here so I can lead you to the place of honor and get this show on the fucking road!"

Another roar came from the overzealous crowd as Max turned and kicked open the double doors, leading Gildarts and most of the crowd into the belly of the beast, so to speak. As the crowd streamed into the huge open space below and the summer night air of the patio, a crowd of men lingered around Natsu, in the middle of the dining hall, arranging amongst themselves what events they would do and what their team names would be.

Poking her head up from behind the empty bar, Cana vaulted, sans-shirt, over the long counter and headed, just slightly wobbly, toward the crowd of men. Behind her, Bacchus clawed his way into a standing position. Blinking bleary eyes as he watched his new personal goddess push her way through the crowd. Finally, Cana made it all the way to the front of the line, standing directly in front of the dude in charge, who had the trippiest hair she had ever laid eyes on.

"Alright Pinkie, sign me the fuck up! I'm gonna kick all your asses!"

* * *

 **Soooo yeah...this whole Moon Drip party thing is just like an ever-expanding monster that eats and eats and is never finished...so, congratulations! Another double length chapter in celebration of the 50 new reviews on that last chapter! YAY! And, on Monday, the probably eagerly awaited, Chapter 13: Moon Drip Part 3...which may end up coming before, Moon Drip Part 4...and maybe 5. Don't hate me! I just really really couldn't bring myself to leave anyone out…. So, everyone is getting drunk and laid! And we'll all be stuck in this party in a Ground Hog's Day-like time loop until we can't do anything but read fanfiction! YAY!**

 **And there will be much more Nalu returning next chapter. I PROMISE!**

 **Here are a few and far between references you might not have understood, though not a lot from literature this chapter.**

 **Iris pattern personality analysis** \- totally couldn't make this shit up if I tried. Admittedly not from a book, but the internet worked it's magic and gifted me with jewel of trivia.

 **Freshman move-in day** \- on my undergraduate campus, it was tradition for all the fraternities to come to the freshman dorms on their move-in day and help haul mattresses, bedframes, couches, boxes, etc. as part of their required philanthropy work. Now picture post-timeskip Droy trying to carry a mattress upstairs...in August.

 **Martha Stewart** \- on the rare chance that anyone doesn't know who Martha Stewart is, she is the mother of all crafting, the baker of perfect pies and the guru of all wedding planners. I also want to be her when I grow up...minus the prison for insider trading…

 **Rocky** -the story of the Italian Stallion, as portrayed by Sylvester Stallone, underdog boxer in search of a comeback and any cost. And you know, prequel to the other six Rocky movies

 **Holy-Aqua-Net-Batman** -I've already explained about Robin and his verbal hijinks, but Aqua Net is an aerosolized hair spray that EVERYONE used in the 60s to keep their hair in the flips and beehives that women wore.

 **Rube Goldberg machines** -An American cartoonist, sculptor, engineer, and inventor known for crazy multi-stage "Machines" in which, for instance, a candle might be lit, which would burn through a string which would release a hammer that would hit board that would flip off a table, pulling a string attached to it, which would open a gate that would release a golf ball, which would roll through a channel, until it knocked over the first in series of dominoes which would go through about ten more steps before accomplishing a simple task like watering a plant. I'm not sure if other countries do this at all, but in the US, just about every high school physics class assigns a project like this and there are contests to see who can create the best one overall. Just go online and watch them. Totally the coolest thing ever. Don't ask me to describe exactly what Bacchus is coming up with, just figure it's hella cool and anyone would be ridiculously impressed.

 **Escher** -referring to graphic artist MC Escher, famous for his optical illusions and mobius strip-like designs. Look him up, my descriptions won't begin to do him justice.

 **Louboutin** -maker of ridiculously expensive shoes, recognizable by the distinctive red sole on every shoe. In American dollars,they usually have prices in the four figure range

 **Bacchus, God of Debauchery** -Bacchus is actually referring to the Greek god of wine and debauchery, basically all things drunk and sexy...just in case there is that like one person who didn't know that yet.

 **Revlon red** -is a color that was patented by the Revlon company as their trademark color. Just a little random knowledge for your everyday life.

 **Mira's Little** -when you join a sorority, you are assigned a Big sister, and the upperclassmen have Little sisters, sometimes shortened to Bigs and Littles, so Mira was Michelle's mentor at their sorority, fraternities tend to call the same mentor relationship Father and Son, making the father's father the grandfather, etc.


	13. Moon Drip Part Drei

**HEHE. You guys are going to kill me. Or not. We'll see. Come yell at me afterwards.**

* * *

"Tell me what you know," Erza said, narrowing her eyes at her target across the table. "You're holding out on me. I can tell."

"Nope. Not telling. That is not how this works," said her victim, a cocky smirk on his face. "If you want to know, you have to wait."

"But it was a follow-up question! Surely it should count!" Erza exclaimed, stabbing a knife into the table, surprised when the eyes across from her barely flinched at the action.

"Nope, I stand by it. Standard rules for 20 Questions," Mystogan replied, deceptively calm, taking a sip of his drink, before smirking again. "And maybe we should avoid destroying the furniture. At least until Bora gets here."

Erza glanced around the room, suddenly aware that every eye in the bar was trained on their table. Clearing her throat, she pulled the switchblade from the table, flipped it closed and stuck it back down her cleavage, all in one smooth, practiced motion. Mystogan tried really hard not to watch her do it. Ok, so maybe not that hard. But he had to wonder, how often did she go around stabbing tables, if she hadn't even noticed she was doing it?

"Ok, then," Erza began again in a softer voice. "If you will not honor my follow-up question, it is your turn." She was clearly still upset that he wasn't going to let her get away with sneaking in an extra question. But they had agreed 20 Questions each, no holds barred (with the exception of Jellal), so that's what she got. She liked rules so much, but she, ironically, wasn't always the best at following them. Mystogan locked eyes with her abundant cleavage while he decided what to ask next.

SHIT, eyes off the boobs. EYES OFF THE TITANIA'S BOOBS.

DANGER WILL ROBINSON, DANGER!

He quickly dropped his gaze to his half empty drink instead. He should probably cut himself off soon. He needed all his wits about him if he was going to keep the quick-tempered redhead from both killing their target and finding out about the massive Moon Drip kegger going on at his house right now. Did she ever just let loose? Ok, he finally had a question.

"What are three of your guilty pleasures?" He grinned, anticipating a non-answer at first. Her go-to defense. He wasn't disappointed.

"Guilty pleasures? Very well. Strawberry cake, shopping and sleepovers. Now, answer my question."

"Nope. Those do not count. Those are not even slightly worth feeling guilty about. Quit hedging Scarlet, and step up to the plate!" Erza glared at him for a moment, but eventually conceded, as he was right, after all. Mystogan seemed to have a habit of being right a lot of the time.

"Very well, _Fernandes_." She paused for a moment as if to think it over. My, what a magnificent player of games she really was. "Stabbing people, erotic novels, and nude beaches."

Mystogan raised an eyebrow.

"Clarification: seeing them, or frequenting them?"

"You answer my follow-up, I'll answer yours." Touché.

"Fair enough. The threesome was with two girls. Who graduated a couple years ago."

She smirked at him, and held up her end of the deal.

"Frequenting them. I like a very even tan, and think modesty is overrated. A woman should be able to display what the gods gave her...without being groped."

Mystogan took a moment to picture her naked, lying on a beach. With her cleavage staring him in the face, it wasn't hard to do. He cleared his throat, crossing his legs nonchalantly under the table. Erza just smiled smugly back it him.

"Your turn to ask," he reminded her, trying to get his mind back on the game of wits they were playing. He took a large gulp of bourbon. That seemed to help. Though, that could be the bourbon talking.

"Ok...I've been dying to ask, especially knowing you both have them, and he had one even then...What is with the tattoo?"

"What tattoo?" Mystogan baited her. It was fun to watch her eyes flash when she lost her temper.

"Just answer the question."

"Ok. Well, Jellal and I were born with birthmarks. Exactly the same, just like everything else. And we got teased about them quite a bit. So, Jellal came up with the idea to get tattoos to cover them up. Because at the age of eight, facial tattoos sounded a heck of a lot cooler than birth marks. But our parents wouldn't go for it. So, Jellal, grand mastermind even then, convinced me to steal enough money from our mother's purse to bribe a woman into pretending to be our mother and taking us to get the tattoos. Where he ever found a blue-haired woman to be our "mom" is beyond me, let alone a tattoo artist that would work on two eight-year-old kids. Our own parent's didn't even have blue hair. Recessive gene from our grandfather...we think. Though, personally, I think the tattoo guy just felt bad for us. Those birthmarks were pretty gnarly. We were called the devil's children more than once. If you look really close, you can see the texture difference on the skin, and that's about all you can make out. He did a heck of job designing the things. But yeah, that's the story. Still can't believe I used to trust my brother that much." Mystogan finished his bourbon. Why the hell not, he had already paid for the thing. "Ok then, another one for the red-headed mistress of Fairy Hills...let me see...Ah, yes, a classic, what were the circumstances that led to you losing your virginity?"

"Hmm, what makes you think I have?" Erza returned archly, her emotionless mask falling seamlessly into place. The most ironic tell of all. The lack of tell.

"Well, considering you just put up your favorite conversation deterrent, I'd say there's something there to tell." Erza raised one perfectly plucked brow and her mask slowly melted away into amusement.

"You know, you're incredibly perceptive. For a man."

"Answer the question Red."

"Fair enough. The circumstances that led to the losing of my virginity...well, he was one of the kids who got...taken with Jellal and I, so I'd known him for years. We had both gotten pretty close to Jellal while we were in there. You aren't kidding about him being a mastermind, even then. He came up with the escape plan, you know, I just executed it when he...well, that's a conversation for another time. Anyway, Simon and I were obviously pretty screwed up after the whole thing, trying to learn to function with the things he did to us, but also dealing with being different than everyone else. Luckily most of the kids' parents agreed that putting us in school together would probably help. So at least we had each other. Anyway, Simon and I got really close, first mourning Jellal, and then because we were older than all the other kids, which sort of set us apart, even in our little group. And well, he stole some strawberry wine for me from his parents' liquor store, so we got drunk, did the deed, and I instantly regretted it. He confessed his undying love to me. I didn't feel the same way, and he hasn't spoken to me since. He even goes to MU now too. Still won't look at me." Her lips took on the bittersweet mockery of a smile.

"Wait, is his last name Mikazuchi?" Mystogan asked, praying to the gods the answer was no.

Erza took a long pull of her cosmo and answered with a "Yup!" popping the "p" extra loud with her lips. Shit, could it be a smaller world? Simon was one of Mystogan's pledge sons. He was never going to be able to look at him the same way again. Erza's next words pulled him out of his horrified thoughts.

"Okay, so that was a deeply personal question. I think it's only fair, you get one too." For a second Mystogan thought she was going to ask about Jellal. Even though they had agreed he was off limits, the urge to ask had to be killing her. But in the end, she went with a different question, conveniently, right when he swigged the last drops of bourbon from his glass.

"Boxers or briefs?" The classic party game question was not what he had been expecting. He laughed, choking on his mouthful of bourbon, and coughing until he could breathe again. All the while, Erza sat with a huge, self-satisfied smile plastered on her face. Which was fair, she had definitely gotten him there. But, she had also set herself up. He smiled back and prepared for her telltale blush.

"Neither. I go commando."

* * *

Bacchus had surmounted the enormous obstacle of making it back on his feet as his new deity came back toward his place at the bar. He blinked his blurry eyes at her and struggled to find his center of gravity, settling for leaning on the bar instead. That bar had been a great friend and drinking buddy over the last year. Quattro Cerberus (may it rest in peace) just hadn't had the funding Fairy Tail elicited from its alumni to spend on fancy built-in bars. Which in hindsight made lots of sense, after being shut down for having a 0.61 grade point average...average. Hell, it was a miracle it wasn't shut down sooner. But luckily good ol' Fairy Tail had taken on anyone who wanted to join. And promptly subscribed to a tutoring service for the house. So he smiled down at the bar and gave it a little pat. Good bar. It deserved a hug.

"What the hell are you doing?" He turned his head from his previous position, forehead to drink-serving service, arms stretched out to either side of him, to see….Cana? He was pretty sure that was his goddess' name, staring down at him. He gave her a grin.

"Just giving a little thank you to this fucking great bar."

Weirdly Cana didn't seem at all phased by his odd sentiment. She just lowered her body and mimicked his action right across from him until their faces were inches apart.

"Thanks bar, you've been fucking wonderful, but I need to borrow your bartender!"

"What for?" He grinned at her. She was so pretty.

"You're going to compete in the relay with me!"

"But, I kinda have to be at the bar...and I'm the b-" He cut off as she leaned forward and kissed him. Fiercely and with a pierced tongue. What was he saying again?

"Ok, see you at the starting line in ten!"

He watched her prance away, the blue sequins on her bra sending sparkles in every direction as a light hit her just right. How the fuck was she PRANCING!? He could barely see and she had drunk him under the table! Who was this mystical creature?! What deal with the devil had she made to control the magical properties of booze?!

Fuck it. Someone else could hold down the fort. He was blaming divine intervention. This is why they had back-up bartenders, right?

Not ten feet away from that little exchange, Natsu was getting the teams down on paper so Sho could transfer them to The Beast's newly designed scoreboard. Beside him, Freed held a stack of release forms to be signed, acknowledging that Fairy Tail was not responsible for any accidental injury or death. House rules following Everlue vs. Fairy Tail in 2002.

So far, he had Cana's team, dubbed Team Wild Card, which had Fairy Tail's two biggest partiers, an alum and the pretty guy from Blue Pegasus. How she expected to get them to agree to be on her team, he had no idea, but whatever, he was just here to write stuff down and blow stuff up later.

Then there was a team of guys from Lamia calling themselves Followers of the Ice Emperor (but that was too long, and stupid and a fellow pinkette with them had yelled out Team LOVE, so that's what Natsu put down, with a little chuckle to himself), led by Gray's cousin. They also had the idiot who kept hurting himself in stupid ways, Eyebrows, and a huge grad student he remembered meeting at their annual Nirvana party last year. They were scrambling around now looking for someone to make up their fifth member. Apparently none of the girls who had come with them wanted to follow Cana's example and volunteer to run around campus in their underwear.

After them he had the guys they had taken in when Quat Cerb(may it rest in peace) went under, minus Bacchus of course, since the crazy chick had already claimed him. They were upset that Team Wild Card was already taken as a team name and ended up calling themselves Team Quatro Cerberus(may it rest in peace). They really weren't the most creative guys.

He was just finishing taking down all their names, and assuring the guys that had helped him prep for the race that it was cool they competed, when he heard an annoyingly familiar voice.

"You can just put us down as Team Fucking Awesome Who Wins It All, because without you and Gray competing, this is going to be too easy."

Natsu gritted his teeth and looked up to see exactly the blonde douchebag he expected. Fucking Sting Eu-make-me-want-to-jump-off-a-cliffe. There weren't a lot of people who really got under Natsu's skin, but Sting definitely made the shortlist. What the fuck was _he_ doing here? He hadn't seen the bleached-out poser since he graduated high school, thankfully leaving the competitive fanboy behind.

Natsu had been a junior to Sting's freshman. His hero worship had been kind of flattering at first, but by the time he had gone out for every sport Natsu did, constantly trying to talk to him or goad him into competing, and even joined the chemistry competition team with him, it had gotten beyond old. Like town elder in Seven Samurai old. It had been a relief to leave the guy behind. And now, it looked like he would never be fully rid of him and his weird emo-kid shadow. Who, as always stood just behind him. Gods he hated these guys.

"What the fuck are you doing here?" Natsu replied, already tired of his bullshit.

"We're your new fucking classmates! Decided Magnolia University could use a little Twin Dragon action." Natsu rolled his eyes. He had forgotten their little nickname for themselves. "Then, low and behold we hear about a killer party over at Fairy Tail, so we came on over to check it out. Pretty pathetic turn out for a relay, considering you and Gray didn't bother to enter," the douchebag said, leaning over to read Natsu's lists.

"And who said I'm not entering?" Natsu shot back, the fire of competition successfully kindled.

"Well, I don't see your team on there. Seemed like a reasonable assumption. Looks like I was wrong. Maybe we'll have to try a little bit to win the whole thing after all. Be sure to get us all down, it's Sting, Rogue, Orga, Rufus, and Minerva for Team Fucking Awesome. Can't wait to see who you find to compete against us." Natsu copied their names down under the name Team Fucking Awful, and met the insufferable brat's eyes with a smirk. Yeah, there was no way he was losing to this asshole. He would just have to get a team together. Last minute.

Piece of cake.

Natsu finished recording the members of Team Totally Gonna Fucking Lose, added Team LOVE's final member, some random guy he'd never met before named Todd, and jumped down a few lines to start the entry list for Team Natsu. Now, who could he get?

Unfortunately, Gray was exempt. There were too many shots of Moon Drip along the relay for him to stay sober. So, who?

Elfman for sure, Mira could fill in for him at the bar, they would have at least one person who knew what they were doing with Elfman and Bacchus both participating. And Jet hadn't joined a team yet; he would be the shoe-in for first leg to campus. He saw Mest standing against the wall eyeing up the competition with a gleam in his eye. He'd be game. He'd join just to say he did it. He was all about "living in the moment" these days. But, who would be their fifth? Natsu set off to find the perfect final member of the team he would lead to victory over that lightbulb head.

* * *

Cana scoped out her only female competition as the newest team walked away. She was pretty enough; curvy, and carrying herself with a swagger that rivaled Cana's. She would be some actual competition. Men were nothing compared to a confident female with the power of sex appeal. Thankfully, Cana had a couple of aces up her sleeve yet. Now that she was committed, she couldn't lose.

It was the Clive in her.

* * *

Levy paced outside Lucy's door while she waited for her to get her ass out of her apartment. Gajeel was waiting downstairs and Levy was itching to get back to him. That was terrible right? She made out with a guy for the first time, and suddenly he was all she could think about! Granted there were some extenuating circumstances, but Levy had always prided herself on being level-headed when it came to boys. Her other friends had gone boy-crazy years ago, staking out the best spots at lunch to watch their crushes stuff their faces. She had preferred a good book. No one was ever interested except Jet and Droy anyway. And friend-zoning them had done pretty much nothing. So she'd thought maybe she wasn't wired like other girls. But now? She found herself rubbing her thighs together just thinking about what they had been doing before Lucy called.

If Lucy hadn't sounded like she was going to simultaneously destroy the nearest town and break down crying all at once, Levy would have hung up and explained later. But Lucy didn't do angry and upset. Not like other people did. Not where you could see it.

She had explained it once, how she had been carefully sculpted into the perfect corporate spy. Like a nanny-cam in a porcelain doll. Beautiful, clever, and dead inside. It was just one of the fucked up things he-who-would-not-be-satisfied had used her for.

It had taken a whole night of argument and presenting evidence, but Levy had finally convinced her that nothing bad would happen if she cried in front of people. That it was normal. She had cried the rest of the night, letting out years of stress and repressed emotion until she had cried herself to sleep on Levy's bedroom floor. And that was only a month and a half ago.

So, angry-almost-crying-Lucy, pleading to get out and let loose, was the priority. Hands down. Luckily Gajeel knew about a huge fraternity party a few of his friends were throwing in honor of some boxer they knew. It was sheer coincidence that it was the same frat Jet and Droy belonged to. It was perfect! She would get to hang out with her friends, introduce her new boyfriend to the guys, keep an eye on Lucy while she blew off some steam, and hopefully find an empty room to continue with Gajeel what he had started back at his studio.

Lucy's door finally swung open revealing a whole lotta Lucy. She clearly had dipped into her Fort Knox clothing reserve.

On their first shopping trip together Lucy had been in awe over how cheap everything was. Levy had been confused; the sales weren't that good, just normal, overpriced department store stuff. Until she had been told what Lucy's monthly clothing budget had been. It was a little less than half a semester's worth of tuition.

If nothing else had told her that Lucy was in crisis mode, this would have. The outfit she was wearing was one of the few she had brought with her when she ran away...and it cost more than a used car. It was clear that Lucy was Tom Jonesing it tonight. She was bringing out the big guns. Levy didn't know what Mr. Matches had done to piss her off, but she hoped he deserved what was coming to him.

"Levy! You're NOT going to our first college party like that are you?! Come on! I think I have something that will fit you…" Lucy dragged her into her apartment and shut the door behind them. Levy sighed. It looked like Gajeel would be waiting a little while longer.

* * *

Loke was still trying to figure out why he was doing this.

When Gray had casually steered him over to the supply closet at the start of the party, knocked on the door and then peaced-out, his favorite wingman had started a chain reaction that had somehow led him here: stripping down to his underwear in Fairy Tail's backyard entering a drunk competition of wills beside the woman who had fucked him incoherent in said closet not an hour before.

No seriously, he had not been able to put together a decent sentence for the next half an hour.

It wasn't normally something he would volunteer to do, running in a relay, his usual party modus operandi being to find a freshman who came to "experience college life to the fullest", convince her to come back to his room, and show her why he held the v-cards for half the female student body. But, when an all-knowing, all-drinking, all-powerful sex queen who very recently rocked your world grabbed you by the shirt, planted one on you and told you you were gonna be on her team, well...you were on her team. Whatever that team was for. He had followed her like a trained puppy, eager and obedient.

What had been the real surprise were his fellow teammates, giving his queen the same devoted look. He had quickly realized that he wasn't the only one shoved into that closet.

How had she managed to do this many guys in such a short amount of time!? Somehow, she had beaten his personal best. Which happened to be the house record! But the evidence was clear as day. Bacchus, Hibiki, and even Romeo's dad, Macao, an alum who came back to party with them occasionally, stared at their bra-clad leader with glazed eyes and dilated pupils, their eyes following her every movement. And that was just the relay team! She assumedly had a six man-polo team and a sumo-wrestler already lining up to start too. Who the fuck was this girl? And how had he never seen her before tonight?! He was almost wishing he had bothered to converse a little more in that closet...nah. Fuck it. He wouldn't change a thing. Totally worth it.

That was about the time Gildarts came over to say hi. Well, if a player of her caliber had not gotten to the guest of honor before now, it was only inevitable. The man had serious game. And his money didn't hurt his chances. At least, that was what Loke thought until they started talking.

"Cana, honey, you're gonna win this thing, right? Because I'm in a gambling mood and I'm betting it all on my ace in the hole!"

"Daddy, it's in the bag. I've assembled a crack team. They won't know what hit 'em!"

Simultaneously, the men of Team Wild Card (AKA Team Pussy-whipped) went white. Loke among them.

Fuck.

They were all fucked.

* * *

Lucy and Levy were finally ready to go. In the end, it had taken a couple of visits between their apartments before they had been able to compile the perfect outfit for Levy, but now they were ready to go. Levy had been concerned that Gajeel would get impatient while he waited for them, but Lucy wasn't worried. With an almost sheer, backless white and gold striped mini dress on, Levy looked like a playboy angel. After convincing the blunette she did not in fact need to wear a headband if her hair was curled properly, the rest had come together without any issues. Though it was a good thing Levy didn't know how much the designer garment she was wearing had cost. She wouldn't have left the apartment. Which was precisely why Lucy had refused to tell her.

Levy was already waiting in the doorway, anxious not to keep her newly minted boyfriend waiting anymore, as Lucy did a last check over herself in the mirror. She readjusted her ample cleavage one more time, so it sat perfectly centered in the black elastic strapping built into her top to keep her girls up where they belonged. Her pale skin (damn, she really needed to get to the beach sometime before it turned cold) contrasted nicely with the black midriff top that cut off at mid rib, hugging her bust with layers of carefully arranged elastic straps, supporting everything with a neckline that sat just off the shoulder, exposing the lace from the cups of the white demi bra she wore underneath. Bending over to make sure that she wouldn't fall out, she double checked that the hot pink high waisted circle skirt, made up of several layers of sheer chiffon, just barely covered her ass and the white thong she wore under it. Perfect. Between the other party girl heiresses she had been encouraged to associated with and Miss Aquarius' comments, she wasn't feeling a lack of knowledge on how to get into trouble. Her tutor may have done an excellent job drilling into her what a lady should not do, but she had also inadvertently exposed Lucy to what equaled the World's Biggest Hussyslut Playbook. And Lucy was cracking the binding for the night.

If she didn't hook someone, to raise a little havoc with, wearing this little ensemble, then she would give up and become a crazy cat lady, because she looked smokin'! She had even straightened her hair, which gave her easily another three inches of length, hitting just above her waist even pulled into a high ponytail. With just a spritz of yummy smelling shine serum to her 'do' to catch the light and 24K gold chain tassel earrings double checked, she declared herself perfection. Everything about her said, come and get me. World's Biggest Hussyslut Playbook- Lesson One: Mastered.

While Levy had opted to remain makeup free on Gajeel's behalf, Lucy had indulged in a little eyeliner and mascara. It had been ages since she had worn makeup. If ND had a problem with it, he could fucking respond and tell her. Through either of the now TWO easy ways to communicate he had as of yet refused to take advantage of. And with that final petulant thought, she locked her door and linked elbows with Levy to help each other make it down the stairs in their six-inch platform stilettos. They had both agreed, this was not a night for flats.

Levy had been especially excited to gain a little height with Gajeel waiting for her. Lucy held back when they got to the door at the bottom of the stairs, lightly pushing Levy to approach the jean and tight-t-shirt-clad man leaning against the side of the building, just outside the building. His party preparation seemed to consist of pulling his unruly hair back into a ponytail. Men. If they only realized the crap women went through to see that one look in their eyes. Lucy waited for it on Levy's behalf.

She watched Gajeel turn his head and notice the gold cage heels standing next to him. Then his gaze traveled up the freshly shaven and moisturized legs, to the hem of Levy's dress, taking in the daring amount of skin exposed on her side from the backless design and finally ending on her face. If Lucy had any doubts about Gajeel, they disappeared in that moment. Because the smile that lit up his face, as he got to his feet and kept his eyes locked on her best friend's own, was absolutely the most beautiful thing she had ever seen. A pang of jealousy hit her then.

She knew it was stupid. She could meet her soulmate any time she wanted...but what guaranteed he would ever look at her like that?

Life wasn't a fairy tale; princesses didn't get rescued from their towers, and kisses didn't make all the evil in the world disappear.

Though honestly, Lucy thought, her temper heating up again, she didn't need a prince charming. She would settle for a godsdamned text message. Or a fucking grocery list on her arm. Hell, she'd take an arrow with a message fired at her at this point. She wasn't picky. She had washed off the highlighter message from earlier and both her arm and phone had stayed decidedly message-less.

Was a fucking response too much to fucking ask?! Once again fueled by her thirst for a little good old-fashioned payback, Lucy strode over and passed Levy and Gajeel, calling over her shoulder as she went,

"You guys gonna stop eye-fucking each other and get moving? I have got bad decisions waiting for me!"

* * *

Mystogan's phone beeped out it's text message notification. Luckily, it was Erza's turn and she was busy thinking of a new question. They had been sitting here for a while. They had almost used up their questions. He was starting to think the perv wasn't going to show. He subtly checked his messages to find one waiting from Freed.

 _ **it's gonna be a night out. there's a group of us jogging over to the Precht to shoot hoops in the next hr or so. u b able to make it?**_

Mystogan smirked. Ok, so whatever Natsu had planned was taking a large group of people from the house to the Precht Center. And they wanted to know if they needed to watch out for Erza along the way. He typed back a quick reply:

 _ **Don't think I'll make it. Hangin at Galunas 4 now. Let u know if anything changes.**_

"Ok, I've got one! First childhood memory. Go." Erza exclaimed suddenly. Mystogan put his phone away and gave the question some thought.

"Hmmm...Our old house in Magnolia, before me moved. It had this great mural my mom painted on the ceiling of a cloudy sky. First thing I remember is waking up to blue sky and clouds. And I'm gonna turn that one right back on you. First childhood memory."

"Eating strawberries in the garden with my mom. She had a huge patch that covered half the yard, and we used to spend hours out there making sure the bugs stayed away in the spring and then picking them in the summer. The first thing I remember is my mom feeding me a strawberry."

"Is that why you like-" Mystogan cut off as he remembered she wasn't the one to tell him she had a particular fondness for strawberry cake. He looked up around the bar, frantically trying to think of what to say that wouldn't blow his cover. Like an angel sent to save him, a tall, thin man with dark hair and a facial tattoo stepped through the door. He breathed a mental sigh of relief and grabbed Erza's arm subtly. "He's here," he muttered under his breath.

Erza' nonchalantly looked around the bar, focusing on the man as he turned away from them to head over to his usual corner table.

It was time to go fishing for perverts.

* * *

Gray had lost his shirt. Again.

Not surprising with how hot it was surrounded by all these drunk people. He could hardly keep the damn thing on. Particularly when he had had to turn down Cana's offer to be on her team. She really had a lot of persuasive power packed into that alcohol guzzling chassis. Hot damn. Which meant another trip back to his room to redress himself.

So he was just heading back to the party, tugging on another black button-down from his room, when the front door opened and a few more party guests stepped through in front of him. Normally this wouldn't have been anything to write home about, but the blonde, midriff bearing, stiletto wearing sex kitten who turned his way seconds later instantly stunned him. How the fuck hadn't he noticed her around before. She must be visiting or something. It took him a second to notice she had come in with people he knew.

"Hey, Gajeel! What up man? Haven't seen you around much after the other day!" Gray exclaimed in surprise. They clasped hands and man hugged in the time-honored traditional fashion, briefly and with only half of their bodies. "And you're that girl that hangs out with Jet and Droy right? I think they're around somewhere," he said, his eyes flickering briefly over the petite blue-haired chick who, admittedly, looked pretty damn good herself.

But he couldn't look long, because the next moment, Gajeel had whisked her off toward the bar with a gruffly stated, "Hands-off Ice Dick. Let's get you a drink." The last bit was clearly directed toward the blunette.

Ok. Gajeel's girl. Off limits. Noted. He didn't do attached women anyway.

He glanced over at the blonde, only about six or so inches shorter than him with her deadly-looking shoes on. She stared after where Levy and Gajeel had entered, her mouth slightly hanging open for a moment, but quickly turning downward into a bit of a frown. In a blink of her long black eyelashes, his ladykiller instincts took over and he offered her a hand.

"Well, shall we? You look like you could use some rescuing. And maybe a drink?" Gray raised one eyebrow and waited, hand outstretched.

The blonde gave him the once over and, seeming to like what she saw, gave him her hand, as though she had been escorted every day of her life, squaring her shoulders and putting on a bright smile. It looked a hell of a lot better on her than the frown had.

"Very well, valiant knight, lead the way. I'm in the mood to get drunk and have a little fun," she brought her shoulders back, pushing her already impressive cleavage to new heights and turning her body just slightly toward him. "You think you could help me out with that?"

Gray dragged his eyes away from what had to be the most beautiful sight he had seen all night (the closet had been pretty dark) and gave her a rakish grin. Playing along, he raised the back of her hand to his lips and planted a soft kiss there. Her eyes got just the slightest bit wider. So far so good. They exchanged grins with clear intentions and he started to think his night might not be that bad after all.

"Of course. Right this way, milady. I think Fairy Tail can accommodate you," he declared with a wink, pulling her gently by the hand through the door Gajeel and Levy had disappeared through.

Gray turned to see where he was going, leading her into the black-lit room and over to Elfman's bar currently tended by Mira, who had apparently stepped up to fill in for her brother. He saw the little blunette further down the bar, but no sign of Gajeel. Hmm, kind of a bitch move to stake a claim and then ditch her. Whatever, he had more than enough behind him to occupy his time. With that thought he turned back around to the blonde still holding his hand.

And his mouth went dry.

While her outfit had been flirty and enticing before, her pale skin almost glowing in the recessed lighting of the entry, it was drop dead sexy now. Because through what appeared to be several layers of some sort of sheer flowy skirt fabric, the faint glow of a white thong was clearly visible, and a ridge of white lace framing her cleavage pretty much screamed, 'Look at me! I'm boobs!' like a neon sign. The girl had a body, and she knew how to show it off.

And he wasn't the only one who had noticed. Every guy in the room had turned his head to check her out.

And she was still holding his hand. All he could think at that moment was thank the gods for his stripping habit, and how it had delivered him to the front door at just the right moment. He tugged at his shirt collar, resisting the urge to lose it, and seeing her watching him, staring at her, quickly turned back to the bar, desperately trying to get some saliva flowing again. He waved over Mira with a full out grin on his face.

"What'll it be m'lady?" he said, turning back to her again, slightly more composed. She grinned back and leaned over the bar, causing the rest of the room to crane their necks. There was a crash behind Gray as Wakaba, an middle-aged alum who had come back to see Gildarts with Macao, fell off his bar stool at the bar across the room. The pledge who had filled in behind the bar for Bacchus was frozen with his mouth open. The blonde glanced over her shoulder at the noise, seemingly oblivious to what was going on, shrugged and turned back to Mira.

"I'm not a big drinker. What's good? And will get me really drunk, really quickly?" Mira gave her a sweet smile before her eyes flickered over to Gray. He grinned back at her. Hell he didn't even care. She could set him up with this girl anytime she wanted. Mira's smile got bigger.

"Well then. For the girl out on the town for the night, I recommend a cosmopolitan or a Long Island iced-tea. Cosmo is sweeter, but the Long Island's got a bigger punch."

"Lay the Long Island on me. I've got things to do and the drunker I am, the better!" she exclaimed with enthusiasm.

Gray sent up another thank you to whatever deities were watching over him that night. First Cana, now the sex kitten? Being sober at a Fairy Tail party had never been this fun.

"Aren't you going to have anything?"

It took Gray a minute to realize she was talking to him.

"Nah, I'm the official designated driver of the night."

"Well, that just means you can't get drunk right? One drink with me won't hurt anything…" she said with a very fake pout. "Please? It's my first college party. I absolutely cannot drink alone."

Gray wavered. She did have a point. As long as he didn't get smashed, there was really no danger. And it would be several hours before anyone needed a ride home.

"Alright, fair enough. Mira, give me-"

"I know, anything with vodka," Mira laughed.

"Yeah, you know me almost too well," Gray joked with her, immediately returning his full attention back to his newest conquest. "So, what are these things you have to do? drunkenly?"

"Well, it's kind of a long and terribly weird story, but the short version is, there's this guy. Who I'm not really seeing, but we're, well, you could say fated to end up together, and he's freezing me out and hanging out with a bunch of girls tonight, who I overheard...on the uh...phone, setting him up with someone and rubbing their boobs all over him, and, well, I'm sick of waiting around to hear from him. I don't want to be that girl. So, I've decided, I'm going to get drunk," she said holding up her index finger. Gray took a moment to wonder what it sounded like to have boobs rubbed all over you. Squishy. It would probably sound squishy. "Find a really hot guy who's single," she continued, adding her middle finger to her index, with a quick once over of him and a quirk of her eyebrow. His smile got wider. He definitely liked where this was going. "And, at the very least, make out with him." Her ring finger joined the other two. "Because, to be perfectly honest, I'm sick of being the only one I know who has never been kissed, or touched, or fucked. And while I'm waiting around for prince charming to get his act together, I wouldn't mind a white knight to help me pass the time." Mira set her drink in front of her and she took a sip. She made the cutest surprised happy face at the flavor, and tipped her head back, downing half of it in one go.

Whoa. That was one of Mira's Long Islands too. He really hoped she was serious about the drunk part, because that was inevitable now. Finally pausing from her drink and taking a breath, she turned back to him.

"So, you think you can help me out with that?"

Gray grabbed his own drink off the bar and knocked it back. If it was his only drink of the night, he was gonna make it count. Then he smiled at her and offered his hand again.

"I think you came to the right guy. Finish your drink and then let's dance. If you want to be drunk, you're going to need to give that drink a little time to kick in." Her eyes lit up.

"Perfect! Let me just find Levy quick!"

Gray gestured to the blunette standing at the other end of the bar. He assumed she was Levy. With another smile, the blonde grabbed her drink, and his hand again and dragged him down to that end of the bar.

"Hey Levy, we're gonna go dance...Where's Gajeel?" she asked, looking around as though there was anywhere in the room for an almost seven foot man to hide. While she glanced around her and took another gulp of 'tea', Levy replied,

"He got pulled away to compete in some contest that's going on. I guess I can watch in the basement, but he's totally going to get kicked in the knees for abandoning me. And I guess Jet is doing it too."

The blonde, however, already beginning to feel the effects of her Long Island, got distracted and didn't hear the rest of her friend's sentence. She had gotten a glimpse of the ice luges.

"HOLY SHIT! THOSE ARE GORGEOUS!" And she was off, tugging Gray behind her. Gray gave Levy an apologetic look and waved goodbye. He was clearly just along for the ride.

They stood off to the side as someone poured a Moon Drip shot into one of the Fairy Tail symbols and her jaw dropped, seeing it come out the 'tail' and land in the waiting person's mouth. "Oh my GODS, I have to do that! They're so pretty!" Gray laughed at her excitement. What was it about alcohol that turned women back into little girls? Hot, tipsy little girls. It was adorable. Most of the time.

"Thanks. I worked my ass off on those," he baited, not surprised when she turned to stare at him. "Well," he continued, unable to take all the credit. "On three of them. The ice tiger and dragon are my cousin's work, but the other ones are mine."

"You MADE those. With your own two hands." She said it like a statement, but the disbelief was rampant. Then, like a switch was flipped, she was back to little girl mode. "You are just so talented! Can I do the middle one?! It looks like a castle!" She turned to look at him like she was asking his permission. He thought it over. While she totally should try Moon Drip while she was here, she also had just downed an entire one of Mira's Long Islands in the span of a few minutes. It would probably be wise to wait before hitting her with anything else right away. She wiggled a bit rubbing her lower back and shivering as though someone had touched her.

"Why don't you let that Long Island settle in and we'll come back after dancing for a bit and get some then. I know you want to be drunk and all, but you don't want to get alcohol poisoning."

"Alright! Sounds like a plan! Let's DANCE!" And with that spirited cry, fate's little gift to him put her empty glass on the bar and turned to follow him. He led her toward the common room where he could hear Bickslow's latest mix and let the rhythm take him. As the music slowed down for a moment into a sort of lingering trance moment, he leaned in close to her, a hand on her waist and the one holding her hand leading it to his neck, and he yelled out a question near her ear over the music. Stepping a little closer and leaning into him, she put her lips right up against his ear, and answered him.

"Lucy."

* * *

Natsu finally felt like luck was on his side. He was running around, collecting his chosen teammates and having no luck finding anyone worth having available to fill out his team, and then BAM! Just like that. In walked Gajeel with some chick. And all it had taken was telling him who their opponents were and he was fully on board. As much as Natsu couldn't stand Sting, Gajeel was even more annoyed by the emo kid. He had actually followed him around for an entire week once. To every class. Like his fucking shadow. Whatever. Point was, Gajeel was in. And perfect for this race. They had this in the bag.

So, grinning, Natsu joined the other racers at the starting bonfire and stripped off his shirt. He took a moment to check out Cana in her matching sequined set (had she just ASSUMED she would be in her underwear in a crowd at some point?), and the bitchy looking girl on Sting's team. They both looked pretty great naked, but he found himself comparing them to his mental image of the Weirdo. His vision suddenly flashed to the dark interior of a car, his blonde laid out stark naked on the seat in front of him. Then the flash was gone. He blinked his eyes and shook his head. What the fuck was that? Why now? He glanced back at Cana and Minny (or whatever her name was)...no comparison. And it was suddenly surprisingly easy for him to look away.

Gajeel, Elfman, Jet and Mest had followed suit stripping off their shirts. Most of the other teams were already down to boxers, boxer briefs, or the occasional brief, and waiting, so there were girls gathered around the massive fire pit, ogling the naked men, and currently focused on the new eye candy. Their pants were next, accompanied by screams of excitement from the pumped up crowd, and a general ripple of laughter when they saw Natsu's flaming silk boxers. He played to the crowd, flexing and twisting to show off his physique. God he loved a good party. Everyone was so much more fucking fun when they were drunk.

It was about this point that Romeo grabbed him and pulled him aside in a panic.

"Natsu! I can't run this! What the fuck? I know you told me it would be fine, but you planned this whole thing. I don't think I can do it justice!" Natsu just grinned at him. The younger frat-bro running a hand through his thick black hair. He reminded Natsu so much of himself when he was younger, just maybe a little less confidence. He could help with that.

"Romeo, dude, you've got this! Everything is set, there are guys waiting at every stop to explain the challenges and hand out the Roman Candles. It will be fine. Wait, you got the shopping carts and cones out of the basement and over to the English building right? I can't believe I almost forgot to set that up! And the extra Roman Candles for my team?"

"Yeah, no sweat. Ready and waiting with Reedus and the other guys. But I'm just not sure-" Natsu cut him off.

"ROMEO! You've. Got. This. No sweat right? Everything is all set up like a well-oiled machine! Plus, what's the worst that could happen? We burn down a few buildings, a couple people end up in the hospital?...in Fairy Tail history, that's nothing! So chill out! Everybody signed a waver!" Romeo turned white and took a shot someone conveniently handed him.

And with that inspirational speech, Natsu joined his team and started telling them what part each one would play. He had a distinct advantage, being the architect of the whole event, and he intended to use it.

Max tapped the mic and cleared his throat. He got the nod from Romeo to get started.

"Aaaaaaaaaaaalriiiiiiiight contestants in the Grand Moon Drip Games Three-Mile-Underwear-Only-Triathalon-Relay, here come the rules, so PAY ATTENTION! The first challenge of the event is a traditional Bonfire Jump. One team member will stay at Fairy Tail to take on this challenge while your four other members will be dispersed to the Precht Center, the English building, the Culinary Arts building, and the Library. There are guides at each of these stops waiting to inform you what you will be doing when your previous team member comes to tag you in, and to give you a shot of Moon Drip. Because, what fun would a Moon Drip Relay be without any Moon Drip?" Max paused to give the crowd time to cheer. Which they did. Raucously.

"You will all take a shot of Moon Drip now, and one before your challenge. The Bonfire Challengers will be given a helmet containing a GoPro so that their movements can be tracked by everyone back in our Gambling Den. When you have completed your challenge, you will set off a Roman Candle, be told your next destination, and you will run, walk, climb, dance or anything else you can think of, to get there in order to pass off your GoPro helmet and send your next teammate into their shot and challenge. When you have completed your challenge, return to Fairy Tail and await the your other teammates at the finish line. ALL TEAMMATES MUST BE PRESENT AT THE FINISH LINE TO COMPLETE THE RACE! You cannot win if you are missing anyone, so if you go to get a drink when you get back, or go down to the den to watch, you had better get your ass back up those stairs before they reach the finish line next to the pool."

"Contestants are required to wear no other clothing besides the undergarments they are currently wearing. If you put on clothes before the race is over, you're disqualified. If you manage to lose those garments, you sure as hell better find some new ones before your last member crosses the line, or you are disqualified. Finally, if you are caught by campus police, you will deny there is a race. You will deny there is a party, and you will deny that you are in your underwear. We recently discovered that the Garou Knights actually have an insanity clause in their handbooks, so give it everything you've got!" This comment was met with scattered laughter.

"Erza Scarlet has been lured off campus, but could return at any moment, so let's get this race started! Choose who is going where, and Bonfire Challengers, strap on your helmets!"

Natsu could feel the adrenaline already surging through his blood. He knew what was going to be where, but the guys at each post would be communicating by walkie to decide what order to send them in. Luckily, they had a pretty good plan in place. Jet took the helmet for their team, securing it and slipping it on, giving the rest of Team Natsu a big thumbs up. He took his place next to the other bonfire jumpers.

The rest of each team lined up at the huge white line spray painted on the grass and prepared to get to their chosen destinations as fast as possible. Sting found a place on one side of Natsu, giving him a sharky grin. This was so on. Cana finished talking over strategy with her teammates and came up on his other side slapping his silk-clad ass.

"Hey Fire-Crotch! You have got one gorgeous set of abs! And I have seen a LOT of abs in my day. I certainly wouldn't mind seeing the rest sometime. How about we make this more interesting?" she said coyly, her eyes raking over Natsu's chiseled physique.

"I don't have any money, if that's what you're thinking. What do you have in mind?" Natsu gave her a crooked grin. Sting frowned at being ignored and butted in,

"I'm in, what's the score?"

Natsu rolled his eyes and ignored him, but Cana gave him a once over too and her grin widened.

"Alright boys, how about this: the last one of our three teams that crosses the finish line has to do another lap around campus, in their birthday suit: the full monty, as naked as the day they were born. And the first one of our teams that crosses the finish line gets a meal on Gildarts before he leaves town in the morning, and the loser's drawers." Cana's grin settled into a smug smile. "Do we have a bet gentlemen?"

"You're on!" Natsu and Sting said at the same time, causing Sting to grin and Natsu to cringe. Locking eyes with each of his teammates, who had heard the whole exchange go down, Natsu got confident smirks back. They totally had this.

He didn't notice Cana and Sting sharing similar glances with their teams.

Walking with a tray down the line, one of the Body-shot Bitches (they had apparently named themselves and were talking about starting a union), gave each contestant a couple ounces of Moon Drip in a shot glass made of ice. Gray really had done a kick-ass job with the drink accessories. As one, they took their shots and tossed the ice glasses to melt into the yard.

Except for Cana's team.

Cana dropped her icy shot glass down Natsu's shorts while each of her teammates did the same thing to the nearest competitor. Luckily for Natsu, he barely noticed. He'd had worse before breakfast, on a daily basis, for years. Yuka, Jager, and Rogue were not as prepared.

And with the sound of a Screaming Lady Chaser being set off behind them, they were off!

* * *

Levy was bored. Gajeel was doing that stupid race with Jet, Lucy was dancing with a foreign hottie, who Gajeel obviously knew, which was good, even though Lucy could totally take care of herself, and Levy was, well, bored. So she did what any well-read, gutsy, slightly tipsy co-ed would do in a fraternity house.

She pranked them. She pranked them hard.

She started upstairs in the bedrooms with small stuff, like switching things out between rooms and bathrooms: pillows, alarm clocks, the contents of their bottom dresser drawer (which held a surprising amount of porn in most cases).

Levy took on her other secret alter-ego, The Devious Blue Devil, super villain and contriver of all things mischievous. She raided the kitchen and compiled a pranking kit that would do any twelve year old proud. Better armed, she went back upstairs and proceeded to butter the toilet seats, or cover them in cling wrap. The hallmark of a master pranker was variation after all. You had to keep them guessing. A couple of rooms she left untouched. You had to leave someone to take the blame.

Overall, she had done her prank heroes proud. She could practically feel the sly grins of George, Fred, Matilda and Tom as she trotted downstairs to work her magic the first floor bedrooms. So much mischief to make, so much time to get it right!

Just as she was coming down the stairs, borrowed duffle bag full of pranking equipment thrown over one bare shoulder, she heard a familiar voice call her name, in surprise. She looked up to see who it was, just three steps from the bottom and missed the step in her crazy tall shoes. Before she could stop herself, she started to tumble, flailing her arms in an attempt to catch herself on pretty much anything. Adrenaline spiked through her system, as it had when Gajeel had taken off on his stupid race, and she closed her eyes, bracing for impact. That never came. Instead, she was caught by a set of hands, inches from face planting into the carpet. Opening her eyes, she twisted to see her savior.

"Droy! I thought that was you!" And sure enough, there he was. She had given the house a once-over for him when the race started, but hadn't been able to track him down. Droy, for his part couldn't get out any words. He seemed to be shocked by her new look. So Levy, tried again. "Hey! You're just the person I was looking for! I'm on a mission…" she said, slowly getting her feet back under her.

That kicked Droy out of his daze, as he helped her back to a standing position, flinching at how tall she suddenly was.

"Heya Levy! What's the mission? Anything I can help with?" Levy contemplated letting him in on her fun. She had left Jet and Droy's room alone as one of the scape goat rooms...so that worked out conveniently. "Yeah! I'm pranking the house. You can carry the bag. Let's go!"

Droy, already aware of Levy's secret passion for comedic devilry, just grinned and followed her. And stifled a groan as he saw what her dress looked like from the back. That was a lot of bare skin. Fuck his life. This was going to be a lot harder than he thought.

* * *

Looking back it was obvious where they had fucked up.

It was pretty clear now. But at the time, it had seemed like the most logical plan. Well, logic _was_ less sound when drinking. They probably should have figured out the plan before they started drinking. Next time they would know. But next time wasn't going to help with now.

It had been a simple plan. Erza would be the bait, posing as Bora's latest victim. He would buy her a few drinks, and then take her back to his mysterious yacht, with Mystogan following behind. Then, when they knew where we was docked, they would pull a citizens arrest and call the police. Apparently Erza did it all the time. No, he hadn't asked. Just didn't seem as important then. Probably should have followed up on how that worked. Because Erza was not good for much logical thinking now. That was the bit where they had fucked up. They had known Bora's MO, they should have prepared for it somehow. At least Mystogan should have known better.

Because Erza Scarlet plus three fingers of Moon Drip was pretty much everyone's worst nightmare.

* * *

 **Ok guys, I've got to stop here for a breather. More to come in, you guessed it, Moon Drip Part 4, to be released on Thursday...unless I can manage to wrap this bitch up, in which case, it might be Friday. If it's Friday it will definitely be a super long chapter though, so bear with me! With these longer chapters, my editing is starting to lag and I hate turning out inferior product, so there may be a slight delay! But never fear, the biweekly updates shall continue! Because yeah, I am three chapters into this party and the race JUST started! Yeah, that happened!  
**

 **And here's some fun things you might not know (not many because...MOON DRIP!), but honestly should at this point. Aren't you all going out and robbing libraries to stay ahead of me? What?! That isn't happening? Your level of non-commitment is making me doubt your commitment commitment! (and if anyone picks up on what that quote is from, we'll probably be best friends forever...no cheating!)**

 **DANGER WILL ROBINSON, DANGER!-** Famous quote from the oh-so-campy _Lost in Space_

 **town elder in Seven Samurai** -groundbreaking Japanese film directed by Akira Kurosawa, three and a half hours of samurai randomness that inspired _The Magnificent Seven_ and like twelve remakes after that. Fun Fact: George Lucas stole the plot of Kurosawa's film _The Forbidden Kingdom_ for _Star Wars_ , and the makers of _A Fistful of Dollars_ (one of Clint Eastwood's most famous westerns) were sued for plagiarism for copying another one of his films, _Yojimbo_. Pretty much a crazy Japanese visionary that sculpted pop culture everywhere. Check him out.

 **Fort Knox** -gold depository of the United States located in Kentucky (I seriously have no global awareness, so I have no fucking clue if other countries teach their children useless things like where the US keeps it's extra gold...or aliens...depends how gullible you are)

 **an arrow with a message fired at her** -reference to _Akagami no Shuryukihime (Snow White with the Red Hair)_ because I fucking love that anime/manga, and I think Lucy would too

 **George, Fred, Matilda and Tom** -in order, Harry Potter by JK Rowling, Matilda by Roald Dahl, The Adventures of Tom Sawyer by Mark Twain


	14. Moon Drip Part Shi

**A quick note, in this mixed world, Roman Candle fireworks will shoot out one shot instead of the multiples that they actually do. I just couldn't have them standing around waiting for all the shots to go off, but needed a cheap, accessible flare. So at some point, in this crazy alternate universe, the inventor of Roman Candles decided to be less awesome and make them go off once. So just to stave off any comments on it, don't get all up on me about it, you firework enthusiasts! I know it's not accurate. Clearly.**

 **Now, buckle up. Shit gets real this chapter.**

* * *

The Bonfire Jump was a warzone. From the moment Macao had dropped his icy shot glass down Jura's briefs it had been a free for all brawl. Jura had thrown a right hook at Macao. Macao had ducked. Rufus had gotten Jura's fist to the face and fallen toward Jet, who jumped out of the way, running into Rocker. Rocker had grabbed and thrown Jet over the bonfire, hitting Macao,who had completed the jump in the confusion and had just lit his Roman Candle. The Roman Candle was knocked from his hand and went off across the yard, heading straight to the pool, where the primarily female water polo "riders" jumped off their male partners' shoulders to take cover under water. The sparking firework hit a patch of decorative grass near the fence and caught into a small fire. Freed strode calmly toward the growing fire with the Safety Bucket-a bright red bucket kept full of sand in the backyard at all times according to house rules, established after the Great Fairy Tail Fire of '98-and promptly smothered it. The rest of the challengers had already taken off for campus, trying to get to their set destinations before the bonfire challengers could finish competing. All but Bacchus, who was wading out of the pool where Minerva had shoved him in.

Meanwhile, Jet, realizing he had technically completed the challenge, grabbed a Roman Candle from Romeo and set it off into the sky, jumping the fence around the yard with ease. With a cocky grin, he took off running.

* * *

Fuck running.

The wind whipped past Cana's bare skin, chilling the sweat that was beginning to bud across her shoulders, down her cleavage, and under her breasts as they bounced insistently all over the fucking place. Honestly, she and the other bitch had it harder than any of these boys would ever know. Running with massive tits was the worst.

Though, there were a lot of loose boxers riding low on hips, and without the support of an athletic cup, the guys probably weren't doing much better. Plus, they had to watch her tits trying to kill her, which, as demonstrated by Baywatch, apparently had more sex appeal than what it felt like.

Cana grinned and increased her speed a bit.

In that case, thank the gods for decent lingerie and bring on the running!

She and her other busty competitor were running in a pack of men, heading en masse toward campus. A few had broken off to go a different way, but for the most part they all seemed to have the same idea, cover the few blocks to campus and then break up to head to their set destinations. She was headed to the culinary building, hoping it would be a drinking challenge. If it was, she had this in the bag. If not, she had a backup plan.

As the pack of mostly naked sprinters reached campus, they disjointedly broke into groups by necessity, heading toward their various endpoints. Cana grinned as she saw who her direct competition would be: Natsu, the basic bitch (her new nickname for her fellow female competitor...she seriously had the worst case of resting bitch face she had ever seen), much further behind them an average dude with unforgettable features, and a taller, heavier guy who had apparently stubbed his toe on a rock as they took off, swearing heavily (and creatively) about the stupid rock as tears streamed down his face. Admittedly, he was keeping up pretty well with his limping gallup.

Until they heard what their challenge was, she didn't know what kind of disadvantages she might have, so she kicked on another burst of speed, matched by Natsu immediately. It couldn't hurt to be there sooner and have time to get her bearings, so she grabbed her boobs to keep them from bouncing so damn much and ran full out. She and the pinkette bared their teeth at one another in identical manic grins as they left the pack behind, Basic Bitch hot on their heels.

* * *

Freed, standing next to the pile of sand and ashes with his empty bucket, watched as the remaining bonfire jumpers eventually completed the challenge, set off a Roman Candle, and taking off running. He whipped out his phone and keyed in the update to his earlier text to Erza Patrol.

 _ **change of plans. we're meeting at the fountain first. still think u won't make it?**_

The green-haired hipster hit send and took a sip of his craft beer, cringing at the abbreviation he had used. It was necessary to keep Erza off their tail, but got under his skin. He looked around the joyful chaos around him. Not a bad turnout overall, he thought, pulling his long silky hair into a ponytail out of the way. It was probably one of the best parties they had thrown yet.

He just wished Laxus were there. The stoic Russian exchange student had been banned from frat events. Which was understandable considering the incident that had led to his expulsion from the house. But Freed still missed his sarcastic jokes. Maybe he would text him later. His phone vibrated in his hand, showing a message from Mystogan. Freed's eyes went wide behind his thick framed rectangular glasses and he looked frantically around for Romeo. He needed a walkie talkie and he needed one now.

 _ **I could b joining u after all. With a friend. A DRUNK friend. Tell the guys.**_

Where the hell was Romeo?!

* * *

Gajeel and Orga were the first two to arrive at the English building from the back side, circling it in a comfortable jog side by side until they saw a couple of Fairy Tail members waiting next to a long strip of wide sidewalk, the area already getting dark, but lit ambiently by the spotlights surrounding the massive nearby fountain. Neither could believe they had beaten the rest, considering that, of the group competing, they were the only ones who were not at any point MU students. That was part of why they had chosen this destination. Everyone in Magnolia recognized the sight of the imposing original first building of the school, with it's impressive fountain and open lawn, and knew where to find it. The two burly men grinned at each other and slapped a high five. Coincidentally the two were sort of friends. After a rather awkward encounter while singing in the gym showers years ago, they had discovered their mutual love of karaoke and got together to hit the bars once a month.

As they got closer, Gajeel could see that there were two shopping carts and a selection of different sized orange construction cones parked next to the Fairy Tail reps. He grinned wolfishly. He couldn't wait. Salamander (Natsu's boxing name and what pretty much everyone at the gym called him, for reasons no one remembered) had clued him in on what to expect.

They would be shopping cart jousting. That was the other reason Natsu had suggested he come to this challenge. He had invented the sport with Natsu, Gray, and Erza when they were kids, in the grocery store parking lot near the gym. Of course those guys had immediately passed it on to Fairy Tail when they joined. A bunch of guys with free time and a parking lot? Perfect shopping cart jousting conditions.

A shout off to his left drew Gajeel's attention just as he and his fellow gym rat came to a halt by the fountain. Dashing across the long grassy space, the last three challengers-a guy with spiky orange hair, Gray's cousin, and a huge dude(a few meters behind them)-were making steady progress toward the fountain.

Leon and Loke arrived within seconds of each other, and the barreling giant, who had painted his face blue and white in remembrance of his fallen guild Quatro Cerberus (may it rest in peace) ran up shortly after, winded.

The whole group took a moment to breathe, and eye Gajeel's tattoos, something they had all noticed briefly before they took off running. It was kind of hard not to, as they covered a pretty huge majority of his legs and torso. Some were just simple black stripes, sporadically thrown in around the full colored and shaded illustrations that featured different mythical creatures; a centaur poised ready to fire an arrow on his calf and a basilisk wrapped around his other leg, glaring out from his thigh. Various smaller creatures were scattered amongst the forest that filled in around each creature. On his back a massive chimera did battle with an armored dragon, in the rain, while across his shoulders a black panther lounged above it all. The only tattoos on his arms were a double band of black stripes around his left wrist, and a single word below them, ENDURE.

"Sweet tats," the hulking blue-and-white faced ex-Quat Cerb offered, the others nodding in agreement. Gajeel grinned and took advantage of the moment.

"You guys ever feel like getting some ink, come by my shop, Black Steel, I'll give you a deal."

Loke stole Simon's pen, writing down the name of the tattoo parlour on his arm, and tucking it behind one ear out of habit. Leon looked intrigued, ready to ask a question, when a flash caught their attention.

The first Roman Candle lit up the sky, followed some time after by three more, in succession.

Then one of the guys standing by the shopping carts stepped and started talking with slightly crooked smile.

"Alright guys, I'm Simon, and I will be your cruise director for this portion of the journey. You guys are going to be Shopping Cart Jousting. Your jousting order will be determined by whose team members reach us first. Mickey and I will be pushing everyone's carts, to keep it fair. The first person to get three hits of the cone to their opponent or to knock him from the cart wins and will receive a head start to the next event. The loser will joust with the next arriving member's teammate, and so on, leaving for the next leg once you have won or there are no more opponents," explained Simon, pausing to gesture to the tray of shots his associate held. "Each of you will take your shot when your team member arrives. Which will be soon, because the bonfire jumpers are on their way." With those last words, he pointed behind them across the green where four vaguely human shapes had appeared, knocking into one another as they trampled the grass and tried to avoid the bigger holes with their bare feet.

"Man, they sure are slow, aren't they?" came a voice from behind them. Reaching up and thumping his helmet onto Gajeel's head before he could so much as turn around, Jet grinned and dashed towards the rest of the contestants across the green, heading back to Fairy Tail. They faltered when he passed through them, and he laughed at their gaping mouths.

Gajeel grinned and grabbed a shot from the tray. Throwing the grape flavored beverage back, he approached the line of cones, selecting the longest, heaviest one, and went to the blue-handled shopping cart, ready to face his opponent. The powerful liquor created a nice warmth in his belly. And then he waited for the specks in the distance to decide his challenger.

The sound of static on a walkie talkie crackled from Simon's belt, a harbinger of what was to come.

* * *

Levy waved Droy back into the first bedroom adjoined by the bathroom she was standing in, wearing one of Droy's extra shirts over her dress. It enveloped her down to her knees. Closing the door and tying the string she held to the door knob, she laced it carefully through the holes in an upside-down toiletries basket, tied the other end to the closed door of the room on the other side and laced it back through the basket to tie it off to the first door. Very carefully, wiggling her bare toes against the surprisingly clean tile floor, she balanced as many paper cups full of hair gel, shaving cream and pretty much any other messy substance she could find on her makeshift platform. Backing away slowly, her hands held up before her to shield her should the flimsy contraption collapse in her direction suddenly, she carefully went to the vent in the wall where she had removed the grate and crawled in.

Just as she entered the narrow shaft, she felt a burn in her throat and a fire in her belly. Gajeel had taken a shot of something. She took a moment to concentrate on it, rolling her tongue around her mouth, questing for flavor. For a moment, she thought she tasted grape, but then it was gone and she recalled where she was. Putting the grate back in place behind her and wiggling her way through the dusty tunnel to the other end, she was helped out into the hallway by Droy, who pushed the pressure fitted vent cover back into place while she stripped off the filthy shirt that had protected Levy's borrowed dress. She arranged her luxe garment to fall in all the right places again where it had been mussed, and fluffed her hair, just as Jet came up the stairs behind her, still only wearing his green plaid boxers.

"Levy?! When did you get here?" She turned and he noticed what she was wearing. He swallowed dryly. "Wow. That is some dress." He cleared his throat and, feeling something stirring where it absolutely could NOT right now, quickly tried to think of something else. Anything else.

"Thanks Jet! Is the race over now?! Is that why you're back?" Levy asked eagerly, thinking of her boyfriend.

"Nah, just my part. Now it's Natsu's friend's turn. He'll be doing the jousting section," Jet said, only half paying attention to what he was saying as he imagined Droy naked. Instantly his arousal disappeared. Worked every time.

"Which friend? Gajeel?!" she said, a little too zealously. Jet raised an eyebrow, careful to focus on only the blunette's face. She had a ringlet falling into her eyes. He longed to reach out and move it.

"Maybe? He's got a ton of black hair and an insane number of tattoos."

"Yeah, that's Gajeel! Come on! Let's go watch in the basement!" exclaimed Levy as she raced past the boys, scooping up her heels where she had taken them off and leaping down the stairs by twos and threes.

Jet took a moment to eye Droy, taking in the duffel bag full of prank stuff and his dusty extra t-shirt slung over one arm.

"What the fuck have you two been up to?" he asked suspiciously. Droy grinned.

"Wouldn't you like to know? Come on, we're losing her. She's going down into a basement full of drunk gamblers. Dressed like that." Droy immediately set off toward the staircase. Jet followed, quickly overtaking him.

"Shit, you're right!"

* * *

Erza was born to catch punks like this guy. He had forced himself on enough girls unable to stop him. Let him just try that shit with her.

Keeping her inner fury hidden behind a bright smile, she went to the bar, "accidentally" tripping over a few chairs on her way. Glancing around as though she was worried who had seen her being clumsy, she saw that the pervert's eyes were locked on her.

Target acquired.

She went up to the bar and waved to the bartender, who nodded in acknowledgement as he finished mixing a drink for someone at the other end of the bar. So she waited, leaning back against the bar. She had slid her pleated skirt a little lower on her hips and tied the bottom of her shirt at the waist before crossing the bar, exposing a healthy, glowing amount of skin.

Hook baited.

It only took a moment for the dark-haired pervert to vacate his corner and come to see if the bait was worth a nibble. He leaned next to her, casually raking his eyes over her body, lingering on her chest and hips.

Hooked. Disgusting pervert.

When Sideburns finally came to take her order, Bora cut her off before she could speak.

"I'd like to buy this beautiful lady a glass of Moon Drip if you please, bartender." Erza raised an eyebrow, feigning interest while she fantasized castrating him with one of her blades. So many knives to choose from...

Encouraged by the small smile on her face, he took a step closer, leaning towards her.

"You wouldn't happen to be a fan of yachts, now would you?" he said with a skeezy grin.

Wow, he really had no game whatsoever. This was beyond easy. Flipping her hair over her shoulder, she picked up the drink the bartender set in front of her and threw it down, enjoying the sweet grape flavor. She smiled at him and managed a quick "Let's go," before the wave of dizziness hit her. Wow, that stuff really packed a punch. Bora put his hand on the small of her back, rubbing the skin exposed there lightly. She resisted the urge to rip his arm off. Barely. By reminding herself why she had to stick it out.

If he actually had a yacht, who knew what could be on board? At the very least, probably evidence that he had assaulted other women, at the most, a sex trafficking ring. She wasn't ruling anything out. So, starting to feel a little bit unsteady with that grape thing on top of the two cosmopolitans she had imbibed while waiting, she let him guide her out of the bar, briefly locking eyes with Mystogan before allowing herself to be herded out.

He subtly got up and followed them, keeping a good amount of distance between himself and the redhead's escort. They had just made it to the marina, and were almost home free, when Bora took his own life into his hands and reached down to take a handful of Erza's ass. And then everything went sideways.

Literally. Because by now, the Moon Drip was coursing through her system and with a whole glass, even the stoic and controlled Erza Scarlet couldn't remain sober or upright. Hell, she was drunk off her ass. The ass that maggot had just gotten a handful of. For a moment, she froze, her mind flashing back to the fucker who had destroyed her childhood, his bony hands holding her down while he...WHICH WAS WHY NOBODY FUCKING TOUCHED HER! NEVER AGAIN!

And, whipping out a switchblade for each hand, one from her cleavage again and one from the holster strapped to her thigh, she lashed out.

And would have done some serious damage...if she could see straight.

Luckily for Bora, she was seeing three of him and couldn't figure out which one to aim at. Shifting one leg back to try and balance her drunken equilibrium, her foot slid too far, over the edge of the dock they stood on. Flailing her arms, Erza struggled not to fall into the water.

Not even noticing Bora run back past him, Mystogan raced toward the falling redhead.

As time seemed to slow in his own tipsy haze, he tried to think back to where it all went south.

With outstretched fingers, he made it barely in time to catch the flailing arm that still clutched a mother-of-pearl-handled blade. His other came up automatically to her bare waist, to get a better grip and keep her from falling. Little did he know, that was the absolute worst thing he could have done at that moment.

Her eyes went wild and she lashed out, catching him across the forearm with one sharp-edged weapon. Then she pushed away, holding her blades between them, frantically blinking and shaking her head as she stared at him. And then her eyes changed, immediately filling with tears, the knives dropping from her fingers to the wood of the dock. One rolled to a stop while the other stuck, blade barely sunk into the damp wood. A whimper left her mouth as she stared at him and uttered one heartbreaking word:

"Jellal?"

Looking back it was obvious where they had fucked up.

* * *

Between watching Gildarts squash the competition on behalf of Cana in the inflatable sumo ring and commentating on the relay progressing on the screens covering one wall of the massive room, Max was living the dream. A shot of Moon Drip in one hand, and a rum and Coke in the other, he was prepping for the start of the Jousting. He had made up a little drinking game for himself and the spectators. Every time someone fell on their face, they drank. Every time Gildarts said something about being proud of his daughter, they drank. And every time the challengers got into a fight with one another, you took a shot of Moon Drip. The Bonfire incident had almost wiped them out of the basement's supply of Moon Drip, resulting in an even higher average level of intoxication for everyone involved.

The Body-Shot Bitches were all set up on a table off to the side, doing what they did best, while the rows of couches, with spectators draped across them in every configuration, separated them from the makeshift sumo ring on the other side of the room. Along the longest wall of the room, stretching to cover almost the entire surface, was one of the most magnificent things Max had ever seen. More than a dozen flat screen TVs, of all sizes, were patchworked onto the wall, several hung, but a whole row sitting on furniture, surrounding the massive television screen that Max had grown accustomed to knowing as The Beast during his stay at the house. The Beast displayed the current rankings, with Team Natsu in first place, Team Fucking Awful in second, Team Wild Card in third, and then Teams Quatro Cerberus (may it rest in peace) and LOVE tied for last. To the right of the rankings, finding more than enough room on the massive display, were the betting odds. These flickered and changed as fast as Sho could update them, sitting at a computer next to the wall. Their stand in bookie, Wally, hamming up the part in a fedora and cheap suit, was surrounded by bet placers, feeding Sho what to enter in as he collected money, IOUs and various promises or agreements. They were trying to get most bets in writing. But spontaneous bets were also being declared to the room and accepted or rejected, then recorded by Sho. So far the bets were small and general. But, the night was still young.

To the right, the screens were each labeled with a team's name, a quick note in black marker on notebook paper taped to the corresponding screen. To the left of the electronic scoreboard, several screens showed images from different angles of the progress of the water polo, the current focus of most of the bets in the room, though as the images on the screens on the right of The Beast moved from Fairy Tail's backyard to glimpse the challengers at the fountain in front of the English building, the bets came flying in.

"Ten Jewels say Orga wins it!"

"A week's worth of dish duty says it's Semmes! He's huge!"

"I bet anyone two articles of clothing that Loke will pull this out."

"I'll take that bet!"

"Oh come on! Gajeel's got this in the bag! Team Natsu for the win! 20 JEWELS!"

"Who's Gajeel? The tattooed guy?"

"No way, Leon never loses! That guy's a machine!"

Max pondered his choices. So many factors to consider. Just as he was about to shout out his bet to Wally, he stumbled forward, almost knocked over by a blue-haired pixie of a girl shoving her way past him to the front of the crowd. Reconsidering his bet as he eyed her vibrant locks, he yelled out above the crowd,

"Team Natsu wins it all, or I dye my hair blue!"

The crowd cheered and quickly jumped on the bandwagon, shouting out crazy hair bets as fast as Sho could type them. Max grinned and took a sip of his mixed drink. He loved being a trendsetter. The blue-haired girl piped up, her voice twice her size as she intoned,

"I bet ONE HUNDRED JEWELS that Gajeel wipes the floor with him in ONE HIT!" The crowd cheered again, always enthused at a long shot bet. Levy just smiled smugly. Gajeel wouldn't let him land a hit. Not when she was on the line.

Focusing back on the screens Max grabbed up his mic again and began the play-by-play.

"Alright guys, betting for this run is closed! Gajeel vs. Orga in the jousting tourney is about to begin! The big one to watch for people? A hundred Jewels riding on just this first run! Will he make this lovely lady's dreams come true, destroying Orga in one hit, or will he drain her loyal pocketbook! To review, the winner is the first to land three hits or knock the other guy from the cart. This should be a good match! They are evenly weighted and pretty tough. Ok, here we go, first run and-HOLY SHIT GAJEEL LEVERED HIM RIGHT OUT OF THE CART! Orga didn't even land a hit! The blue-haired fairy princess wins the pot! At five to one odds, our big spender walks away with 500 BIG ONES!"

Levy whooped with the crowd and yelled into the air,

"That's MY BOYFRIEND BITCHES! GAJEEL FOR THE WIN!"

Jet and Droy, standing about ten feet behind her, froze before turning to each other with horrified looks. When the FUCK had that happened?!

* * *

Natsu felt weird.

The Moon Drip shot he had taken, plus the running, could explain it. The alcohol pulsed in his head, but on top of that he felt a thrumming in his bones; the feeling of a sub-woofer rewriting his body's vibrations.

Actually, that was exactly it. Concentrating on just that feeling, Natsu was able to hear loud repetitive music, with tons of bass. Fuck. His hazy brain took it's time, but it finally figured it out.

The Weirdo was at a club.

What the fuck did she think she was doing? He was about to get massively plastered, and her through him, and she had left the safety of her home?! He just hoped she wasn't alone. The thought of her drunk and alone in a club surrounded by horny bastards made his skin itch. Who knew what kind of perverts were out there waiting for her! Sometimes the things she said, made her seem so...fragile?...sheltered?...out of touch with the world? He guessed that last one was the closest. But they had agreed on a plan, hadn't they? What had happened to the plan?! He thought she was going to play it safe and stay in tonight!

Don't get him wrong, she was certainly entitled to a night out or whatever the fuck she wanted, but she seemed too practical to do it tonight, of all nights. Especially after his warning. They still had no idea how the bond would react to that much alcohol. He thought his warning had gotten through, but that whole conversation was fuzzy now...maybe something had changed…. What had changed?

Oh gods, he hoped she wasn't doing this because of something he had said. He had been drunk and in a hurry to warn her before he couldn't write coherently anymore, maybe something had come off the wrong way. He struggled to put the memory of their conversation together...he had apologized...for the fact that he might accidentally sleep with someone...which wasn't the best thing to say, but not exactly insulting...and then she had offered to...Fuck, had she really offered that?...which he had totally not taken her up on! So that couldn't be it...but then she had said something about going out and getting laid and about being a virgin and then...SHIT! He hadn't meant to imply that she had to stay a virgin! That she wasn't allowed to have sex if she wanted to. That wasn't what he had meant at all!

Did she really think that of him? That he thought she only deserved to sit at home while he had all the fun? He didn't want to think that he came off that way. But this whole thing was crazy! He had tried so hard to be considerate of her. He had stopped fighting. He had tried to keep her in the loop. Fuck he had even chosen the challenge that was least likely to get her hurt! Did she realize how important she was? Christ, was that really the problem? Had he goaded her into this without intending to? He had only meant he didn't want her to feel forced into a decision she didn't want because of him. But he had been so drunk. Maybe it hadn't come out right? He wished that he could remember for sure! This was all so godsdamned confusing. Maybe it would be easier to understand if he hadn't had so much fucking Moon Drip. His head was spinning.

Sitting on the ground outside the culinary building he rested his head on his knees. Why did she have to do this right now?! He didn't have his phone, he didn't have a pen, and he couldn't even leave to find one, when his challenge could be called-up at any moment. He tore out the grass around him in frustration. He had never wanted a writing utensil so much in his life.

A pair of long, feminine legs wandered into his field of vision and settled next to him. In the last few minutes of standing around in their underwear, he had discovered that Cana was pretty cool for a girl. Honestly, she seemed more like one of his wilder fraternity brothers. But he couldn't say he was surprised. With Gildarts for a father, how could she not be awesome? Not quite as awesome as Gildarts, but still, definitely worth bringing his A game to this competition. Sting's challenge had itched until he had to scratch it, knowing he could beat him. Cana's burned like a real challenge always did for him. That tiny spark of curiosity kindled into a drive to win; wondering if he would be enough to measure up.

"What are you fucking brooding about?" she queried off-hand, ruffling his hair a little. Natsu lifted his head, the alcohol making itself known as his equilibrium swam for a second, to see her digging a tiny bottle of booze out of her cleavage. Apparently Moon Drip wasn't enough. Distracted for a second by the sequins winking at him from her bra, Natsu shook his head and focused on her face while she downed the bottle. What the FUCK? How was she not dead yet?

"Shit, maybe you should slow down. You've still got another shot of Moon Drip coming and the gods only know how long a run left," he commented. She just turned to him and smirked before replying.

"That's really cute of you to worry, but thank the gods we've got another shot of that stuff coming! At least it gets me tipsy. Nothing else I've tried even comes close. I'm actually more of a beer girl when I'm at home, but they just won't make beer in these handy little bottles!" she said, tossing the bottle towards the trashcan sitting outside the building. "No matter how many times I've written to ask them." She almost made the shot, the wee plastic replica of an Everclear bottle bouncing off the rim and into the grass. Minerva kicked Todd, the completely forgettable bystander who had somehow gotten roped into this game by Leon, and he hurried to pick it up and throw it away. Natsu frowned in their direction; Minerva seemed to have a particularly nasty mean streak.

"Didn't figure you for the eyeliner type," Cana continued, staring at his face. "Not that it's a bad look. I would definitely use brown in the future though, it would go better with your hair…"

Natsu just stared back at her for a second trying to decipher the code she was speaking in. Why would he be wearing eyeliner? He brought a finger up and swiped at the corner of his eye, looking at his finger in shock when it came away with a smear of black.

What the-HOLY FUCKING MARS BARS! OF COURSE! That confirmed it: he knew the Weirdo was mad at him now. They had agreed on the no makeup thing ages ago. This was her own personal passive aggressive brand of revenge. Shit. He really fucking needed to find a mother FUCKING PEN.

"Thanks for the advice. You don't happen to have a pen in that magical cleavage of yours do you?" Natsu was getting desperate. His drunk mind convincing him that if he looked at the area around him enough, a writing utensil would eventually appear. His head swiveled in all directions, accomplishing nothing but making him really dizzy.

"Nope. I've got my phone, a couple more bottles of Everclear, and a condom though. The condom's all yours. You just say the word!" she responded with a leer and a chuckle. He laughed with her, partly in amusement over her suggestion, but mostly at the ridiculousness of his own situation.

He was getting propositioned by a hot girl, that he thankfully didn't seem to want to fuck, even drunk, while the one he wanted to be with at that exact moment more than anything went out to a party-while he inadvertently got her smashed-just to spite him for shit, that sort of wasn't even his fault.

Oh and she still wouldn't tell him her name. Or anything about her except that they were linked. And apparently horny for each other.

Wait, could this about the boobs in his face earlier? Maybe she had felt it...and jumped to conclusions. But then it's not like it hurt or anything, she would really only have a reason to be mad if she had a thing for him. His stomach did a happy little flip at the possibility. He was confused for a millisecond, out of habit. His guffawing got more manic until he was laying on his side laughing uncontrollably.

Why bother to lie to himself anymore, he drunkenly reasoned through the giggles, wrapping his arms around his quivering abdomen as the cool blades of grass below his bare skin tickled at him. He fucking liked her. A lot. Like more than anyone he'd ever met. Like maybe even loved her. And he hadn't even met her yet! Could anything be more ridiculous? Seriously? Why couldn't he just fall in love with one of the hundreds of girls at the party tonight? Surely one of them was cool and pretty enough to work out.

His laughter got worse, turning into a sort of wheezing, breathless, almost painful spasm. Because that is exactly what he had thought freshman year. And then he had spent months fucking around and getting nowhere and finding few who interested him enough to even ask out, and less that wanted to stick around when they got to know him. So he just screwed them and moved on. That's all they ever seemed to want anyway. To fuck the Salamander of Fairy Tail.

But she was different. AND she had never made fun of his hair. NOT ONCE. She was just so….nice! Like all the time. Even now, when she was clearly pissed at him, her revenge was to put on eyeliner and go dancing. Seriously. That was it. That was as far as her mind went into the ocean that was cruelty. She couldn't even stick in a toe, she just sort of waved her foot over the water and thought about what it would be like to step in. That's how fucking _good_ she was. Because, there were so many things she could have done to him through their skin to hurt or embarrass him.

And he would deserve it, looking at it from her point of view. She had probably been texting all night, without him answering, which she wouldn't know was his fault, eventually sending that message on his arm, which he hadn't even noticed had disappeared, and then she had probably felt some girl's boobs in her face, and maybe heard Mira, and jumped to the conclusion that he was doing that shit on purpose. And then the Fireball and the shots...fuck.

He was damn lucky she was so damn nice. Because if he had felt the things she did, with the way he felt about her...he'd be tearing shit apart. There had to be a way to reach her. SOMEHOW. He thought about scratching up his own arm...but that would have hurt her.

"DOES ANYBODY HAVE A FUCKING PEN?!"

* * *

Elfman caught the GoPro Helmet that Gajeel threw to him, turning past the antsy other relay team members still waiting for their pass-off, and grabbed a shot from the tray. Taking the shot and securing the helmet he stood at the top of the stairs and prepared himself.

In Fairy Tail basement, everyone leaned forward to see what was going on through his GoPro. None of the other contestants had gotten one from their teammate yet, so they were limited on views. And then just as they saw the rep light something and plug his ears, the Team Awful camera came up over the stairs and caught a perfect view of the challenge. Standing braced in front of the library, an ear-piercing high pitched squeal went off as a bottle rocket went straight into Elfman's chest, the only movement from him, turning his head at the last minute, assumedly to protect his face should it go awry. That turned his head in the direction of Orga, which gave the audience a great view of Loke racing up and overtaking Orga. Elfman quickly grabbed his Roman Candle and shot it off, running, onto the next challenge, but fanning his slightly burned bare chest as he went. The other cameras showed dozens of faces appearing in the library windows checking out what the sound could be.

And suddenly Levy was bursting through the crowd again, Gajeel in tow this time, to get a better look at a particular window on the third floor. Waving her tiny fist drunkenly at the screen she yelled,

"Get the FUCK out of my secret Bookworm base you kopile of a footlicking hosenscheisser! Before I go Count of Monte Cristo on your ILLITERATE ASS and FUCKING DESTROY YOU!"

The room went silent for a moment, the bewildered spectators stunned by the feral beast that had appeared in their midst where a sweet drunk girl had just stood.

Gajeel, standing behind her in his underwear just laughed and picked her up from behind around the waist, pulling her away from the sight of her inner sanctum being violated while she continued to yell obscenities. Then, in the uneasy quiet, some shouted out a new bet,

"20 Jewels say the blue-haired chick cusses someone else out!"

"I'll take that bet!"

And a whole selection of Levy-related bets rang out as she was dragged away, her kicking and screaming devolving into giggles at being pressed up against her boyfriend's naked chest.

* * *

Freed keyed in an update to Mystogan, letting him know the relayers would be heading to the Precht next. Then he got back to what he was doing before Romeo had updated him on their progress. Which was picking out a new leather jacket online for Laxus with Mira. He really needed a new one and his birthday was coming up so they were going in on his gift together.

"Oooooooo! What about one with a fur collar?! He would look so...Russian in it!" Mira squealed a she popped the tops on a dozen bottled beers for the group of frat boys in front of her.

"Mira, he _is_ Russian..he looks Russian in anything you put him in," Freed replied, but he modified his search bar and pulled up fur-collared coats. Mira had worked her way through business school as a model. He wasn't about to doubt her fashion sense.

* * *

Gildarts bounced on his toes on the makeshift mattress-sumo-ring and took another Moon Drip shot from one of the girls constantly keeping his whistle well wetted. He winked at her and shot it back. Then with a yell of allegiance, he dominated his new opponent.

"For my baby girl! Who is gonna kick all your asses!"

Behind him everyone in the room reached for their glasses and took a drink.

* * *

Mystogan had eventually convinced Drunk Erza (who honestly seemed like a whole different entity at this point) that he was neither Jellal nor a threat. But the minute he had gotten through to her, explaining quickly while he fashioned a makeshift bandage for his arm, she had remembered Bora and taken off running. It was all he could do to keep up. What, did she train for marathons in her free time?! Mystogan was a pretty fit guy, but even he couldn't run full out for thirty straight minutes without slowing down for a breather.

Erza was a machine. She'd barely broken a sweat. Yes, she tended to run diagonally, instead of straight, because well, Moon Drip...but still, impressive. He was beginning to think the whole thing was futile though. Bora could have gone anywhere, and he had a head start. Until, by some miracle, or amazing Drunk Erza tracking system he couldn't decipher, they caught up to him. And that was the moment when he realized where they were. And where they were heading. Straight into the heart of the campus, the Precht Fitness Center.

Exactly where Freed's last text had told him NOT to be.

In his adrenaline-induced panic he managed to catch up to the enraged redhead, who had, thankfully, put away her knives to run. Even drunk, she had some semblance of responsibility. He tried to persuade her to stop.

"Erza! We need to quit. We're...chasing him….onto campus!" Mystogan was really winded now, breathing heavily in between words.

"All the more reason to RUN! We'll cut him off at the pass, give him nowhere to run!"

He had no fucking clue what the fuck she was talking about. There was absolutely nothing resembling a "pass" anywhere near them.

"Uh...ok...but what if he...assaults someone….along the way? Shouldn't...we...try to lead him...off campus?" That's it, he was starting a jogging regimen tomorrow. This was pathetic!

"The only way to get him is to give chase! TALLY HO! They can't take our FREEDOM!"

And with that confusing declaration, she went into a full out sprint, leaving Mystogan just far enough behind to see a group of mostly naked males making their way around the side of the Precht, coming towards them. Fuck.

Just. Fuck.

He slowed down and stopped bent over, hands on his knees to catch his breath as he watched the weirdest, most serendipitous encounter he had ever seen occur. They could block each movement out like a play and rehearse it for weeks and it could not possibly go down the exact same perfectly-timed way that it did.

Bora had turned around at Drunk Erza's war cry, ready to head around the corner of the building, just missing the appearance of the penultimate relay challenge crowd, apparently trying to race wearing ice skates.

Without ice.

If it weren't for the horror flooding his system at seeing them cutting off Drunk Erza from her prey, Mystogan would have been rolling around on the ground laughing. Because they looked RIDICULOUS. Tripping and grabbing at each other to gain an advantage as all of them made steady but slow progress trying to balance and failing miserably on the blades of the skates. Natsu was a demon.

Bora barrelled through them, falling and knocking them all over like perfect dominoes. And then as one, the group saw Drunk Erza bearing down on them, hands curled into fists and skirt fluttering in the wind she created with her acceleration. They promptly struggled up, turned around and, even more desperately unbalanced, tried to get out of her way.

Having propelled himself through the group and to the ground on their other side, Bora shot only one bewildered look at the naked concrete skaters, before taking off again, leaving the group of horrified undressed men between Drunk Erza and her primary target. During a pervert hunt.

This could not end well. Mystogan closed his eyes for a second, his heart going out to his brothers, before his brain just couldn't take it anymore and he had to look.

The men had done the only thing they could, drop to the ground and cover their heads, praying to every god they could that Drunk Erza wouldn't see them.

And like a miracle, she didn't.

Right up until she tripped over one of them, sprawling face first into the grass, narrowly avoiding a face full of nose-damaging concrete. Everyone seemed to freeze for a moment, except Bora, who kept hightailing it into the distance.

Then Drunk Erza raised herself up, glared at whichever poor guy had tripped her (Mystogan was just too far away to recognize their faces) and proceeded to beat the shit out of him. Which was the point at which Mystogan decided he had rested long enough.

Breaking his own personal record, he made it to the group in seconds flat, just in time to see a cowering Toby get kicked in the gut. The other boys had crawled away, abandoning the poor sod to his fate. Mystogan sighed in relief that it wasn't a member of Fairy Tail and went into damage control mode. He tried to get her attention on him.

"Erza! We're losing him, let's go!"

"Right after I'm done destroying these perverts Jellal! Come, help me!"

Mystogan paled. He'd lost her again. To whatever fucked up memories her drunk mind was revisiting.

Shit.

The guys cowering on the ground looked at him in confusion. Tobe was starting to look more black and blue than anything else, he didn't have time for subtle. So he did something he wasn't proud of. Remembering her story, about how Jellal had conceived the plan that got them out, he came up with a strategy on-the-fly and did his best to embody his brother's voice and presence. Cold, ruthless, commanding. It had been a couple years since he had seen him, but years of brotherhood (and random instances of pretending to be each other) had branded it into his soul.

"Erza."

As soon as her name left his lips Erza froze. It was eerie, watching the effect his brother had on her. He took a breath and continued. "Leave them. They aren't worth our time. We have to escape, before they come looking for us."

Erza turned then, complete trust in her eyes as she gazed at Mystogan. It broke his heart to see the innocent childlike gleam they took on; the overwhelming adoration spilling from her eyes for his good-for-nothing twin. His eyes ached with unshed tears for her, but he kept his stance, his tone. He had to get her away from the rest of the guys before she hurt anyone else.

"Come on." And he walked a few feet away, passing around the fallen competitors and striding forward confidently until he came to the corner of the building farthest from the fallen men. He didn't have to look, he could feel Erza behind him, mirroring his every step. He paused when he hit the corner and expected her to stop with him, but instead got hugged from behind by the vise-gripping arms of Erza Scarlet. He heard her murmuring into his ear, over and over, like a mantra.

"I'm sorry I thought you were dead. I'm sorry I thought you were dead. I'm sorry I thought…"

Until he couldn't take it anymore. Tears streamed silently from his eyes as he supported her weight pressing against him and cursed his brother for what he had done to her. For what that man who kidnapped her had done to her.

Now that they were well away from Toby, he carefully pried off her arms from around his chest, got his own tears under control, and turned to face her, hugging her back and saying in a slightly husky, but clear, concerned voice; his own voice,

"Erza, it's not Jellal, it's Mystogan. I'm so sorry I had to do that, but you were hurting innocent people." He paused, expecting some kind of response. "Erza? We need to go. Remember? We were chasing Bora, remember? The pervert? We were catching up. He's getting away now, Erza. We need to go."

Erza remained where she was though, clutching his shoulders and whispering into his chest. He rubbed her back and played his last card.

"Erza, if we catch Bora, we can go get some cake..."

Which, for some reason no explanation could ever satisfactorily define, actually worked. She lifted her head, her eyes bright with tears and just looked at him, as though he were the Great White Hope.

"Really? We can get cake?"

Well shit, he should have trusted what Natsu and Gray had told him sooner. He cleared his throat and struggled to keep himself from laughing. Not at her. Just, at the whole situation. How had they even gotten to this point?! It was supposed to be a simple task! Just keep her away from Fairy Tail.

How the fuck had it turned into this?! He sighed.

"Yeah, we can definitely get cake," he finally said fondly, removing his arms from around her.

Which proved to be a mistake as she smiled brilliantly, and said, "OK! Then let's go!" and immediately headed in the direction he could still see Bora's almost invisible form heading.

Which just happened to be straight for Fairy Tail.

Fuck. Just.

FUCK!

* * *

Lucy was lost in the moment. The constant rhythm of music that was simultaneously perfect, yet too loud, seemed to slow down time; each measure divided into so many beats, which were divided again and again, infinitely, until time ceased to exist. With bass pounding and a pulsing synthesizer cutting through the air, speech wasn't practical. So they spoke to each other with their bodies instead.

It was a slow introduction, their skin barely making contact; his hand at her waist, their fingers woven together. Their cheeks brushed, as she pulled back from telling him her name: that which couldn't be conveyed through touch. All languages had their limitations.

It was an unbelievably intimate moment. Though surrounded by dozens of sweaty bodies, gyrating and swaying, it felt like no one could see them. It was like they were locked in their own magic lamp, an invisible carafe just big enough for the two of them, that functioned only to keep the world from barging in. Her eyes feasted on him, shuttered and heavy, catching on the stark lines of his bare abdomen and staying, following the sharp curving lines of shadow that descended out of view beneath his belt.

A hazy, lingering logic in the back of her mind questioned when he had unbuttoned his shirt, but the part in charge at the moment shut out logic, addicted to the sensual experience.

After several moments, or a million years, of moving to the beat of the music-one hand trapped with his up by his neck, one across her own collarbone with the music-she could no longer resist touching him. Her free hand drifted over to him, as she stepped forward, his arm reacting by holding her more firmly, closer. She ghosted her fingertips over the bare skin of his neck, diving under the collar of his shirt to find the end of the dip above his collarbone.

As though responding to her unspoken question, he released her other hand to rest on his neck and put both his hands on the bare skin at her waist, circling his thumbs over her ribs firmly. He kept his eyes locked on hers, gauging her reaction and tugged minutely, until their hips were only a hair's width apart. She could feel the silk chiffon of her skirt catching on the zipper of his jeans before wisping past, over and over again as then moved to the rhythm.

The intensity of his cool gaze made her breathless. Internal shivers radiated from his fingers, stirring a frisson under her skin and a restlessness in her blood. Dropping her gaze to his open collar and below, she explored his chest and abdominal muscles, running the pads of her fingertips over every groove and ridge.

His skin was soft, but hard, like silk covering molded glass, or the water melting off of ice as she touched it with the heat of her fingers. It felt...inspiring. She viewed his body like art, interpreting what it told her and feeling the reactions it invoked in her. Her avaricious fingers wanted more. They slipped around to his back as she lightly brushed the front, soft planes of her body with his own hard ones, running her fingertip down the ridge of muscle paralleling his spine and wishing she could see it.

And then she could, his shirt drifting to the floor, and his hands returning to her waist, barely chilled from their absence. His back was as impressive as his front, the muscles rippling as their hips and shoulders continued to sway, making unseen waves of heat in the air around them.

One hand, fingers splayed, slid up her back and under her top, settling into place under the strap of her bra, holding her securely against his chest, like she was precious. Like something treasured.

His cheek whispered over her ear as he inclined his head and brushed his lips against the skin of her shoulder. It almost wasn't even a kiss...more like a caress of his mouth, and it elicited a sigh from her, that he couldn't hear but bathed his neck in her breath. Slower than a single flake of snow drifting down to the earth, giving her time to pull away, or stop him, his lips made their way to her neck, which arched invitingly, clearing the way and sending her sleek hair swinging.

He hesitated, admiring the glow of her skin in the low lighting, and she gathered her courage. Leaning forward, as though the inch of space between her lips and his neck was an uncharted no-man's land, she gently kissed his neck, the tip of her tongue slipping out to taste him.

His arm muscles contracted, pressing her closer, as his other hand cupped her neck. And smooth as glass, he guided their lips together.

Then the real dance began; lips hungry, fingers clutching, and tongues flitting across the chasm they created. His breath burned down her throat, and her entire world, now inside their invisible sanctuary, spun on its axis, a wave of headiness and pleasure weakening her knees. It made her feel that if either of them let go for even a moment they would float away into the void. As though he felt that unreasonable fear as well, he pulled her body closer, melding her further into the hard surfaces of his own, even as he broke the kiss and pulled his head back. Her eyes, fluttered open, unfocused and unseeing, until his enchanting mercurial eyes came back into focus. With the slightest of smiles, he tilted his head, asking in their new shared language if they should go and find somewhere more private, one hand still securely holding their hips together as she swiveled her hips against his growing hardness, instinctively seeking release. His other hand slid down her spine and around her waist, finding her hand and gently playing with her fingers. She leaned forward to kiss him again, matching the movement with her restless hips and was delighted by the sensation of his captured groan as he tightened his arm and pushed his hips back into hers. She broke the kiss this time, smiling and settling her hand more firmly in his own. Without a word, he stepped away and she followed him, as he led her away from the music.

* * *

Natsu sat stunned, unable to believe what he was feeling. She had actually done it. She had gone out and found someone to make out with. Even though he hadn't touched another girl. Even though he hadn't even gotten that drunk.

And above everything, that someone hadn't been him.

He felt sick to his stomach, feeling the mystery man's hands on her skin. Her bare skin. He could feel it all. And he could feel her arousal, her excitement. It wasn't even just to spite him then, she was actually enjoying it. She was doing it for her.

And it was killing him. Which wasn't fair to her. She wasn't his...anything. He didn't even really know her. Just an image in his head and some handwriting on his arm. She didn't owe him anything.

But gods how it hurt. It felt like his heart was being squeezed and he was deprived of air. Like a tiny black hole had opened up in his stomach and was slowly draining his energy and life, accompanied by a dull ache. And he just sat there and endured it. As the minutes ticked by, and the world turned, he sat against a building and felt sick at her joy. And then, when they stopped and he thought the torture would end, he felt her excitement peak and the press of her lips on his again before he took her hand in his. And the heartbreak hit him, triggering a flashback like nothing he'd seen up til now.

"Why the hell are you doing this? Can't you see it's killing me?!" she screamed at him, clutching the straw bonnet she carried in one hand and the fabric of her long dress in another. Her hair was up, curled where it framed her face, and she was so...beautiful. Natsu could feel the same gut-clenching heartbreak ripping through him in this time, too. And it made him say things he didn't want to, that he knew were only going to hurt her more.

"If it's killing you, then don't do it! You don't have to marry him! You're the one choosing this! You're the one walking away from everything we have and could have!" Natsu felt tears streaming down his face as he balled up his fists. "If I'm not enough for you, then I can't live. I can't breathe. I can't eat. If I'm not enough for your to turn your back on your parents and run away with, then I won't. I won't breathe. I won't eat. I won't live."

The look of horror that took over her features was wrong. She should never have such a look. She should never have to feel anything so ugly. She was his evening star. Always guiding him to be better, with her joy and her light.

But her light had been snuffed out. And he couldn't stand by and watch, unable to do anything. He couldn't look at her anymore, tears streaming down his face, and he turned away.

"NO! Don't...don't you dare! Please! Anything. Anything but that!" she cried out desperately, finally closing the distance between them and flinging herself at his back. He could feel her own tears soaking through his coat. Simple and made of wool. Worlds away from the fine Indian muslin she wore and the silk ribbons that adorned her bonnet, now cast uncaringly into the dirt.

She had once chided him for that. For dropping her hat in the dirt. Dressed him down properly for the better part of an hour, in that highborn tone of hers.

And there it sat, the merest of winds pulling at the long ribbons and eventually whisking it away.

Like she would soon be whisked away.

And then she changed everything.

"You're right. I can't live that way either. The thought of not seeing you everyday makes it hard to find air." She sniffled on her tears and tightened her arms around him. At her words he started to feel a glimmer of hope and then she said it. "Let's run away then. Even if we end up begging on the streets. At least we'll be begging together."

And the tiny seed of hope blossomed into sudden joy. He spun around, grabbing her by the arms and looking her in the eyes, still afraid to believe she might have not said what he had just heard. But her watery smile matched his own, even if her eyes spelled defeat more than triumph. And he couldn't help himself any longer. He leaned forward and firmly kissed her. It was decidedly improper, and would destroy her reputation if anyone saw, but he didn't care. He loved her, body and soul, and if she was going to stay with him, he could do anything. He could conquer the world. He would find a way to support them. Even if it killed him.

Natsu took a sharp breath in as he came out of the flashback, disoriented for a second by the sudden change in his surroundings. Then he remembered. He could feel whoever it was she was with stroking her skin again, an arm around her waist. They weren't kissing again though. Not yet.

And Natsu felt a burst of some new but familiar emotion flood through him. It wasn't too late, there was always time. All he had to do was get to his phone. Or better yet, a pen. Just as he was about to say to hell with it all and start running back for the house, the ice skate racing challengers crowned the hill.

And he remembered the bet. He didn't have time for this shit.

But he would not submit his team to a naked lap around campus if he could help it. He had goaded them all into helping with this whole mess to begin with. So, he ran towards them, taking the helmet from Mest and running back to where the other challengers were. He took his shot and dug into the massive one pound spicy taco sitting on the table with his name on it. Cana was the first of his challengers to realize they could follow his example and she ran to meet Hibiki; Minerva, Todd and Warcry right behind her. But they didn't stand a chance. Natsu had not only designed this challenge, but hand-picked it for himself. While the other four did their best catching up (surprisingly Todd of all people finishing only minutes behind him) he was done, and setting off a Roman Candle while they were still stuffing their faces.

He took off running, giving it everything he had. Funneling every ounce of hurt, pain, and hope into his muscles and willing them to run. His mind tunneling into a single dizzying thought. He had to tell her. She had to know.

And as he drunkenly ran, confident in his assured win, a campus police golf cart pulled alongside him, driven by Macao and carrying Team Wild Card back to Fairy Tail. His mouth fell open and he almost missed his chance as they passed him, barely making it as he leapt onto the back of the vehicle. Just as he settled onto the back he felt lips against hers again, urgent, needy and returned in fervor. Frantic, he scanned the vehicle for something to write with, seeing a pen stuck behind Loke's ear.

He dove for Loke, almost knocking the whole cart over, but managing to grab the pen. Forgetting that he was wearing a helmet with a camera pointed right in front of him, he wrote as quickly as he could.

 **STOP! PLEASE! I THINK I'M IN LOVE WITH YOU!**

And stared down at his arm, waiting for something to happen.

* * *

Lucy and Gray were in a dark alcove of the basement, not really listening to the commotion about the relay, but hearing it all the same. She had almost gotten bowled over by the new wave of liquor her soulmate imbibed, spiraling her even further into her drunken state and increasing her arousal. And she attacked her hot, shirtless Adonis, kissing him and then running, teasingly, away down the stairs that appeared in front of her. He had followed, of course, and they had ended up in a corner of the huge dark room, ignoring the relay, but feeding off the energy of the mass of people betting and yelling at the screens. Until Lucy heard something that made her pause. The guy who had been making announcements and commentary into a mic all night said with surprise,

"What the hell is Natsu doing?! He just attacked Loke for a pen! And he's writing on his arm?! What the fuck is going on in his head, is he trying to communicate with someone through his camera?" They both heard it. Breaking their kiss to turn their heads and look a the screens across the room, they tried to decipher what was going on. On one TV, labeled Team Wild Card, a head of pink hair was bowed, concentrating as the man it belonged to began to write something frantically. On another, with the label Team Natsu, they could see the pen going to his arm, close up in the action.

And just as he put pen to skin, she felt the familiar tingle on her arm. And words appeared on her arm, the same time he wrote them on the screen.

 **STOP! PLEASE! I THINK I'M IN LOVE WITH YOU!**

Lucy's head spun. She let out a cry and pushed away from the guy she had been cuddling a moment ago. He stumbled back, confused as he turned back to her, still trying to sort out what was happening on the screen. And then he saw it too. The message scrawled across her arm in the unmistakable handwriting of his best friend. His fucking brother. And it came out before he knew what he was saying, staring straight into her beautiful wide brown eyes. The eyes he had been swimming in for the last two hours.

"Fuck. You're her. You're Natsu's Weirdo."

And the minute the word Weirdo hit her ears she knew who he was, all the little clues and puzzle pieces falling into place. His shirt disappearing, him knowing about her, about the nickname ND called her. No, not ND.

Not anymore.

Natsu.

"You saw it here first people. Natsu Dragneel is confessing his love, on camera to someone watching! That has to be what's happening right now! Who is it?!" Max was scanning the crowd trying to discern who had captured the erstwhile heart of Fairy Tail's infamous bachelor. He didn't think to look at the couple with their heads together in the corner, staring at her arm.

Natsu Dragneel.

And he loved her.

And she had been making out with his roommate. His best friend. Who hugged him to make her feel better. Who had a stripping habit, and slept with a new woman every night. She lifted her head to look at him again, really just asking to have something to say. She knew in her bones she was right.

"You're Gray aren't you?"

"Yeah."

"Well...fuck."

They turned back to the screen just as Natsu looked up, Cana's camera helmet getting a clear shot of his determined face as he yelled something and pointed behind her. Team Wild Card's helmet swiveled off of him to show Fairy Tail itself, growing by the second as they approached. Lucy's soulmate was minutes away from walking through that door and discovering her.

With his roommate. In a room full of people that had seen them making out with each other for the last twenty minutes.

And, as they two watched the house they currently sat in getting closer and closer, all they could both think was

Fuck. What do we do now?

* * *

 **And there you have it. I have decided my new personal writing motto is Nalu forever, but Graylu for now. Sue me, I love a good love triangle...or several...or a square sometimes...I might just be evil. *shrugs* Whatever. You know you love it.**

 **Ok, if you are at all confused about the ice skate racing and what I am picturing, think Blades of Glory chase scene. If you haven't seen that movie, then Youtube it. Pretty much the funniest chase scene I have ever fucking seen. Ever.**

 **And since Levy is always good for at least a few references…**

 **you kopile of a footlicking hosenscheisser! Before I go Count of Monte Cristo on your ILLITERATE ASS:**

 **kopile-** Croatian for bastard

 **footlicking-** one of my favorite Shakespearan insult components

 **hosenscheisser-** a slang term in German for a coward, literally "trouser-shitter" I discovered a glorious list of fantastic German insults so these will definitely be popping up in Levy's vocab more often

 **Count of Monte Cristo-** referring to how the title character of Alexander Dumas' _Count of Monte Cristo_ returns twisted, Machiavellian-level revenge on his enemies and their families.

 **the Great White Hope-** referring to a super racist time in boxing (yeah, I don't support it in any way, but the boxing reference was too good to pass up, so please forgive me) 1910 to 1911, where the first black heavyweight champion was dominating, the racist white population at the time were looking for what they called the "great white hope": a white boxer who would finally defeat him. I debated using this, but it is history, and happened, and is a phrase used in everyday language that a lot of people don't know the origin of. So, your lesson for this chapter: boxing was racist in the 1910s...like pretty much everything else. Let's get better than that, shall we?

AUTHOR EDIT: I changed a couple of things since I posted this chapter. I think there was one part in particular that a review was right about. I didn't work on it hard enough, and it felt preachy to me too. So, I rewrote it. Because this is a work in progress that gets written in 6 hour spurts, edited in hours instead of days, and posted immediately, because I like feedback while I'm writing, when I can really understand how everything is coming across and make sure my point is as I see it. And if I don't honestly assess what the reviews are saying and decide if I agree or not, then how am I respecting the time you guys put in to read and review and chat back with me when I message you? So, changes were made. I like it better I think.

And now, I know I'm being too sensitive, but I'm sorry that there are some people that aren't enjoying the story. I just want everyone to feel the joy I have when writing it. I'm sarcastic and I joke a lot, but I write with my whole heart. And we all know how shitty it is to have your heart rejected. Hell, we read and write about it on a regular basis. So, I guess, just...I'm sorry there are people out there not feeling the joy. It's inevitable, I know, there will always be someone who doesn't agree. I guess deep down, my idealistic streak is too prevalent. I just want everybody to get along. But I guess you can't always get what you want. And with that I'm wiping my hands of it. Because the .3% of negative opinions shouldn't get more attention than the 99.7% positive ones. You guys seriously rock my world. So thanks. And I will show my appreciation the best way I can. By getting to work on the next chapter. And making it better. Because you guys deserve the best. Or at least, my best.


	15. Is the Moon Out Tonight?

**Hello again! Hopefully the notification system is back up again so you all got emailed, unlike last week. AND a special thank you to all the readers and reviewers for the last chapter in particular! I was overwhelmed by the number of people who found the new chapter anyway and dropped me a review. You guys totally make my day on a regular basis.**

 **Sadly, I will probably be dialing back to shorter chapters again for the next few weeks, as I will be attending Phoenix ComiCon over Memorial Day Weekend, and only one of my cosplays is fully complete at the moment. (Levy of course.) However, I shall endeavor to remain constant in my biweekly updates, though they may only be a measly 5,000 words again for a while. Now, with no further ado...**

* * *

Gajeel laughed as he hiked the small profanity-yelling woman in his arms up a little higher and proceeded through the house searching for somewhere quiet. It seemed like the house was reproducing or something; everywhere he turned there were more people. Seeing a set of deserted stairs, he headed toward them. There had to be deserted room up there somewhere. To talk and...other stuff. He grinned. With the Moon Drip flowing through his system and Levy flailing against his bare chest, she was practically all he could think about.

When he got to a door, he reached for the first door he saw, but Levy stopped displaying her impressive swear word collection and piped up before he could turn the handle.

"NO! Not that one! The doorknob is rigged to come off in your hand! Try the one three doors down. Or you could just put me down. This isn't the most comfortable of positions you know," she pouted cutely.

Gajeel gave her a strange look and laughed, moving down the hall, and turning the handle of the door she had suggested.

"What'd you do Shrimp? Booby trap the whole fucking house? I wasn't gone _that_ long. And how would you suggest I carry you? Thrown over my shoulder so the whole house can see your panties?" He ducked his head cautiously in the door and carried her inside while she retorted,

"Not the whole fucking house! Just the bedrooms. And, well, the hot tub is rigged with a timer to release a bottle of dawn into the jets in like, fifteen minutes, but that's hardly the whole house. This is one of the safe rooms. Had to leave someone untouched so they'd get the blame. And you could always cradle me in your arms like princess. Or a bride." She tilted her head and closed her eyes, not really paying attention to what she was saying as a wave of dizziness flowed over her. "Or a princess bride!"

Levy's speech dissolved into giggles as he set her down. She immediately went straight over to one of the desks in the room, pulling a huge bag of beef jerky from the bottom drawer. He quirked an eyebrow at her, but she just smiled and offered him some, hopping up to sit on the cleaner desk of the two in the room. Gajeel decided on the wheelie chair in front of it. He was kind of hoping she'd leap into his lap again if he gave her the chance. That had been one hell of a way to start things last time, and he was still conveniently unclothed. He wheeled his chair up to the desk so that her feet rested on his legs again. The desk was shorter than the counter in his studio, so her knees pulled up a bit, giving him the view of a whole lotta leg. He rested his hands on her ankles drawing little circles in her skin with his thumbs. She gave him a sidelong glance as she bit of a piece of jerky. He opened his mouth to ask about her outburst over the library on the screen in the basement, but she popped the remaining bit of jerky into his mouth with a laugh. Never one to turn down a meal, he chewed the jerky, sliding his hands up to her calves.

Levy's eyes sparkled with merriment and interest as she leaned forward, intending to grab a kiss, when suddenly they hear voices in the hall.

"Levy? It's Jet! Where are you?!"

"Levy! You ok? You seem like you've had too much to-wait, didn't they come up here?" Gajeel froze and hoped the boys wouldn't think to check all the rooms. This was just starting to get interesting.

"She must have gone into our room."

Levy cringed and grinned at the same time. Gajeel just looked at her, putting together who she would be laying the pranking blame on. A crooked grin crept over his mouth. God her mind was hot. Only fucking Levy. She just smiled back, giggling again as the door swung open to reveal her two best guy friends.

"Hey guys! Old buddies, old paaaaaaals!" Levy sang at them from the desk. "We just needed to get away from the crowd for a bit." She ignored Gajeel as he muttered under his breath about removing her against her will, keeping his hands where they were. Had to let these cockblockers know where they stood. "Hope you don't mind! The other rooms are a bit...fragile at the moment."

She traded a grin with Droy, who still hadn't understood the significance of Jet and Droy's room being untouched. But it was Droy. He would probably choose to believe she had been too nice to prank them instead of ever figuring out the truth. He and Jet refused to entertain the notion that Levy had a manipulative bone in her body. And that was their biggest and most annoying mistake. Levy had no desire to be the sweet little kid her stature suggested. She was a motherfucking badass, DAMNIT! Her eyes narrowed as she looked over at Jet, still in his underwear like Gajeel. Without intending to, she raked her eyes over Jet's body, they jumped back to Gajeel's, do the same thing. And they stayed there. It was no fucking comparison. Jet was fit...but Gajeel's insanely muscular frame, plus his numerous tattoos that she hadn't yet had a chance to fully explore, had her mouth watering.

"Oh, uh, yeah...it's no problem. Who is this, by the way?" Droy said, clearly not ok with Gajeel being in their room alone with Levy. His eyes lingered on Gajeel's hands, his lips forming a smile that didn't reach his eyes.

"Oh, right! You guys, this is Gajeel! He's my boyfriend. Gajeel, these are Jet and Droy, my minions," Levy said, breaking out into giggles again. "That is, my two best guy friends that I told you about! We've been hanging out since high school." Jet and Droy instantly lost their smiles and looked at each other. Silence hung thickly in the air for a moment until Jet spoke up.

"Huh, well isn't that nice. Why didn't you tell us you were going out with someone Levy? I thought you were 'focusing on your studies' this first semester…" Too late, Levy remembered she had told her friends that she didn't want to date the first semester of college. She had been holding off their advances with excuses for so long, it was hard to remember them all. They just couldn't take a hint! And she liked hanging out with them. If either of them asked her out and she had to turn him down, it would ruin things. She thought as quickly as the Moon Drip Gajeel had imbibed earlier would let her (based on her lesser tolerance, they had decided he would just drink for them. So far it was working out great!), and settled on the perfect story.

The truth!

"Oh man guys, you will never guess what happened! It turns out Gajeel and I are soulmates and have been reincarnated from a past life and marked with the ability to share our skin and send messages to each other, and share most of our senses because I accidentally opened my second origin, and we get crazy flashbacks that show us our past lives and we're totally gonna fall in love and be together forever! Isn't that great?!" Levy grinned at them and popped more of Droy's beef jerky into her mouth while Gajeel stared stunned at her candid response. Jet and Droy looked at her for two beats of time in silence and turned to Gajeel as one, like it was rehearsed.

"What the hell did you give her?"

"Do you really think we're going to just let you do whatever you want to her while she's clearly out of her mind?"

The boys continued to attack Gajeel for several minutes, who had crossed his arms and leaned back in the desk chair, swiveling away from Levy and no longer smiling, but letting them vent their frustrations. These were Levy's friends. He didn't need to get involved. She was more than capable of handling it.

Levy grumbled under her breath and, unnoticed by her mistaken 'protectors', grabbed a pen off Droy's desk. She hopped down to look in the mirror on their door. Very carefully, utilizing the skill to read and write backwards she had perfected (when she found out Da Vinci wrote all of his notes that way), she used the mirror to write on her forehead. Gajeel felt the tingle of the pen and broke out into a grin again.

"We have been here, protecting her from people like y-HOLY SHIT HOW ARE YOU DOING THAT?!" Jet broke off, stepping back automatically from the words appearing on Gajeel's forehead. A shiver ran through Jet's body that had nothing to do with the fact he was still standing around in his boxers.

 _SHUT THE FUCK UP!_

Levy finally spoke up again as she walked over to Gajeel and plunked herself in his lap. His arms automatically came up, and his bare legs tensed to keep her tipsy self from tipping off him onto the floor. He tried to ignore the feeling of her plump ass wiggling to get comfortable on his crotch. They had to rid of Tweedle Dee and Dum before anything like that was going to happen. He grabbed her hips and held them still, his gaze dropping down to the curly blue locks below his chin.

"Just like I said boys." She pointed theatrically at her own forehead where, when seen so close together, the writing was obviously identical.

"Wait, so you were actually telling the truth? How the fuck did this happen?! What kind of karmic bullshit is this?!"

"No, we're hallucinating right? Shit like this doesn't exist!"

Levy shook her head disappointedly at them and quoted,

"'There are more things in heaven and Earth, Horatio, than are dreamt of in your philosophy.'"

That shut up Droy. One did not argue with The Bard when Levy was involved. If she quoted him, she was done arguing and ready to make her point. But Jet was too worked up to take that into consideration. Plus, he had Moon Drip influencing his decisions. And his words.

"So what, that's it? He somehow finds a way to transfer pen between you and then suddenly he gets to be with you? Just like that?! So all of our years of waiting for you to choose one of us and keeping other guys away from you were just basically paving the way for this Neanderthal? Are you fucking serious?!" Jet exclaimed, indignant fury evident in his tense stance. Droy's eyes went wide and he backed up a step, distancing himself from Jet as Levy's eyes narrowed. That comment was enough to distract her into a moment of faux sobriety.

"I'm sorry, what the FUCK did you just say?!" she replied. Jet glared back at her, riding out the courage the Moon Drip had gifted him.

"You fucking heard me. I'm pissed! Droy and I have spent the better part of four years keeping guys from asking you out while waiting for you to choose one of us. Because YOU were never ready to date anyone. Always saying you were too busy, or focused, or weren't interested. So we fucking waited. And now this guy knows you for less than a minute and you're ready to ride off into the sunset with him?! Yeah, I'm fucking calling BULLSHIT!" Levy sprung up from Gajeel's lap, seconds before he came to a stand behind her, glowering from his superior height behind her. He made an imposing figure, but Jet's entire attention was focused on Levy, red in the face with livid rage. Droy cowered on his behalf. Jet was in for it now.

And then the badass blunette let loose.

"So I did hear you right then. You and Droy, who claimed to be my best friends, who were supposed to care if I was happy or not, spent our entire high school career making sure I felt unappreciated and undesired by never letting anyone ask me out? Because you COULDN'T FUCKING TAKE A HINT?! Comment osez-vous présumer de me cagez, vous le porc! Je ne peux pas croire que vous pourriez le faire et encore m'appeler votre ami. Vous êtes aussi intelligent que le fond de vos pieds et j'ai honte de vous!"

"Uh, Levy, English." Droy reminded her timidly, used to her tendency to slip out of the common tongue when upset. But it backfired on him, as she turned her attention to him.

"I said, 'how dare you presume to cage me, you pig! I can't believe you could do that and still call me your friend. You are as smart as the bottom of your feet and I am ashamed of you!' BOTH OF YOU! How can you seriously be that stupid?! You really think I didn't know you guys liked me? SERIOUSLY?! A girl can only turn down so many bouquets of flowers, 'just because' before the guys giving them to her should be able to figure it the fuck out! But apparently I've got to spell this out for you. I DON'T FUCKING FEEL that way about you. You guys are like brothers to me! I was trying to let you down easy without having to ruin our godsdamned friendships. I thought I would just start dating someone else, and then you would have to figure it out. FINALLY. But then it never happened. Because you mentally deficient flachwissen decided to meddle with my love life. I don't know why I ever valued your friendships so highly in the first place. You clearly didn't respect me the same way. So I say again, HOW DARE YOU!" Droy opened his mouth to respond, but Levy cut him off, pointing to the words on her forehead.

"No, Droy, you're gonna read "the signs"for once in your godsdamned life and SHUT THE FUCK UP. I'm talking right now. You don't get to play the wounded party. You don't get to have a say. You fucked up." Her eyes shifted back to Jet. "Both of you. You fucked me over and isolated me from the world like you had some kind of right to decide what MY LIFE should be. That is not the action of a brother. Hell, that's not even the action of a friend. So, that's it. We're done. You fuckers made your bed. Now you can fucking lie in it. 'What's done is done.'"

And with that parting line, Levy grabbed Gajeel by the hand and marched out of the room, slamming the door and taking the beef jerky with her.

She needed a drink and then they were going home. She was so over this party.

* * *

In the backyard, near the pool, Romeo and a group of guys were just rolling out a ridiculously long tarp when squeals of surprise erupted from the hot tub, drawing their attention. Within minutes, the bubbles had all but buried the occupants, forcing them out of the heated pool and overflowing it with soapy bubbles until it was completely buried. Romeo tilted his head and stared at it as he shook up a four pack of shaving cream. Did he forget they planned to bubble-bath the hot tub again?

Lucy stood frozen, her eyes locked on the camera showing what her soulmate was seeing as he got closer and closer. She wasn't ready for this. She wasn't ready to meet the man she would be tied to for the rest of her life.

She wanted to dance with random strangers, and make out with people, and have a one-night stand, just to see what it was like. She wanted to get swept away in a grand adventure wherever her feet took her after college, traveling the world; not tied down to making plans with another person in mind. And yeah, she wanted to fall in love someday, but she had her whole life for that. She just...wasn't ready.

Beside her, Gray put out a hand, almost grabbing her arm, but reluctant to touch her again, knowing that Natsu would know. It felt wrong. Like he was screwing around with his bro's girl. Gray didn't do that. He liked to have a good time, but he didn't mess with women that were taken. He had lines he wouldn't cross. Which he had actually just, unknowingly, crossed.

Because now he knew for sure how Natsu felt about her. He had suspected the pinkette had been getting attached to his Weirdo. No. _Lucy. She_ had a name and face for him now. The pert, confident, endlessly patient blonde he had been observing secondhand and admiring for weeks finally had a name. It suited her.

For a second, he could almost feel her in his arms again, tracing his skin with her warmth pressed against him. And the memory haunted him. It had felt amazing at the time, but now the guilt gnawed at his stomach. He hadn't done it on purpose, but he had betrayed his oldest friend. His brother. And it didn't sit well with him. Natsu would be furious, but he had to tell him. Right away. There was no other course of action to take. If he told him now, maybe he would just punch him in the jaw and that would be the end of it. No further drama.

"We have to go tell him," he said decidedly, grabbing her hand to take her upstairs. She stumbled after him up the stairs startled out of her own horrified thoughts.

"What?" she said, confused what was going on. They reached the top of the stairs and entered the bar room, almost empty with the crowd of people gathering downstairs and outside to see the relay racers finish.

"We have to tell him that you're here. And what happened. He needs to know."

It took another second for her hazy mind to process what he was saying, immediately pulling her hand away and standing her ground.

"Like hell we do!" she said, the very idea of meeting her supposed soulmate causing her to recoil. She backed up until the ice luges were right behind her, someone just starting to pour a shot into the castle as a brunette in expensive shoes prepared to take the shot.

"What the fuck?! Of course we have to! He's talked about nothing but you for weeks. And he's my best fucking friend! We can't hide this. That would be so fucked up!" he regretted raising his voice at her as she fell back another step.

Lucy was in panic mode, her body demanding she fight or flee. She didn't know what to do. She just knew, she couldn't meet him, not like this. She just...couldn't deal. But Gray didn't look like he was backing down on this. She might actually have to do it. And she needed to be drunker, much much drunker. She didn't want to be in her right mind right now. So, she muttered out a rough apology, and pushed the shot taker out of the way, barely making it to catch the glowing liquid as it spilled out of the dripping ice sculpture, finally beginning to melt, after sitting out for so many hours. The glowing liquid tasted better than she expected, like really cold, flat, alcoholic grape soda. The brunette pulled herself from the floor behind her where she had sprawled at Lucy's shove and got to her feet.

"You wanna go bitch?! That was my fucking shot. Learn to wait your turn!" she yelled at Lucy's back. Lucy stood in a smooth motion, her long blonde ponytail swinging back and forth across her back in front of the slighted brunette. Wiping her lips with the back of her hand to catch the stray drizzle of Moon Drip running down her chin, Lucy started to take off one long gold earring. _A Heartfilia never gives their enemy an advantage._ With the words of her father echoing in her head and the Moon Drip still burning coldly in her throat, she turned, starting to go for the other earring before getting a good look at her opponent. The earring she held slipped from her hand, landing on the floor between the two girls, locked together by their stunned gazes.

"Lucky Lucy fucking HEARTFILIA?! What the HELL are YOU doing here?" gasped Michelle Lobster, heiress to a fortune in hotels and former rival/frenemy of one Miss "Lucky" Lucy Heartfilia, heir to her family's worst enemy. "I thought you were off skiing in Switzerland or somewhere!"

Lucy had wondered what her father had told people about where she went. He wouldn't have bothered to file a police report. She had left a note. He knew she hadn't been kidnapped. And the police would have just gotten in the way of the mercenaries he called private security anyway.

But this was a problem. A big one.

She had dropped her guard. She had been naive to forget that she could never outrun her past. There it stood. Staring her in the face.

And she panicked. Her adrenaline spiked and her vision focused, giving her a rare moment of wild clarity, like a predator focused on its kill.

So when Michelle reached out her hand to grab her by the shoulder, Lucy reacted without thinking. She clasped her fingers into a fist and punched Michelle across the jaw. The blow knocked the girl off her stilettos, sending her plummeting to the hard linoleum.

Staring down at the gasping brunette as she grasped her cheek in pain, Lucy registered what she had done, and fled. She rushed from the room, running toward the door she came in, desperately looking around for Gajeel and Levy as she went. But her progress was halted when Gray grabbed her wrist, slipping into a fighter's stance when she turned and threw out another fist. He caught it and his eyes widened in surprise at the force behind it. He cleared his throat and let go of both of her arms when it was clear she wasn't going to try to hit him again.

"Where are you going?! Why won't you come with me to talk to Natsu?! He's been dying to meet you, and you're right here! What's the fucking problem?" he argued softly, running a hand through his hair and fiddling with his belt in frustration.

"I can't meet him now! I'm not ready to meet my fucking soulmate! And I can't stay here to explain this to you," Lucy whined in a panic, a terror he didn't understand blossoming in her eyes as she continued. "That girl is going to ruin everything. And I have to get as far away from here as possible before she does. If she tells my father where I am, my life is over. It won't matter what could have happened with Natsu, okay? You have to promise not to tell him I was here! Or my name! Please Gray! HE CAN'T KNOW! You don't know what my father would DO to him. He'll be better off all around if he never finds out who I am." She stood clutching his shoulders, desperately pleading with her eyes. "Promise me you will not tell him who I am! Promise me!"

Gray stared into her eyes, seeing the woman whose strength he had come to respect staring back at him with the eyes of a frightened child. Not the naive innocence he had witnessed in her earlier, but a child who had seen too much; left with no more options, and no adult to come and make it all right. He knew that look. He knew it far too well.

"Ok. I promise won't tell him who you are."

Gray regretted the words almost the instant they left his mouth. She nodded, relieved but not any less scared. What the fuck was going on with her that she was this terrified? But before he could ask she was off again.

Lucy strode out toward the front doors, relieved to see Levy storming down the stairs to her left, dragging a now fully clothed Gajeel, who was swiping at his forehead with a wash cloth, behind her. A crowd of girls in bikini tops, carrying trays dotted anemically with melting ice shot glasses full of Moon Drip, came in through the front door as the two girls came together in the foyer.

"We have to go Levy, there's a girl here who knows me. From _before._ Sorry to cut your night short," Lucy said in a hurry, taking in Levy's furrowed brow.

"Fine by me, just give me a sec." Levy grabbed the two remaining shots off one girl's tray as she walked past, shooting one and handing the other to Gajeel. He obediently took the shot and they tossed the two "glasses" over their shoulders, shattering the ice in all directions on the tile entry. The Body Shot Bitches, jumped away from the flying ice, flipping them off as they proceeded into the doorway Gray and Lucy had just come from. Levy closed her eyes for a second and then opened them with renewed vigor. "Ok, ready to go. Jet and Droy betrayed me and are therefore now dead to me. Let's go home, sort out your options, and burn everything I have of theirs."

And with that final parting thought, the girls linked arms and went out the door, one with panicked, shuffling steps, and one striding purposefully with anger. Gajeel went to follow only to be held back by Gray.

"Dude, how do you know that girl? Lucy I mean," he said in a low voice. Gajeel shrugged.

"Levy's friend. Why?"

"She's-" Gray cut himself off before he told Gajeel about the bond Natsu and Lucy shared. He had promised Natsu he wouldn't tell anyone about the bond. Fuck. It was a night to regret making promises. He sighed in frustration. "She's just...really important to Natsu. But he doesn't know it's her. Could you tell me where to find her, if I asked?" Gajeel looked at Gray suspiciously, thinking about the few things Levy had told him about Lucy's past.

"I could tell you. If she wanted me to," he grunted. Gray nodded and took a step back.

"Ok. Then, see you around. I hope it never comes to that." Gajeel nodded back and started to leave. He didn't want the two drunk girls walking anywhere by themselves. He had stood around too long already. If it had been anyone but Gray, or Lily, he would have just ignored them and followed them out. Then Gray remembered something.

"Wait! Don't you have to be at the finish line for Natsu's team to win?!"

"FUCK. I totally forgot. Whatever dude. It's just a relay. Get naked, tell them I had an emergency, and be my stand-in. No one will care." Shrugging his wide shoulders, he hurried after the girls.

And Gray stood in the entry alone, trying to figure out what the hell he could tell Natsu. Then something occurred to him. Something she had said didn't quite jive with what he knew.

"Her soulmate?" he whispered to himself. That was definitely new information. He would have to find a way to talk to her again. Somehow.

Then he sighed and unzipped his jeans, heading for the backyard. At least he'd finally get to take off his pants. He'd been itching to all night anyway.

* * *

Natsu was getting antsy. They were so close, but getting to the house was taking forever! And she hadn't responded yet. Thankfully, the guy and Weirdo had stopped kissing, and he couldn't feel his hands on her anymore. Which was a good sign in his book. But she still hadn't responded. Maybe she was freaked out by his confession. He honestly didn't care if that was it. He just couldn't stand the idea of her…with _him_. His mind flashed back to how it had felt, having unseen hands touching him. And an obvious thought occurred to him. He could feel what she felt. And smell or hear things sometimes. If he really tried, maybe he could control it enough to see what was happening...or at least get an idea of what was going on with her. He closed his eyes and really _tried,_ for the first time, to hear what she heard. Feel what she felt.

He thought he felt a hand around her wrist, and a familiar voice he couldn't quite place saying "we have to," and then her adrenaline spiked. Panic? Fear maybe? And the next thing he knew he was feeling a burn down his throat and the flavor of grape lingering on his tongue.

His eyes snapped open and he blinked in shock. She just drank Moon Drip! That was-

His thought was cut off by the sensation that he was punching someone. Hard. Had the guy tried something? Forced her to drink?! Had she had to fight back!? He struggled to close his eyes and breathe calmly enough to concentrate on her again.

He felt a hand grab her wrist again and she struck out another time, but her opponent caught her fist this time. Her heart was beating faster than he could keep track of, just a constant pounding in his blood. The guy didn't seem like he was going to leave her alone.

And she had been drinking Moon Drip. Which could mean only one thing.

She was in his house. Right now.

He wasn't sure how, or why, but she had to be. And probability said he knew whatever fucker was trying to force himself on her now. If he focused hard enough, maybe he could hear who it was or-

The golf cart screeched to a halt and the occupants jumped from the vehicle running for the fence, Natsu just a beat behind them, jumping it and running to the finish line. The ice skate racers were standing with the rest of the earlier teammates, bent over and breathing hard, barely making it before Natsu and Cana's crew made it to the house. Cana put on an extra burst of speed, passing the finish line right before Natsu, securing first place for herself and her team. The crowd went crazy, Gildarts hugging his daughter and weeping in drunken pride.

"My little girl is the best!" he yelled out, squeezing the air out of her.

In the basement, the crowd yelled "DRINK" as one and gulped their beverages.

Cana looked back at Natsu, to gloat over her win, but he was already heading into the house. Past the massive shaving cream covered slip-and-slide the other relay racers were using to celebrate the race's completion, past the massive soap bubble mountain slowly eating the yard that stood where the hot tub used to be, and past his best friend, racing out the doors to find him, who did a double take and turned around to follow him instead.

Natsu was heading to the bar room, tunnel vision forcing him to concentrate on a single goal. Someone had to see her. She had to have been in there at some point. He had to find her before it was too late.

Gray trailed behind him in his navy boxer briefs, ignoring the catcalls of the various girls he passed, not daring to yell Natsu's name and catch his attention. He still had no idea what to say if he couldn't say what he wanted. Fucking promises. How did he get himself caught up in this drama in the first place?!

Natsu walked straight into the dining-room-turned-bar and surveyed the space, blinking through the wave of drunken heat that came over him. She was way more affected by Moon Drip than he was. He almost fell over when he spun too fast, catching himself on the bar. Mira put down the drink she had just finished mixing and came to check on him. Natsu was like a brother...and she hadn't seen him this drunk in a very long time.

"Natsu, are you ok?" she asked. He struggled to focus on her face. He had to ask her something. Something important…..about the Weirdo!

"MIRA! Haveyouseenahotblondegirlinhererecently?!" Mira, thankfully experienced in the language of the heavily intoxicated, nodded at him and said,

"Yeah, there was a girl in here just a few minutes ago with Gray that I met earlier. I'm sure he could tell you where she went!" Mira transferred her gaze to Gray at the last minute, unfortunately missing all of the visual cues he had been giving her to stop talking and not say anything. Mira cringed and mouthed sorry to him. "Or, maybe not, they weren't in here long, she could have been with anyone." But the damage was done.

Natsu swung his head around, expression shocked as he looked into his almost naked best friend's eyes and saw the guilt that Gray couldn't hide.

"Natsu, she's gone," he said, confirming once and for all that he had been with her. "She just left."

Staggering forward, Natsu took a swing at him, missing by a mile and almost falling over, Gray stepping in to keep him from eating floor.

"Shit," Gray muttered, hauling the struggling and fighting drunk Natsu to his feet and guiding him to their room. Natsu yelled out profane slurs to everything Gray held dear. Just fucking perfect. He pushed their partially open door wider, knocking a carefully balanced bucket of water above them down, soaking them both, and plastering their scant garments to their bodies like a second skin..

Gray was just thinking it couldn't get any worse when Natsu gagged and murmured,

"Oh shit."

Natsu felt the familiar flipping in her stomach, the burning in her throat and then tasted vomit as she threw up. He gagged again, trying to keep himself from following her example. But his effort was futile. The sympathetic reflex was just too strong. He pushed Gray away, running sideways into their bathroom where he opened the toilet to puke, thankfully noticing the cling-wrapped toilet seat just in time to make a hole for himself to throw up all one pound of his relay taco through.

Perfect. Fucking perfect.

Gray was beginning to think this night was cursed.

* * *

Lucy staggered back onto the sidewalk outside their apartments and spit into the grass, trying to rid her mouth of the taste of Long Island iced-tea and grilled cheese sandwich coming back up and her skin of the feeling of water running down her skin everywhere (Had he jumped into the pool or something?). Her head felt better, with the Moon Drip out of her system, but her stomach was still queasy and the taste lingering in her mouth was grotesque. She was pretty sure it was what death tasted like.

Levy had fallen asleep and was being carried by Gajeel, her head resting on his shoulder as she dozed in his arms. So Lucy hunted up her keys and let them all into the building. While Gajeel took Levy to her own apartment, waking her up to get the keys, Lucy got into her own apartment and instantly brushed her teeth, which was a marked improvement.

After downing a glass of water in tiny sips, and pulling on her comfiest pajamas, she was ready to plan.

Worst case scenario, Michelle told her father tonight, and his people would be here by Monday morning, at the earliest. Most likely scenario, she probably had a week to get her shit in order and be ready to flee at a moment's notice. While she scrolled through the train station's schedule and checked her, admittedly meager, account balance online, she tried not to think of the loneliness closing in on her again.

She would have to say goodbye to seeing Levy everyday. At least she would still be able to contact her online, once she changed her email and phone numbers again. Luckily Facebook wasn't a problem. She hadn't bothered to start another account after leaving home. Why make it easier for him to find her… And Natsu...well, Natsu would always be able to get a hold of her. Luckily they hadn't told anyone about their connection but Levy and Gray, so he should be well out of danger. As long as they never met in person, he was safe.

It had been a close call. Between the alcohol and Michelle, she hadn't even really taken a step back to think about what this meant. And what he had said. Lucy really, really wanted to talk to him. It was weird not to be in constant contact, with all the crazy stuff that had been going on. She had grown used to getting little messages throughout the day, letting her know when he would be working out or showering, or just if he was bored. Usually with some kind of corny joke attached.

But today had been so...empty. Just that one moment at the AV Rental office, and the rushed tipsy discussion before their shower. It was hard to believe that it hadn't even been a full day since then. She glanced at her alarm clock and saw that it was still a half an hour until midnight. It wasn't even that late by party standards. In the book that was her life, that interrogation with campus police felt like it had taken place chapters ago. So much had happened. She had gone to her first party, had her first real kiss, touched her first half-naked man...who had been her soulmate's best friend...fuck. How the fuck had that even happened!? Had Fate just decided that she was fun to fuck over and paired them up out of spite?

Lucy sat back in her chair, chewing on a broken fingernail and forgetting she was trying to find train tickets. Don't get her wrong, Gray was a great first kiss. Hell, if she had been serious about him, she would probably be mooning over him and waiting for him to call, like how most of her society friends were in their teens. Always hopping into someone's bed they just met and then being heartbroken and surprised when the guy sold their sex tape to the paparazzi.

She remembered being jealous that they got to go out at all. Didn't those bitches know how lucky they had it? No invisible shackles on them. No extra bodyguards to keep anyone from getting too close. And now, no fucked-up link to their soulmates dictating who they would be with for the rest of their lives. Sex tape? Hell, it would be nice to have had the opportunity to have a date, let alone sex, filmed or private.

And what about Michelle? What the hell had she been doing there?! Lucy knew she had gone off to some party school, but she had never bothered to pay attention to where. Everyone knew how Michelle worked. She got these ideas in her head, and then off she'd go, to Jamaica to become a steel drum player, or run off for a vacation in the Alps with her pool boy. College had seemed like one of her phases. But Lucy couldn't remember hearing much about her after that. Her father had had too much for her to do. Too many people to lie to on his behalf. Michelle Lobster was a blip on the map. A blip that would be responsible for pinpointing her location to the one person she never wanted to see again.

Which was why she needed to get back to those tickets. She would have time to buy everything and pack tomorrow, but the plan had to be set tonight. There would be no room for errors.

* * *

Natsu lay on the floor of the bathroom, sweaty, wet, and miserable. He couldn't remember the last time he had actually blown chunks from drinking too much. Whether that was because he was too drunk to remember or not he didn't know, but either way, it was a long fucking time ago.

The freshly cleaned tiles (thanks again to the pledges sent from heaven) were cool under his cheek, beginning the process of his body returning from overheating-furnace-cold-sweating-mode to shivering-and-really-regretting-how-cold-the-tiles-were-mode. He was getting there. Just a few more minutes and he would be able to get up, and get some water. He had managed to swish some water and mouthwash before laying down, so his mouth at least felt clean, but he knew from experience he needed to start getting as much water, as slowly as he could, into his body. He opened his eyes, eyeing his discarded jeans dully. And then he noticed a little red light blinking in the folds of denim. What was that...HOLY SHIT HIS PHONE!

Natsu scrambled forward for his pants, getting tangled in the awkward horizontal dance he did to wrestle the phone out of his pocket without sacrificing any surface area attached to the blessedly cool floor. Finally getting his phone loose from the clingy pocket fabric, he quickly hit a button and the screen sprang to life, showing a total of three missed calls and about 27 missed texts. Damn. no wonder she had been mad. He swiped his phone unlocked and instantly went to the text messages. They weren't all from the same number, mostly random people he knew were still at the party, probably wanting to match up and have a drink with him. There were a few from Romeo, most likely about the master plan. But there was one number that had no contact information attached. There were 12 unread messages under that one, and it was a number that didn't have a local area code. But, it had to be her right? He frantically tapped on the unread messages and devoured the words on the screen.

 _Hi._

 _Um, it's me. Are you there?_

 _ND? I thought you wanted to talk…_

 _Which was why you gave me this number?_

 _Did you change your mind? Or are you out trying to fuck some girl right now?_

 _Hello?!_

 _I'm gonna try calling you…_

 _And you aren't picking up! Why did you even bother giving me your number?_

 _I'm going to try the old way, since you can't run away from your own goddamned arm!_

 _STILL NOT RESPONDING?! What the FUCK!? After what we did in the shower, I thought you'd at least respond. You've never done this before! Why now?_

 _That's it. I'm done trying to talk to you. I'm heading out. You can fucking deal with whatever happens. On your head be it._

 _Oh my God, I just realized I could have the wrong number. If this is not ND, please ignore these, and maybe let me know. I'm so so sorry._

And the texts ended there.

Shit. Why did he have to forget his phone?! She had come out to this party, of all places. If they had been talking, communicating, he would have known where she was. What was going on. Well, maybe. It may have turned out just like it did, but maybe it could have been different. Maybe she would have found him instead of Gray. Speaking of which…

Well into the shivering-from-the-air-hitting-his-naked-wet-body-mode now, Natsu dragged his body off the floor and fell through the bathroom door, looking for Gray. Their room was conspicuously empty. Of course he wasn't here. Fucking coward.

Whatever. He couldn't hide forever. Gray had to tell him what happened eventually. He just hoped he remembered what it was. Then he remembered about Moon Drip's inconvenient little side effect. He had made sure there was video footage to look up after the party, so that no one would forget the epic stuff he had planned, but all this shit with the Weirdo and Gray? He needed to write it down. Or something. He looked around for paper and a pen, going to lift up the edge of their couch under its ratty couch cover to get a notebook...only to have the whole couch collapse in on itself. He pulled the cover completely off to find, not their stained and sagging couch that had been passed from one tenant of the room to the next, but instead, piles of strategically stacked porn collections. Like there had to be every porn stash in the house under that cover. What the fuck?! Who the hell had pranked their room? And where the fuck was their couch?

In the grand scheme of things, he guessed it didn't really matter. He grabbed a random used notebook off the pile that the prankster thankfully hadn't touched, and flipped through until he found a clean page, leaning against his closet door. Grabbing a pen, he wrote down the big points.

 _ **weirdo was at the party**_

 _ **gray did stuff with her, kissing and stuff**_

 _ **might have forced her to do something**_

 _ **she left before I got back, I think**_

That should be enough to get his sober self thinking. As he tossed the notebook on the ground next to him and got distracted by his own message on his arm again, carefully examining it for any replies he might have missed. But nothing. Well, he had made her wait long enough earlier. Maybe she was being passive aggressive again. Baiting him. Or she could be asleep. Re-swiping into the phone in his hand, he tapped the reply box and typed a response. Only five hours too late. He just...he had to try.

He had to talk to her. If she didn't respond, he would hunt down Gray and make him tell what he knew. Because after feeling her punching and panicking like she was, he wasn't sure she wasn't in trouble. Or passed out in a bush. Waiting to be taken advantage-of in her inebriated state. Shit, he just had to know she was ok.

 **Hi. R u ok? Did u make it home?**

* * *

Gray stood on the front porch of Fairy Tail, bare-chested, smoking a cigarette. The cool smoke of the mentholated death stick swirled into his lungs and rushed back out, taking some of his tension and guilt with it, leaving behind false peace and calm. But false peace was better than no peace. And he was enjoying how the moon was lighting up everything with a silver gleam. It was kind of pretty. Fuck, any excuse to stay away from Natsu sounded pretty good to him right now.

He wasn't ready to go back in there and lie. But he didn't have a whole lot of other options. Maybe after his bummed smoke had burned itself out he'd have figured out what to do.

Or maybe he could just keep bumming until he did. Or died of cancer. Either option sounded fine at this point. As he tasted the smoke rolling over his tongue, it was honestly hard to remember why he had ever quit this glorious habit.

Oh right. Erza.

Gray was distracted from his thoughts by a thin purple-haired guy jogging up to the porch, glancing behind him every so often. Gray raised an eyebrow and the guy noticed him, scoffing in his direction before coming to a stop, straightening his untucked button-down shirt and brushing concrete dust from his jeans. Without a word he entered the house, limping just the slightest amount. Some of the douches Fairy Tail attracted with their parties were fucking odd.

As he took another slow deep drag of chemical-laden smoke, Elfman stuck his head out the door, thankfully clothed once more, and scanned the porch until his eyes landed on Gray. Narrowing his eyes at the cigarette, but not mentioning it, Elfman called out to him.

"Gray, time to fulfill your DD duties. First group is ready for a ride home." He tossed Gray the keys and opened the door for a group of girls who belonged to a nearby sorority. They immediately started cooing over his naked chest and giggling. He sighed out the air pollution in his lungs and stubbed out his cigarette on the porch railing.

Oh right. He was in hell. Had almost forgotten for a second. Fuck this night.

* * *

Lucy finished writing down the schedule information for a train to Bosco leaving the next afternoon, and picked up her phone when it beeped, expecting to see a text from Levy saying goodnight from across the hall. But instead, she had a message from ND.

 **Hi. R u ok? Did u make it home?**

She tapped the reply box and when the little keyboard popped up, she froze. What could she say? So much had happened. So much had changed since the last time they talked. The familiar face that had featured in so many of her dreams had been so vivid. So determined. He had looked like a stranger. Like someone she didn't know. Even though, she technically knew him better now than ever before. She knew his name. She knew where he lived. Should she tell him that? Would it matter now? She settled on keeping it simple. See what he knew about the whole thing.

 _Yeah. I'm alright I guess. I'm home. You?_

Natsu sat up straighter. She was awake! And she was fine. He let out a breath he hadn't realized he'd been holding.

 **Better now.** What else could he say? He was dying to ask what happened with Gray, and how she had ended up at Fairy Tail, and if she had seen him at all. But that would be too much right now, right?

 _That's good._ Lucy had to do something soon. This conversation was the most awkward one they'd ever had. Pretty soon they'd be commenting on the fucking weather.

 **So, u were at Fairy Tail tonight. How'd that happen?** Screw it. What could it hurt to ask her.

 _How do you know that?_ How the FUCK had he figured it out? Gray had promised not to tell!

 **Moon Drip. U had some. There's only one place that makes it. And we practically bought them out.**

 _Since when can you tell what I'm drinking? It's not like you could taste it._

 **I could actually. Turns out if I really concentrate on it and think about nothing else, I can get strong flavors to come through. U haven't tried it?** Lucy blinked at her phone and tried to concentrate on what he might be tasting. All she got was mint from her toothpaste. Hm. Maybe she just wasn't good at it.

 _Doesn't seem to work for me I guess. So...yeah. I was there._

Lucy held her breath. She shouldn't be telling him this. But she wanted to know if he knew what had happened. With Gray. If he would break his promise to her so easily. If Natsu was in danger by knowing who she was.

 **Do you know who I am then?** It was a bit of a leap, but if she had been with Gray, she probably knew his name by now.

Lucy was panicking. Did it reveal anything she didn't want to if she said yes? Her vision was a little blurry and if it weren't for autocorrect, her still intoxicated fingers would probably be typing nonsense. Her stomach flipped over, threatening to make her throw up the bile that was the only thing left in her stomach. She felt like shit. And running the situation around her head over and over wasn't helping anything. Fuck it. As long as he didn't get her name, or where she lived, it would be fine. Everything else would be ok.

 _Yes. I know that your name is Natsu Dragneel. I saw you on the screens. Do you ever put on clothes?_

 **ha. ha. HA. It was an underwear relay! It's not my fault you only show up when I'm mostly naked. I'm starting to think you do it on purpose. If I tell you I'm still sitting around in my underwear will you come back to talk?**

 _I do NOT do it on purpose! I didn't even know it was your party. A friend of a friend heard about it. And I felt like going out and getting drunk. So I did._

 **I'm sorry btw. For not texting, calling, or writing back. I left my phone in my other pants after our shower. And you wrote to me at a really bad moment. Did you happen to know that highlighter glows under blacklights?**

Lucy almost felt bad for him. He didn't sound like he'd been avoiding her. It was more like a series of unfortunate events. But she was curious how he would explain everything else. And how did she know he wasn't lying? Text messages didn't have the information handwriting did, as she could feel how hard he pressed, and where he paused while writing. Text messaging really paled in comparison with skin-to-skin contact, or the nuances of oral communication.

Which she guessed was always an option...

 **Well it does. You still there?**

Steeling herself, Lucy went to her contacts and found the entry under ND. She closed her eyes for a moment then opened them and tapped the little green phone symbol, starting the call.

Natsu waited for her to respond, staring numbly at the screen, concerned he had said something to frighten her away. Though he couldn't figure out what that might have been. Then his phone lit up even brighter in the dark room and a call from her number popped up on the touch screen. It rang once. Then twice as he tried to remember how to breathe.

And then Natsu picked it up, answering cautiously.

"Hello?" There was no answer. "Weirdo, you there?"

And then he heard her breathe in deeply on the other end of the line and finally answer with a bright, warm voice. His heart pounded in his chest at the sound. A minute ago, he couldn't have told you what she sounded like to save his life, but with just one simple word, he couldn't imagine her sounding like anything else. It was instantly familiar to him, like Gray's, or Erza's; drilled into his memory until he couldn't mistake it. He knew in his bones it was the Weirdo greeting him. Starting their first spoken conversation the way she had all of their firsts.

"Hi."

* * *

 **Yeah, I'm sorry, I'm evil. I know. Thursday will be a nice heavy dose of Nalu though. I promise!**

' **There are more things in heaven and Earth, Horatio, than are dreamt of in your philosophy.'** -quote from Hamlet by Mr. William Shakespeare AKA The Bard, this has got to be one of the most used quotes in English literature, but hardly anyone uses anything after Horatio, so there's the finished thought. Thought it deserved it's time in the sun.

 **Flachwissen** -fuckwits, literally "flat wankers" according to the interwebs. God I love the Germans. Fabulous people. And I think I translated everything else in context, though someone correct me if I'm wrong and I will add it!

' **What's done is done.'** -quote by Lady Macbeth in Macbeth


	16. My Name Is

**AUTHOR EDIT: THAT ONE GUEST REVIEWER WHO REMINDED ME THAT I AM BETTER THAN STRAWBERRIES! I LEFT YOU A LETTER IN THE REVIEWS! DON'T BE DOWN! YOU'RE TOTALLY AWESOME!**

* * *

 **First! If you missed the last chapter or two because of the notifications being down, GO READ THEM FIRST. Trust me, you will want to know what the hell is going on in this one. I posted on my normal schedule, so if you didn't read the Thursday or Monday chapters, they were totally there, sorry I had no power to let you know!**

 **Secondly, I'm just gonna give you all a huge freakin hug. Because YOU BROKE 400 REVIEWS! I'm so freaking honored I have no words. So, THANK YOU SO MUCH. It made my notificationless week. Aaaand may have influenced the content of this chapter. Because I gave you a taste of what you wanted...just...you'll see.**

 **And finally, now for the chapter I agonized over for a full day of just editing. Short, but unbearably sweet. Because klandfahfieawgfheao;gihdsfdlksfdsj. Yeah, that's how I feel about this chapter. NO. WORDS. And I owe the writing that fell out of me to another author I follow, starmini, who recommended musician Olafur Arnalds in her last chapter update. This fucking song.**

 **www .youtube watch?v= 6tvUPFsaj5s (minus the spaces obviously). This is what gave me the end of this chapter.**

 **So. Fucking. Beautiful. The man should write movie scores. That's all that I'm saying.**

* * *

The phone rang. Twice. For a second, Lucy thought he wouldn't pick up. And then...

"Hello?" His voice was rougher than she thought it would be...foreign, yet warm, and somehow familiar. She closed her eyes and focused on his throat. She could feel the next words vibrate through her larynx and she licked her lips, trying to rid herself of the indescribable tingling sensation.

"Weirdo, you there?"

Shit, she still hadn't said anything. Taking a deep breath, she steeled herself and responded.

"Hi."

Yep, nailed it. Can't go wrong with a classic.

Now what now though? Shit, she maybe hadn't thought this through. What should she say next? She couldn't just jump right off into explanation land. Their first conversation deserved a little small talk right?

"So...um, this doesn't seem fair."

Or not...

"What doesn't seem fair?"

"You know my name. I think it's unfair that I still don't know yours."

And just like that, Lucy was sent right back into panic mode. Shit, at this rate she was going to need a pacemaker to keep her from having a heart attack! It had to be the alcohol messing her up this bad. That's it she was never drinking again!

Except maybe she would have another Long Island iced tea sometime… that had been yummy! And she heard margaritas were pretty good too...so maybe just one of those...oh hell, she was totally going to drink again. But she would never have that grape-flavored glowing stuff ever again! yeah!...Shit, he was still waiting for her. What was he asking? Oh right, her name! Shit! She couldn't tell him that! Then he might find her. And then her dad might find him! Her world spun without her moving, one thought perfectly clear. SHE COULD NOT TELL HIM.

"I can't tell you. It's not safe…"

"What?! Do you seriously still think I'm going to jump you or something?! You just saw me! And were making out with someone you just met! Come on! I have been a total saint these last few weeks. I deserve something for not fighting this whole time! Do you have any idea how hard that was?!" His words slurred slightly. Clearly they were both still a little drunk. Or he just had speech problems. How would she know? ... nah, definitely the booze.

Wait, what did he say? A saint? Seriously?! Lucy's anger flared again momentarily, remembering the boobs in his face.

"Yeah, right, because nothing says 'saint' like telling the girl who shares your skin that you might just be getting really drunk and fucking some random girl! Who the fuck does that?!"

"Hey! I was trying to warn you! It's not my fault that drunk me has been a pervy asshole every single time he's come out! I haven't been really drunk in years for that exact reason! But I _had_ to drink Moon Drip tonight, it was a traditional Fairy Tail thing, and I have absolutely no tolerance for it, and I wanted you to know what the worst possible outcome could be! Just in case!" Natsu ranted in his defense. "At least I warned you! I would rather you know what could happen and be ready than be fucking blindsided! And I didn't even end up doing anything! Unlike you! With Gray too, right? OF ALL FUCKING PEOPLE. Seriously?! My roommate? And with no warning at all?! That was a bitch move!"

Guilt tickled at her under her constant veil of panic. How did he know it was Gray?! Did that bastard break his promise that easily? The thread of guilt running through her thickened into a rope. But it wasn't enough to overpower her stubborn righteousness.

"You consider _that_ a bitch move? Seriously? What about all the stuff I have put up with? You tortured me for a solid two weeks with wacko experiments! And how the hell do you know about Gray?! He promised me he wouldn't tell you! Shit! He fucking PROMISED. And I had no idea he was your roommate when we met, ok? It's not like he walked up and said, 'Hey, I'm Gray, the roommate of the guy who has been self-fucking you in the shower for weeks, let's make out and really give him something to squirm about'. I didn't even know you lived on campus! Your phone number's area code gave me a clue that you were in Magnolia, but how was I supposed to know that you were at a party that a friend of a friend heard about and suggested to me? WHAT ARE THE FUCKING CHANCES?! And I can make out with whoever I want! You're not my fucking boyfriend, you controlling ASSHOLE!"

Her words hung in the air between them. She knew instantly she had gone too far. She had to fix it. This wasn't how their first conversation was supposed to go. She heard him taking a breath, preparing to say gods only knew what next. So she cut him off.

"Wait! I'm sorry! That was...shitty of me. You didn't deserve that. And I didn't really mean it. Just...yeah, sorry. My head is all woozy... I've never been drunk before. All this shit just keeps coming out. I shouldn't even be telling you any of this. It's not safe. For you! That's why I can't tell you my name ok? Well, there are other reasons, but right now, that's the big one. It would put you in danger. If my father knew about you..about what we can do..."

Then she stopped herself, realizing she was rambling again. Alcohol really seemed to loosen up her tongue. No wonder her father had warned her away from it. Horny and loose-tongued. Exactly what he had trained his little robot Barbie not to be. Maybe booze wasn't so bad after all. Her meandering thoughts were jerked back on topic by Natsu replying.

"Wow... I don't even know what to say right now. I've got so many questions I can't keep them straight long enough to ask. And you're right about one thing, you have got a really shitty alcohol tolerance. I haven't been this drunk since I started drinking...the head spinning is VERY real...So, uh, I guess, I'm sorry for jumping to conclusions... I didn't realize you meant _I_ would be in danger somehow...though, you know I can take care of myself, right? You really shouldn't worry about me."

Lucy couldn't hold her tongue at that. He needed to understand that he had no idea what he was dealing with.

"Natsu, this is so much bigger than being a great fighter. My father? He's not a nice guy. And he's got a fucking army of people who could come looking for me, literally _any time_. Especially now. I can't let him hurt you, you're just…" She couldn't bring herself to say what he meant to her. But luckily, he didn't give her the chance to flounder.

"Wait, sorry, can you just back up a minute? Put that thought on pause. And, uh...say it again?" He almost sounded sheepish. She'd never heard him like that before. He was always so...sure of himself. Reckless, but confident..what was the word she was looking for? Cocky. Definitely cocky. But he was never...sheepish.

"Say _what_ again? That you're a great fighter? Really? I mean you are almost freakishly good, but this hardly seems like the time-"

"No, uh, not that. Though..freakishly good? Really? Wait, shit! No! I meant the other thing. Where you..you know...uh...said my name?"

Lucy had to smile. God that was cute. She cleared her throat and tried to make her voice sound more...fuck, she didn't know...mature? Deep? Feminine?

"Natsu." His name started on the tip of her tongue, barely existing before hissing through her puckered lips like an airborne kiss...dissipating instantly. Natsu closed his eyes and felt her tongue press against the roof of his mouth for a fluttering instant. Lucy could hear his breath catch.

"Fuck," he breathed, just loud enough for her to catch before he cleared his throat. Then he cleared his throat again and went on in a dazed tone at his previous volume. "I mean, thanks, but just...shit. That does really weird things to my stomach."

Curious, Lucy closed her eyes and tried to concentrate on her own tense abdomen, imagining what his toned abs would be doing right now. His breathing pushing open his lungs, contracting his muscles, his skin stretching a bit with each breath. She could feel...something. She held her breath, and she felt his steady inhales continue. She could feel him breathing! It was so...weird! Then she said again, with a slight inflection, like she was trying to coax him into doing something.

"Natsu?" And she felt it, a tightening and a sort of flipping sensation. Her voice saying his name was making his body do things. God, she was so in over her head. Was that normal? Or some kind of soulmate thing?

"Shit, you should maybe stop doing that. I mean, I know I asked you to, but it's getting a little hard to concentrate. So, uh, yeah, what were we talking about?...Right! Your father is a big bad that will come and get me if I know your name. I'm still not convinced that's a good reason not to tell me, but I guess I trust your judgement. I just don't get why you're so afraid to trust me. And your dad. I mean he loves you right? That's what dads do. How bad could he be?"

Lucy couldn't hold in a humourless chuckle. God, if he only knew.

"It's...really complicated. Someday I'll tell you my story. When I'm not scared shitless about it all. When I can tell you my name. Hopefully. Someday. And can we please talk about ANYTHING else right now...please? I'm just getting my heartrate down from earlier…"

"Yeah...sure. Uh, ok, well, which awkward topic would you like to revisit? Gray, my impending sainthood, the experiments, the chances of us being at the same party, or the self-fucking in the shower? I know which one I prefer…" he said with a mischievous twist to his tone.

Was he flirting with her? Well, duh Lucy, why wouldn't he be? He did confess his love for her.

Holy crap, had that really happened? She pushed it out of her mind. She couldn't deal with that right now.

She got up from her chair and stretched her back restlessly, trying to decide where to start. She eventually ended up on her bed, laying down and staring at the cracked ceiling, finally just going for the hardest thing first.

"Well, I guess the elephant in the room is getting a little obvious...so uh, what did Gray tell you?"

"That bastard didn't tell me anything. He didn't have to. Mira said she saw you together earlier. And he was standing there in his underwear, with the guiltiest godsdamned expression I've ever seen. So yeah, doesn't exactly take a degree in psychology to figure that one out. What the hell happened? I thought you wanted to stay home, and then practically the next minute I'm wearing eyeliner and feeling you kissing some guy and fighting him off! What did he try to do?! I mean I know he sleeps around a lot, but it's _Gray_. I didn't think he was capable of _forcing_ a girl to...until tonight anyway." His voice took on a raspier quality as it sunk in pitch. Geez, he was really upset about it.

"It wasn't like that! Ok? Here's what happened: I was going to just stay home and you know, help you get through the party...but you weren't answering. Not the texts, or the calls, or even on your arm...so...I got a little upset...and then, well, all I could think about was that I could be sitting at home feeling _you,_ feeling up some girl at any minute, and then you had your face in some girl's boobs, and I just couldn't sit around anymore! So I called my friend and told her I wanted to go out, and her...um, boyfriend knew about your party, and, well, it seemed like a great opportunity to get drunk for the first time and experience college life, and yeah, well... Then I got there and ran right into Gray, and got abandoned by my friends, kind of, and he showed me around and asked me to dance. And one thing led to another and I...well, honestly I can't say I regret it at all." Lucy heard and felt him take in another sharp breath before she continued. "I had a really fun time. It was a great first kiss. And first dance. And first real college party. Would it have been better if Gray hadn't turned out to be your roommate? Yeah, of course. But he was totally the perfect Random Guy A. Super respectful of what I asked for and wanted. And the _minute_ he figured out who I was, he backed off. Like immediately. So, please don't be mad at him. To him I was just Random Girl B, looking for someone to show her a good time. And I _didn't_ have to fight him off. I'm not sure why you thought that...I mean, I kind of, uh, punched this girl who recognized me out of panic, but that wasn't about Gray at all… And, well, he tried to stop me from leaving, because he wanted you to meet me...but that's it. So, you know, even though I don't regret doing it... I am really _really_ sorry that you had to feel it. Especially...because, well...you know...you...uh... _feel_ the way you do," she finished awkwardly. So much for not thinking about it.

Natsu cleared his throat again. Well, that was quick. Looked like they were going to hit all the big stuff, right out of the gate. She stopped, waiting for him to say something. Natsu owed her some kind of explanation. So he gave it a shot.

"Yeah. About that, I , uh, just wanted you to know that I cared. Ok? You know...in case you maybe thought I didn't...care. 'Cause of Mira's boobs, which was an uninvited hug by the way, and I, um…" He blew out a huge breath of air before continuing, all in a rush.

"Fuck it. I've already done the hard thing, so what's left to be a chickenshit about, right? What good is being drunk if it doesn't give you the courage to say what you can't without it?" He paused then, and she almost asked what he was trying to say, but he rushed on, taking her breath away with the intensity of his words.

"You're all I think about. Like, pretty much all the time. Sometimes I just lay in bed, feeling you breathe at night and picture you're with me. I have to set a limit for myself to keep from writing messages to you every moment of the day and freaking you out. I've never taken so many godsdamned showers in my life! I know you're kinda inexperienced and stuff, though for the record I _never_ would have guessed that, but I've had sex with a fair amount of people, and trust me when I say that nothing, like not even a single time, came close to whatever the fuck we've been doing. The feeling of your hands on my skin, your skin, whatever... it's like I'm on some kind of drug. I feel like I'm losing my mind! And honestly? I was only afraid I was going to find a random warm body to fuck tonight because I've wanted _you_ _so badly_ these last couple of weeks. Ever since I drew on you...well, us. And I've never felt like this about anyone before. Ever. I've never been in love before, so I don't know if that's even what this is, but it just about _killed_ me to feel someone else with his hands on you. And then it triggered this flashback where you were about to marry somebody else! And I wanted to die! Like, in the past life or whatever, I had this terrible feeling...like life wouldn't be worth living without you. Which is crazy! But also, somehow, not crazy. More like, totally, exactly...right. So...I know I'm not your boyfriend, and we've never really talked about this...us, that is… at all, so you really had every right to do whatever you wanted to with...well, with anyone. But, I guess, I was kind of hoping...well...that you maybe _might_...feel the same way I do. Or maybe not the same, but like you _could_ feel the same? Maybe? Someday? Because, fuck...you're just... _Amazing_. Everything about you. And I just thought, while you were kissing.. _him_ , that if you maybe _did_...feel the same, I mean, then maybe you would regret being with him when you knew that I feel this way about you. Maybe you'd want to be with...well, with me instead…so I _had_ to tell you. Just in case, and just, um, I'm gonna stop talking now, and please for the love of all that is fucking holy, just tell me what you're thinking, because I'm dying over here," he finished quickly, all in one breath. And then he shut up. And he waited. He pressed his lips together, tense as his heart pounded in his ears. Natsu closed his eyes and leaned his head back on the closet door. His entire fate hung in the balance. And no matter what she said next...at least he had told her.

Lucy wasn't sure what was happening to her. All through his little speech, her muscles were tense, one hand clenched into a death-grip on her phone, the other clasped around her knees, pressed into her chest as she curled her toes almost painfully tight. Her mind was hanging on every word, unable to predict what the next wonderful thing that fell from his lips would be.

She felt light-headed. Not like when she'd been really drunk, but a healthier, fresher light-headedness: like her heart had pumped too much oxygen to her brain as it raced through it's usually steady beats.

And she was grinning so hard! She couldn't stop! She had tried at one point and her mouth just wouldn't stop smiling. Lucy didn't even really understand why she was so damn happy...except, well, he _thought_ about her! As much as she thought about him!

And he liked taking showers with her. And thought about _being_ with her. And thought she was amazing. And gods, it was just so wonderfully sweet. And so fucking brave. He was spilling his heart to her! When she couldn't even tell him her name. She had treated him like shit all night! And _this_ was his response?! Could there ever be anyone quite like Natsu?

"Weirdo? Please, you wanna chime in here?"

"Oh fuck, I'm sorry. Yes. Yeah, I um...gods..like holy shit Natsu! That was...it was...um…"

SHIT! What did she say to that!? Lucy was at a loss. She had thought she didn't want to jump into anything with her soulmate before experiencing the world. But was it possible to be happier than she was right now? It didn't seem possible. And what did that say about her? About them? It was so obviously right with Levy and Gajeel. With how they looked at each other. So what if it was like that for her and Natsu? Why did she want to put herself through all the bullshit of dating anyone else, when he was perfect for her? Literally, born for her alone? Chosen by destiny as her one perfect match?! So...why couldn't they start the adventure she longed for, _together_? Why was she stubbornly hanging on to loneliness when she didn't have to be alone anymore?

She thought back to her first kiss with Gray. Which had been great. But how much better would kissing Natsu feel? If _words_ from him could make her heart race and her muscles clench, what could he do with his lips? With his body?

Dozens of moments flashed by her vision, each melting into the next as Natsu, that is, the Natsus of every past life they had ever shared, pulled her into his arms and kissed her like she was the air he needed to survive. Like if he let go of her for even a moment it would be the end of his world. He pulled back and looked at her, a blur of different places in the background, in dozens of situations, but with the same exact expression on his face every time. Like she was his everything.

And it brought tears to her eyes. Because how could something _so_ _beautiful_ and _so pure_ have anything to do with _her_? How could she ever be lucky enough, or _blessed_ enough, to deserve that kind of adoration, sustained through lifetimes, and deaths, over centuries?

"Oh fuck, you're crying. Shit. I'm sorry, I knew it was way too soon to tell you any of this! Fuck. At least you won't remember it in the morning-"

"Wait! What do you mean by that?! Why would I forget?" she said, alarmed by his words. The idea of not being able to remember him saying those words heartbreaking. She cherished every glorious syllable.

"The Moon Drip. Didn't anyone tell you? It makes you forget. Pretty much everything from the moment you drank it, to the moment you wake up is gone. When you wake up tomorrow, you won't have to remember any of this. It will be like it never happened. I won't remember it either. It happens to every-"

"BUT WHAT IF I DON'T WANT TO FORGET?!" she cried out desperately, tears streaming down her face now. "What if I want to remember you saying those wonderful things to me? What if that was the most beautiful thing I've ever heard?! What then? And I only had that glowing stuff in my system for like ten minutes. What if it doesn't work? And I remember? But you... _you forget?"_ Lucy finished her questions in a whisper, feeling his fingertips trying to wipe away her tears.

"Please, don't cry. Especially about something like that. I felt this way before drinking the stupid amnesia juice, I'll feel this way after. That's not going to change," he said firmly. "But does that mean that you feel the same? Is that what you're saying?" his voice was so full of hope, and just the tiniest bit of fear. His hope assaulted her defenses. How could she be with him and keep him safe?! Why did Michelle have to be there tonight?! Why had she had to drink the stupid glowing stuff? Why was she so scared of following the plan that destiny had laid out for her? How could she believe for a second they weren't meant to be together? Because they were. And FUCK! He still didn't know!

"Natsu. There's something I have to tell you. At first I just thought it was nonsense. But it's so fucking obvious now that I honestly don't know how you haven't figured it out on your own. The reason we're bonded in the first place, the reason we keep remembering our past lives, and the reason we're together in all of them...is because we're soulmates." Lucy took a deep breath before continuing. He was right. If he wasn't going to remember in the morning anyway, where was the harm?

"I've known about it for awhile. But I was scared of being tied to someone else...again. You think my father is nothing to worry about, but you're so...free! You've never had to exist under the oppression of someone else's plans for you! And know that you could never be happy as a part of those plans. That life. And, it's been so hard to accept it..to accept you. My freedom is the most valuable thing I have. Please understand. I don't want to be shackled to anyone. Ever again. No matter how perfect you might be for me. But-"

"Don't you get it? I'm not here to 'shackle' you. I'm the wings that fly you away from whoever or whatever the fuck thinks it gets to cage you. We can live however we want. Don't you get that, you Weirdo?"

"Lucy."

"What?"

"My name. My name is Lucy."

"Lucy." He rolled her name over his tongue and tasted how it felt to finally say her name.

"Well Lucy, I can't forget now," he boasted, a grin in his voice. "Because I've never wanted to remember anything more in my life. So that's it. I won't. I don't care what I have to do."

Lucy was grinning again at his words, feeling the grin on Natsu's face mirroring it just as strongly.

Taking another hurdle in a night of giant leaps, she let herself go and exclaimed,

"I want to meet you. Right now." She could feel his eyes widen and his heartbeat quicken.

"Yeah? OK! Come back to the house! I'll meet you outside! And we can...talk or whatever you want! Or wherever you want! I can come to you, or just name a place and I'll be th-" Lucy had to cut him off, laughing in delight at his exuberance.

"Your fraternity is perfect. I'll be there as soon as I can get dressed again and run there!" she jumped off her bed, almost fell over from the booze still in her system and then rushed to her dresser, pulling out clothes at random.

"Ok! I'll go out and wait for you! Or should I come get you? I don't want you walking alone, but I don't know where you live..."

"Natsu, I'll be fine! I don't live that far away. Just, wait for me, ok?"

"Well, duh Lucy. I'll always wait for you." Her heart skipped a beat at his statement, getting a weird sense of deja vu. Like he'd said that to her before.

"Ok, I've got to go. I need to put on real clothes, and being on the phone is just making it take longer!" she said with a giggle as she tried to pull on a pair of shorts with one hand, unsuccessfully.

"Ok, I'll hang up. But...I'll see you soon," Natsu said, relishing the simple phrase like he never had before.

"Yeah, I'll see you soon!" Lucy returned, her voice bubbling up again with laughter.

"Well, bye then, I guess."

"Yeah, goodbye Natsu! I'll be there before you know it!"

* * *

 ***insert screaming and hair pulling here* You guys finally know what's been in my head for the last five chapters! FINALLY! I really hope you loved it. Like I really really hope you loved it. or at least liked it.**

 **And now, a message from our sponsors!**

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 **Dear Super Nalu Fan Guest,**

 **I would love to respond to your PM and chat it out with you, but I can't figure out where to find you to PM! Didn't see supernalufan as a follower, so I can't respond! Your concerns are totally valid, and if this chapter didn't assuage them, please PM me. A part of me wishes I could have released the Moon Drip party as one chapter, so that the actual heartfelt conversation wouldn't have had to wait for so long. There is only so much you can realistically do to show the true feelings of drunk people who can only communicate through text. But, I think it also would have been a lot to handle in one update... Anyway, I would love to talk it over and maybe give you a little insight into where I'm going with it so you can decide if the story is really for you. So PM me or log-in to review and I'll get right back to you!**

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 **Riot**

 **And on a more general note, since I have no references (SHOCKING, I KNOW!) this chapter, I would like to say something…**

 **I love you all, you fucking complete me. And the support so many of you give me when I receive a less than ecstatic review really does a lot to soften the blow. (Because, let's face it. I don't think any of us are immune to our stories getting insulted, no matter how many people disagree with the insult.)**

 **But please, don't attack another reviewer for stating what they think. I don't want people to feel like this is a hostile environment where they can't say how they feel. I mean, it would be nice if people could all state their concerns without being anonymous and bitchy, but eh, such is life. So, if you want to bitch about another reviewer, or tell me how wrong you think they are, then please do so. But in a PM where those reviewers will be blissfully ignorant of your feelings towards them.**

 **I, on the other hand, under traditional dueling rules, with pistols at 50 paces, have every right to fire back and defend myself, and my work, if I feel a certain level of rudeness has been breached. So, fair warning to all who want to try me: I'm an excellent shot.**

 **lol**


	17. Night of Falling Stars

**You don't know how lucky you guys are. There was almost not a chapter today, because I had terrible writers block this weekend. But thankfully, my mojo returned and, after answering the almost 80 freaking reviews for the last chapter, I managed by the skin of my teeth to make the deadline. Please endeavor not to kill me when you're done.**

* * *

The air in the room was so pressurized with lingering indignation it almost hurt to breathe. And Hurricane Levy had just left the building.

Jet was seething, eyes Velcroed to the air in front of him, where the tiny blunette had been standing. He knew, logically, somewhere in the back of his brain that she had a right to be angry, but at that precise moment, with alcohol amping up his nerves and pumping poison into his bloodstream, he couldn't see past his own frustrated rage. From the moment he met her, it was always supposed to be him and Levy. She was his blue-haired Valkyrie; an angel with a heart of gold, occasionally incited into an unparalleled righteous fury. So pure and perfect.

He had always thought, if he waited long enough, Levy would get over her dating hang-ups and choose him. He had had no doubts. Droy would back down and they would all stay friends according to the deal he and Droy had made years ago, and, in the meantime, he and Droy would keep anyone else from interfering with the plan. Secure in his knowledge that Levy would one day be his, he could be uncharacteristically patient for his heavenly avenger. Easy as that. The last year had been tricky, with lots of visits to Levy at their old high school to make sure the guys there knew what was what with the petite senior who seemed to grow prettier daily.

But she was not supposed to have a cosmic soulmate waiting in the wings to sweep her off her feet. That was his job damnit! He had put in the time, building his life around Levy, knowing in his heart that she really loved him and would reward him for his patience and loyalty. He had dedicated himself to being the 'good guy', the smart guy, he knew she wanted. The guy she wanted to take home to meet her parents. And now he was being cheated of his reward. By a tattooed thug who wasn't even going to college.

Jet wasn't feeling smart, or loyal, or _good_ anymore. And he had a house full of drunken debauchery around him. Just waiting to soothe his aching heart.

He spun on his heel and strode out of the room, slamming the door behind him hard enough to shake the room. Droy winced at the crash that resounded from the room next door. Freed was not going to be happy when he saw whatever Levy had done to his room. He reflexively opened his desk drawer and pulled out a bag of potato chips, still staring at the now closed door.

His eyes welled up as he remembered the hurt he had heard in Levy's voice. Well concealed by rage up until she had gotten to " _That is not the action of a brother. Hell, that's not even the action of a friend."_

He opened the bag and shoved a handful of chips in his mouth. If he was being honest with himself, he considered Levy his best friend, even more than Jet. He had given up on the idea of being with her years ago. It always just seemed inevitable she would pick Jet. He had so much more going for him and he had been seriously hung up on Levy for as long as they'd known each other.

Droy popped another handful of chips in his mouth. He knew he shouldn't have gone along with Jet's plan. It was pretty stupid, now that he looked at it. But he had other motives for not wanting Levy to have a boyfriend.

Girls with boyfriends didn't have time to hang out with guy friends and prank people. At least that was what he had thought. But hadn't he just done that with Levy? And she did have a boyfriend now. So had he really been making her feel unwanted this whole time?...and for nothing?

He downed another handful, crushing the bag and its contents in his other hand. And now he was paying the price. One he rightfully deserved. Her words hung in the air as a tear rolled down his pudgy cheek and he shoved chips into his cheeks until the bag was empty.

" _What's done is done."_

* * *

Cana pried herself from her father's arms and tried again to see where Natsu had run off to. The pinkette hadn't even paused at the finish line, making a beeline through the crowd for the house. Not that it really mattered. Coming in second, he had escaped the confines of their bet. So really, who she should be looking for...ah, there he was. She ran up behind the pale-haired, cocky freshman who had lost her bet and jumped onto his back while she crooned at him.

"Alright, Mr. Frosted Tips and Team Fucking Awful, you bitches owe me a lap! Drop your drawers and get to it!"

Sting cringed and staggered around, trying to keep from falling over with the brunette throwing off his center of gravity.

"Bra too, Basic Bitch, let's get this show on the road!" Cana directed at Minerva, downing her bottle of beer. She was impressed by Blondie's strength. After the first stumble, he was standing like she weighed nothing. And he clearly had the muscles to explain why. Her hands drifted downward. Not quite as nice as Pinkie's, but not bad at all. Whispering in Sting's ear, Cana grinned. "Come see me next year, when you've won a few more races...I'll show you how a real woman... _competes."_ Sting's eyes went wide and he almost fell over when she abruptly jumped off him and joined the spectators gathering to see the team in their birthday suits. All at once, they dropped trou and turned toward the gate. While the men struggled to cover up their junk, Minerva stood tall and proud. That bitch had balls of steel. Cana grinned.

"Once around campus and then you've fulfilled your side of the bet! Get to it!" she ordered, slapping Rogue's bare ass and opening the gate to the fenced in yard.

And so their doomed lap of shame began.

* * *

Gray dropped-off the last giggling girls, who thankfully waited to throw up until they were out of his outdated Camry, and turned to make the tenth trip of the night back to Fairy Tail. That's it, next year, he was going to be conspicuously missing if Gildarts turned up. This day was going on his list of worst days ever. And unlike everyone else involved, he would be cursed to remember every fucking moment of it. Though...certain moments hadn't been so bad.

Lucy. What the fuck was he going to do about her? He was still trying to reconcile the awesome person his idiotic roommate had somehow been blessed to bond with, and the sexy co-ed he could still taste under the mentholated smoke. She was a cool person, and he had definitely liked messing around with her, but the guilt that was coloring every part of him had turned the memory from a rosy hue to the color of that last chick's vomit. Granted, her vomit had been in technicolor. What had that chick been consuming? Nothing but Skittles?!

And the worst thing was, it would all go away if he could just explain himself. In the morning, when Natsu would remember. Because yeah, he had figured it out now, which was a relief, but in the morning? Not remembering that the incident had happened at all? He wouldn't be able to figure it out again. And Gray had promised he wouldn't tell him anything. How the fuck was he supposed to not tell him that the nameless woman he clearly had a huge thing for had not only shown up in his frat house, but knew who he was, had made out with his best friend, and had a name? That Gray knew. The very thought of it had him reconsidering his promise again. He wanted so badly to just tell him anyway.

But a promise was a promise. And that look of terror in Lucy's eyes had been very real. Whatever he didn't know, it was obviously important. Shit. He really needed to find a way to talk to her. Maybe when Natsu passed out he could send her a message in code or something...maybe. Then he could try to convince her that it would be fine if Natsu knew.

He pulled back into his assigned parking space at the house and cautiously checked out the porch. Thankfully, he saw no pink hair poking out over the roaming co-ed heads. But also no sleek blonde ponytail either. He had been hoping she would choose to come back and meet Natsu anyway, but at that exact moment, he wasn't sure if he was disappointed or relieved.

Gray ventured through the crowd, losing his shirt again somewhere before the front door. He wouldn't have noticed, except for the hand that shot out and touched his bare skin, drawing his attention before he made it all the way into the house.

She was petite, cute, and totally plastered. Gray grinned. Reason to avoid Natsu and distraction from the Lucy issue: found. Someone's room had to be empty about now, right?

* * *

Erza had finally eased up a bit. Whether she had intentionally slowed to a jog because she was tired or because she was taking pity on him, Mystogan didn't know. And frankly he didn't care. He was thankful either way. He could actually form full sentences for the first time since the incident with the ice skating relayers. Bora had led them on a wild goose chase. At first he had been glad to see he wasn't headed straight for Fairy Tail, but now he honestly didn't give a shit. He just wanted to sit down. And maybe drink some water. Or throw up. Whatever.

"So, what are your plans for Bora...when we catch him?

"When the prison doors are open, the real dragon will fly out!"

"Ok, so Drunk Erza is still in charge...good to know…"

"Drunk? What makes you think I'm drunk Jellal?"

"Yep, not even gonna touch that…"

Drunk Erza closed one eye and squinted with the other as she turned to look at him, trying to get him in focus.

"You better not, you pervert. At least without asking!" Erza said, going for the knife in her cleavage.

"Not that kind of touching!" Mystogan jogged back a few steps from her and put his hands up in surrender. "Wait, you would be cool with me touching you if I asked?!"

Erza didn't answer. She was distracted by a group of buck-ass-naked individuals headed right for them. He was starting to wonder this many coincidental meetings was even possible without some sort of all knowing force moving the pieces in this giant chess match.

Mystogan's jaw fell open. Come the fuck on! Was Natsu _intentionally_ making his job to keep Erza in the dark impossible? And to get Fairy Tail members thrown out of school for public indecency while he was at it?! But as they got closer, he luckily didn't recognize any of his brothers.

"Halt! Perverts of Magnolia! State your purpose!" she yelled out to the approaching nudist mob. Minerva, holding her boobs in place with one arm to more easily run, paused and raised the other in a salute to Erza as Sting jogged around her.

"Why hello hottie, name's Sting! and I would love to rock your fucking world..." Sting slurred out in Erza's direction, raking his eyes over her figure. Mystogan just stared at the dumbass, as Erza punched him in the face. He must be new to campus. The blue-haired grad student didn't even feel bad for him. The little twerp had it comin'.

"Fulfilling the contractual obligations of a bet, Erza. Care to join?" Minerva gave the redhead a smirk and referenced her naked body suggestively with both arms now, completely ignoring the broken nose her teammate was now nursing. Sting glared at Erza and started to say something to her again, stepping forward with a hand covering his unmentionables, for safety. Mystogan stuck out his foot and tripped the nude platinum blond. It was better this way. For everyone involved. He let show a small satisfied smirk as the ignorant freshman hit the grass chest first.

"Negative on that this time, Minerva. Hunting a wanted fugitive. But save me a spot at the beach next week." Erza grinned back at her and saluted back, taking no more notice of Sting's predicament. Mystogan's jaw clenched harder the longer he listened to their conversation, struggling not to show surprise. Or arousal. What, was there some sort of hot nudist's club on campus or something?! He tried really hard not to think about it or look at the naked woman standing with arms akimbo while the group paused to catch their breath behind her. Much more modest, choosing to cover up or turn away. This chick clearly had no body issues. And to be honest, she sure didn't need to. Shit. He absolutely shouldn't be staring. Not like her teammates were.

"Of course. And happy hunting. Give the bastard a kick in the balls for me," Minerva replied, a glint of malice entering her eyes. Laying on the ground, Sting winced in reflexive sympathy for her future victim.

"Always, comrade. Enjoy your run. And keep your manservants in line. Onwards to glory!" Erza finished with a salute back to Minerva and took off running again as the naked five continued their lap of shame. Mystogan got lost in watching Minerva's...assets bouncing away. Erza circled back around him, when she realized her squire was waylaid, and slapped him across the face.

"Yep. Thanks. That was _absolutely_ necessary. Where are we headed?" Mystogan responded immediately, turning to follow Erza as she ran off again. But no matter how hard he tried not to, now his vision kept sliding down to her backside, watching the edge of her pleated mini float up a tantalizing amount in the wind flowing around her. Shit. This was really making jogging impossible…

"Eyes front soldier," Erza sent back over her shoulder, flipping her hair out of her way. He followed the progress of the fluid fan of red dancing in the wind before him. Yep, eyes were definitely forward, but it was not helping. Maybe he had had more to drink than he thought. "We have a sexual predator to eviscerate!"

Mystogan sighed and pulled up next to her, so he wouldn't start at her ass anymore before replying.

"Aye sir."

* * *

"Here he comes!"

"It looks like he found some!"

"Shit dude, watch where you're walking! I just spilled by beer in the pool!"

"Oh my GODS I can't believe he's actually going to do it!"

"Of course he's doing it, a bet's a bet!"

"Hey Jet! Nice job with the bonfire and the relay!"

"What's going on? Something about a bet?"

"JET! When did you get back?"

"Max lost a bet, so he's got to dye his hair blue! Like that crazy little hot chick with the scary boyfriend!"

"Did EVERYONE but me know about that?!"

"Well he'll do it if he can find any dye! You would think, with all the crazy-haired members of Fairy Tail, one of them would have some blue hair dye lying around…"

"Yo, Jet, where you going man? Shit, that was weird."

"Yeah, I've never seen him so pissed…"

"Well, did they have any, Max?"

Max grinned as he shoved his way through the people in Fairy Tail's yard and walked up to temporary Substitute House Bookie Simon, presenting him with a beat up cardboard box. Simon grinned and turned to the crowd, holding the box of hair dye aloft.

"Alright you party people, who wants to do the honors? Because tonight, Max's life as a blunette begins!"

The crowd roared and a violet-haired girl stepped out from the group of people standing between the pool and the merrily crackling bonfire, a smirk on her bespectacled face. It was obvious from her own vibrant purple locks that she knew what she was doing.

"I volunteer as tribute to pop the cherry of his hairginity and fulfill the requirements of his sacred wager," she spoke loudly, but calmly, taking the box and pulling out the pair of gloves inside, putting them on with a snap. For a moment there was confused silence. And then, as if on cue, they shouted as one and pushed her forward.

Max grinned, so far gone he could barely see straight. Gildarts had been a proud papa all night long and it had taken it's toll. Gathering his last wits about him, he sat down in the lawn chair provided, several yards from the pool, and played along gamely with a rakish grin.

"Be gentle! It's my first time!" His yelled declaration incited the spectators to drink in response as the violet-headed hottie ran her fingers through his thick, sandy-blonde hair. She nodded, motioned to Simon, as her temporary assistant, to hold her supplies, and got to work.

Laki grinned. She had some head painting to do.

She quickly mixed the chemicals for her future masterpiece and took Max's shirt and vest off while Simon shook the bottle for her. Folding the black button-down carefully, she set it well out of harm's way with his waistcoat and dug in the box for conditioner to protect his face.

"That's feels so weeeeeeeeeeeiiiiirrrrrd!" Max noted, giggling as she smeared the creamy substance over the exposed flesh bordering his hairline, and his ears.

"Shut your face, I'm configuring art here," Laki said absentmindedly to the host of the house, who honestly had already forgotten what he himself had said and was staring transfixed at the cleavage sitting front and center in his field of vision. His dazed grin turned to a pout as she walked back behind him and took the well mixed bottle back from Simon, turning his head to try to follow the view as it walked away from him.

And then Laki roughly pushed his head straight again and grabbed a hunk of hair, humming _Paint it, Black_ as she got to work transforming him into a blueberry.

* * *

Levy stirred a little as Gajeel whispered to her to wake up. Something about him needing the keys...wait, were they at her apartment already? Where had Lucy gone?

Levy nuzzled the warm shoulder her head was leaning against. There was nothing soft about it, but right now, it was so terribly comfortable. A rumble of dark laughter rolled through the chest under her cheek.

"You sound like a kitty purring…" she mumbled, leaning forward to brush her lips against his throat. His laughter at her words died the minute her lips met skin. She peeled her eyes open and chuckled to herself as his adam's apple danced up and down his neck.

"Come on, Shrimp, focus! Where are your keys?"

Levy pulled a chain out of the neckline of her dress with a key on it. It had seemed wiser not to take a purse to the party thing. And skimpy designer clubwear was distinctly lacking in pocketry. Pulling the chain off over her head, she firmly grasped the key and motioned for Gajeel to lean down. Rolling his eyes, he humored her, bending his knees until she could reach the doorknob and unlock it.

"Did you know that keys were invented almost as soon as civilization? They've found keys and locks in the ruins of ancient Assyria, and in Ancient Fiorean temples…" she trailed off as she snuggled back into his embrace. Gods. Even drunk this woman was smarter than anyone he knew.

As he carried her into the apartment, he took a curious glance around. She obviously hadn't planned to have company. The place was a mess. He could tell that even in the darkness of the room, lit only by the moonlight streaming in through the glass balcony doors. Not really in a male unwashed-dishes-dirty-underwear-smells-like-body-odor-and-corn-chips kind of way. More like she just lived in a state of perpetual chaos and didn't feel the need to change that anytime soon. He had to admire her zero fucks given lifestyle.

There were books and old world knick knacks everywhere. Like literally everywhere. There were stacks by the door, that appeared to be library books in their crinkly cellophane protective sleeves. There were books lined up on the kitchen counters, which were otherwise empty and slightly dusty, as though they had never been used for their intended purpose. Most of the book stacks were interspaced with large bits of sparkly rock or spiraled shells. As far as he could see, she didn't even own a TV, the bookcases lining her living room walls reducing the size of the room to just big enough to accommodate the pair of short couches. Which were also mostly covered in books. It was daunting. He had basically figured out his girlfriend was a fucking genius-that much had been obvious to him from the start-but shit. He hadn't realized the far reaches to which of her love of the written word had extended. She had seemed pretty zealous about reading, but he now realized she had actually been playing it down.

On the walls not covered in bookcases, there were a variety of random bits from foreign places. Tribal masks, oil paintings, and one particular silk print of a chinese dragon that he wanted to get a closer look at when he was sober-and not carrying a person around-for his sketchbook.

His head reeled a bit still from his soulmate's shot of Moon Drip. She was such a lightweight. He probably shouldn't have let her have that last one. But pissed-off-bossy Levy was almost as hot as drunk-and-giggly Levy. He had honestly been having trouble keeping from pulling her into a closet and fucking her senseless as they left the party. And now they were finally alone. In her apartment. He swallowed the sudden lump that suddenly showed up in his throat.

Levy squirmed in his arms, prompting him to set the tiny woman on her feet. She immediately wove her way through the book stacks like she was following a map, trailing her fingers lovingly over the nearest covers. Pale and shiny in the light of the full moon, Gajeel glimpsed a world of leaves and stems living on her balcony, covering almost every square inch of the small space.

Out of the corner of his eye a flicker of movement brought his attention back to Levy, who had pulled off her dress in that brief moment he was distracted, tossing it over a couch, and was now wandering back to a door, presumably her bedroom, wearing nothing but a bright orange thong, with a pink flower charm swinging from the skimpy bit of fabric. Gajeel froze in place, afraid of what he might do if he allowed himself to move.

Shit. Just. That ASS. And the way she held herself. Like she was a goddess. Or a fairy. Above the earth and it's charms. In the moonlight, she looked like some sprite, frail and temporary, but glowing with secrets and wonder. How the fuck was this girl ever single?

Levy paused at the door and turned her head to look at him, bracing herself against the door frame. One pert nipple just rotating into view with the smooth swell of her breast. Gajeel could feel his jeans getting more uncomfortable by the moment. What the fuck was she trying to do?! She was drunk! Would he be taking advantage of her if they did anything right now? No seriously, would he? He was desperately hoping the right answer to that was no.

"Gajeel? You coming to bed or what?" she said innocently, starting to turn fully towards him. He knew he shouldn't be looking. She clearly was not in her right mind...but his will power was used up in making him stay where he was. All he wanted to do was touch her.

And then, even that amount of will power was overcome as she pouted at him, her plump lower lip taunting him. His gaze roamed over the view she was giving him, catching momentarily on the steel belly-button ring that he could see winking at him, even in the darkened room. Well, shit. He was drunk too, right? Fuck the rules. She was clearly begging for _something_ to happen between them. Those were not subtle signals she was sending out.

He stripped off his t-shirt as he swiftly closed the distance between them, caging the bluenette between his biceps against the wall for only moments before pouncing, pulling her against his body until her feet left the floor, and kissing her soundly. If he was honest, everything he'd been doing since they left his studio was biding time until he could do _this_ again. It was almost like he had missed her, though she had been by his side most of the night. Like there was a part of him that was gone, and always would be, without her body pressed against his.

And Levy responded, just as fierce, pulling his lower lip into her mouth and biting, almost painfully. She had wrapped her legs around his waist and buried her hands in his hair, latching onto him, clearly not planning on letting go anytime soon. Getting firm handfuls of her plump ass, he sucked and bit a trail down her neck and eventually captured a nipple with his teeth, lightly lapping at her with the flat of his tongue.

She squirmed closer to him and clutched at his hair, holding herself up with an impressive amount of stamina in her flexed thighs, as a low moan slipped through her raw and swollen lips. Finally pulling away from her chest until he was able to get his bearings, he made his way into her bedroom, sitting down on the edge and spreading his legs slightly for stability. Levy, with hands that no longer had to help hold her up, explored his body, tracing his spine while she pushed against him with her restless hips.

"Shrimp, you better be serious about what your body is asking for right now. Because you keep going like that, and you're gonna get it," Gajeel rumbled with heavy breaths. Levy leaned forward to kiss him again, her small tongue sweeping into his mouth and playing with his tongue. He pulled away again for a second, making her flushed face pout again.

"Levy, seriously. Is this what you want right now or not?" Gajeel hoped against hope that it was. But this was all pretty fast. And he refused to do something they would both regret in the morning. At hearing her name, her actions stopped and she shook her head lightly, as if to clear it.

"I...I want you. That's all I know right now. My headsall woozy," she nuzzled into his neck. "So you decide. I totally trust you to do the right thing...whateverthatis…" Her murmur would have gotten lost if she hadn't been talking to the area of neck right under his ear.

Well, fuck. That made things a lot more difficult.

* * *

Natsu came busting out of his room, having changed his boxers and thrown on a pair of jeans. It was an improvement to just sopping wet silk boxers, anyway. He rushed through the crowd, glancing at his phone every few seconds to see if she had texted or called. Just in case.

He finally made it out to the front porch and found a good corner stretch of wall that commanded views in three directions, and tried to settle his nervous energy to wait. His fingers wouldn't quit moving as they uselessly turned his screen on and off, checking the time, then checking his messages, then looking up to glance in seemingly every direction at once.

Several voices called out to him, congratulating him on the relay's success, but he just waved and, for the most part, ignored them. Any other time, he would be basking in the glory of his success, but tonight...right now...nothing could sway his attention. He woke up his phone again, which automatically brought up his messaging app. Still no new messages. But this time, he noticed something. And as he stared at her phone number, he started to grin. Tapping on the heading for his messages and leaving his finger there, the Add a New Contact screen popped up for her number, and he filled in her name.

Lucy. He grinned. Now he definitely wouldn't forget. Unable to resist texting her any longer, he opened up a whole new conversation with her and sent a quick message.

 **Gods Lucy, I can't wait to meet you.**

* * *

Gildarts strolled through the ruckus party, watching all that his arrival had done to the isolated college kingdom that was Fairy Tail. Every time he came, he was tempted to tell them to forget the party. That they could serve him takeout pizza and play Mario Kart all night long and he would be just as happy with his visit. But that wasn't how this fraternity worked. It was named Fairy Tail for a reason, though the founder had been a terrible speller.

Legends were born here. Every moment was fleeting and magical, to be savored for those years to come when wives, children and careers would get in the way of creating epic legends of their own. They had all joined this house, above all others, to be a part of something. That was why Gildarts had joined all those years ago and why he still came back. No matter what happened to Fairy Tail in the future, they always had their stories. Life lessons to live by that came at the price of more than a few Moon Drip murdered brain cells and hospital ER visits.

So, as he made it back to the dining hall where he had eaten every meal for almost four solid years so very long ago, it seemed right that he would run into Mira. She was a story all in herself. Starting the time before last that he came to visit. Throwing on a massive grin and sauntering over to where she was wiping down the bar to hand back over to her brother, she was still as beautiful as he remembered. Better even. Fuck, she just had a body that wouldn't quit.

Seeing him approaching, Mira's mouth curled up on the sides. Hopping up on the bar and swiveling her exposed legs over the bar on her ripped denim covered ass, she sat on the edge and waited for him. Wearing a matching grin, he approached, stopping just short of her position to take her offered hand and kiss it gallantly. She was like his white whale. The ultimate prize, but forever just out of reach. Smiling up at him, taking note of the additional lines around his eyes and mouth, that hadn't been there three years ago, her smile turned bittersweet. To the boys of Fairy Tail, Gildarts was immortal. An undefeated king of the party. But Mira had been able to see past that since the moment they met. And she had subsequently skipped right over the lusty phases of every other co-ed he had enthusiastically and infamously screwed, and had taken to mothering the scarred up man more than ten years her senior. She noticed his shoulders drop their tension and she held out her arms, inviting a hug. Holding her tightly for a moment, almost forgetting about the glorious breasts that had graced the pages of many a lingerie catalog pressed up against his chest, he breathed her in. He hadn't thought to see her on this trip. She had graduated several years ago and ran her own bar now. She was successful and independent. So he figured she wouldn't come to see him, even if he asked her. But here she was. With open arms, waiting. As though she could read his mind-and sometimes he really thought she could-she spoke into his ear over the pounding music that could be heard from the next room.

"Hey there stranger! Next time you come, you'll have to come see the bar. I think you'd like it. And it isn't that far from here." She pulled back, smiling. Gildarts followed her lead, reluctantly releasing her enough to step back, his hands still lingering on her hips. Her gorgeous Daisy Duke clad hips.

"So Mirajane, you old enough yet?" Gildarts joked, referring to the first conversation they ever had: in which he had hit on the college freshman and she had turned him down, declaring herself too young to be involved with him. It had become a joke between them over the years.

"Nope. Give me another ten years, and maybe we'll talk," she volleyed, a gleam in her eye that he hadn't seen before. His eyebrows rose. That was the closest he had gotten yet. Maybe his Muhammed Ali wasn't so unbeatable after all.

"I'll hold you to that!" he said, basking in the music of her laughter. Somehow, she always managed to make him feel young again. "But until then, how about a dance?"

Now it was Mira's turn to raise an eyebrow. Gildarts was notorious for his disinclination to dance. He was definitely more of a horizontal tango-er.

Recognizing the rare chance for what it was, she accepted his offered hand and followed him to the dance floor. Some things were just too few and far between to let them slip by.

* * *

Lucy raced down the sidewalk toward Fairy Tail with wings on her feet. All she could think of was Natsu. She could feel him, smell him, even taste him on her tongue. Minty and fresh. She could feel the hundreds of kisses they had shared over centuries of lives, bombarding her senses, but couldn't begin to imagine what kissing him _now_ would eventually feel like. Would it be natural and instant? Would they just see each other and not be able to contain the overwhelming feeling of finally being in the same room? Or would he feel more like the stranger he actually was? Would holding hands even seem foreign and unreal?

This had to be what she had been searching for. This was the adventure that would give her life meaning. She raced around the last turn between Fairy Hills and Fairy Tail, long hair flowing out freely behind her, and her light cotton sundress fluttering around her thighs. She felt weightless and nervous, as though the butterflies in her stomach were helping her defy gravity.

But, just as she came into sight of the house, and saw the pink-haired boy from her dreams and visions leaning against the wall of the building in nothing but a pair of fitted jeans, a brunette in expensive shoes stumbled through the front door and walked straight over to him.

Michelle, drunk off her ass, somehow remembered her Big's words of wisdom and gave the pinkette a once over before she threw herself on her unwary victim, who was caught unawares, still smiling down at his phone and the message he had just sent.

Her phone beeped at her, telling her she had a new text as Lucy felt the kiss that was meant to be hers and froze. Was this how he had felt when her and Gray had...? It was excruciating! How could he stand it?

She saw him push Michelle away, stopping what was happening almost before it started. And Lucy wanted to run up and hug him for it. And then punch Michelle again, in the lips this time so she would keep them to herself.

But the deep-seated fear, that had been suppressed up 'til now by uncontrollable joy and excitement, bubbled up at the sight of this drunken slice of her past that could ruin her future with a single unwitting phone call.

And she couldn't take another step. All she wanted to do was run and hide. With Natsu. Because somehow, she just knew, everything would be better if they were together.

And he was _right there_. _Waiting_ for her.

But so was Michelle. Because the brunette apparently refused to leave, sinking to the ground and latching onto the leg of Lucy's highly annoyed soulmate. And several feet away, other girls were drifting his direction.

Her tear ran down Natsu's cheek, instantly distracting him from the clingy drunk Mira had tried to set him up with, and he lifted his head, frantically searching for the girl he had been waiting his whole life to meet. He saw nothing, but he didn't need to.

The phone in his hand cheerfully played the first few notes of the Rocky theme, like it hadn't figured out that his heart was breaking. He opened the message, already knowing what he would see, and his head dropped, hiding a tear that was no longer just hers.

"I just can't. I'm so sorry."

* * *

 **Ok, lay it on me. I know. I'm evil. Had to happen. No regrets. Mostly.**

 **And I myself am not totally sold on the whole Mira/Gildarts thing. Something that sort of shook out that I'm playing with...we'll see. I kind of like him under her spell...**

 **Some things! Because learning! lol**

 **Valkyrie** -actually a Norse mythological figure that chose which warriors lived, and which would die and be taken to Valhalla to await Ragnarök. Basically equalling a massive battle at the end of days. Due to their appearance being similar to an angel, beautiful women with wings, and their inherent nature to choose, Jet associates Levy with one of them. Powerful good, and holding all her power over him.

" **When the prison doors are open, the real dragon will fly out!"** -quote from Ho Chi Minh former prime minister of Vietnam...Erza has read a lot of material on warfare, which tends to come out during her "campaigns" of drunkenness.

 **Paint It, Black** -song by the Rolling Stones, in which the singer sees everything and fantasizes about painting it black. Pretty sure it's some metaphorical allegory for something...I like to think Laki takes it literally…GOD she's fun to write.

 **Daisy Dukes** -really short denim shorts that have been cut off and are frayed, made famous by the daughter in the 1979 to 1985 television show the Dukes of Hazzard that was later remade in a movie. Daisy Duke always wore that type of denim short and eventually the name stuck. Gildarts is showing his age a bit here...


	18. The Flame of Guilt

Natsu blinked at his phone and reread the message.

And almost lost it. WHAT THE FUCK?!

What the hell happened?! They were so close!

He looked up and around, searching in vain for any sign of Lucy. A spike of adrenaline was coursing through him as he could feel Lucy running in a panic, her labored breathing making his own throat burn. He tried to move with her, follow her, somehow, and was reminded of the drunk human shackle cuddling with his leg.

What the fuck was wrong with this chick? First he's not good enough, then she's plastered all over him?...SHIT what if Lucy had seen her kissing him! For a second he considered giving the brunette a good kick to the jaw, but stopped himself just in time. She was a girl. And Erza would kill him for hitting a girl. Particularly a drunk one. Plus, Lucy wasn't that dumb. If she saw the kiss, she also saw him clearly not being into it. So that was no excuse for her bullshit. There had to be something else going on. He quickly dialed her phone number, not really holding out hope that she would answer.

"Damnit Lucy! Pick up the phone, you weirdo..." he muttered, pushing Michelle's face away from where she was nuzzling his thigh. He did not have time for this shit.

But her next words froze him in place as Lucy's phone just kept ringing.

Brrrring.

"Wait, Lucy Heartfilia?! What the FUCK? Is she ever gonna stop stealing shit from me?"

Brrring.

Natsu just stared blankly down at the girl now pouting up at him.

Brrrring.

"Blonde hair, enormous tits?" she elaborated.

Beep!

"How do you know Lucy?" he asked fiercely, his eyes narrowing in suspicion as he hung up without leaving a voicemail.

"I fucking knew it! And what do you mean, 'How do I know Lucy'? How the FUCK do _you_ know her? We practically grew up together. And that bitch almost single-handedly put my daddy out of business. She's almost as bad as her bastard of an old man. Man, he is gonna flip shit when he finds out she's here partying instead of in Aspen. Little Lucky Lucy isn't _allowed_ to party. Little Lucky Lucy is a perfect robot. Following her fucking robot daddy's orders. Maybe the bitch finally ran away. Fuck, even I wouldn't blame her. That pops of hers is a piece of work," Michelle rambled on, pausing to pick up a beer bottle sitting on the patio nearby. But finding it disappointingly empty, she threw it out into the bushes. Natsu had his eyes locked on the drunk mess babbling below him. Could she be the girl Lucy said had recognized her? He tried to see if she had any bruises from being hit, but it was too dark on their corner of the patio.

"Did you get punched tonight?" he eventually just asked. His patience for the day was spent.

"YES! That bitch decked me right in the jaw!" Michelle turned her face and pointed to what he could now see was a decent purple swell on her jawline. Not too shabby. It took some strength to bruise someone up that quickly. "And after she stole my shot too! At least Mira hooked me up with more Moon Drip after that. I'm just happy she didn't fuck up my dress. This is a fucking Zac Posen. Not even released yet. She really hasn't changed at all. Still totally full of herself!"

Natsu's brain slowly processed the new information. If Michelle was the one Lucy punched, that meant…

"You're the one she's afraid of! What the fuck did you say to her?"

Michelle stopped plumping her cleavage in the low cut of her neckline long enough to squint at him.

"Huh? Why would she be afraid of me? Not like I can do anything to little miss perfect. She's fucking untouchable."

"She's afraid you'll tell her dad where she is! I think…" he trailed off, still working out Lucy's situation on the fly.

"Well yeah, I guess I would do that...but why would she care? Unless..HOLY SHIT she _did_ run away, didn't she?!" Michelle cackled overly loud as she fell over onto the patio, finally releasing Natsu's leg completely. Natsu crouched over her, glowering in anger.

"You haven't told anyone have you? You can't tell her dad where she is."

"Wouldn't you like to know.." she baited, a sly smile creeping over her lips. He leaned in and glowered at her. "I haven't told anyone...yet. What's it worth to you?" Natsu's eyes widened. Where the fuck did this girl get off? How fucked up did you have to be to sell out your childhood friend?

"What do you want?" he growled. His mind flitted through what he had in his savings account. He couldn't believe he was even considering parting with any of his hoard. That was all that remained of what Igneel left him.

His mind flashed to an image of Lucy as he had seen her with his own eyes: flushed, mouth slightly open, standing and staring at him with her suitcase at the train station. A pig pink suitcase full of everything she had in the world. His heart squeezed in his chest at the thought. Yeah, he was hyper-pissed in her direction at the moment. But for Lucy, he suspected there wasn't much he wouldn't part with. He eyed the apparently expensive dress the bitch below him had squeezed herself into. He didn't think even his savings would appease this spoiled princess though…

"Well, I don't need money, obviously. Thankfully, Mamma's family's still flush. No, what I need is a boyfriend. Preferably one dedicated to fulfilling my every demand. And hot. Because I do have an image to uphold…" Michelle took a moment to let her eyes wander over his bare chest and arms. She clearly liked what she saw. Natsu's stomach turned. What a harpy. "Well, what'll it be handsome? You can always say no. Lucy's daddy is just a phone call away.." She removed her phone from her cleavage (what the fuck? was every girl doing that now?!) and waved it in front of him.

He wanted Lucy to feel safe, so she would finally fucking meet him in person, but being someone else's fake boyfriend wouldn't help the situation at all. He was damned if he did and damned if he didn't. While he ground his teeth in fury and tried to figure out a way out of the mess he had somehow created in the last 15 minutes, Michelle staggered to her feet, barely balancing on her ridiculous shoes. His eyes followed hers as they rose, which gave him the perfect view of the ruckus happening behind her. His face paled out of instinct as the scarlet-haired Amazonian battling to the door caught sight of him and changed directions to push her way through the crowd on the patio toward him.

"Shit," he intoned, preparing for the worst. Where the fuck was Mystogan?

Oh. Right behind her apparently. Natsu gave him the _What the fuck man?! You had one job!_ look.

Mystogan shot him an apologetic look back and gestured behind Erza's back what was clearly, _Sorry! It's fucking Erza! There's only so much I can do!_

Natsu cleared his throat and gave a slight nod, the customary answer of _Apologies for doubting you, understood, your sacrifice has been appreciated._ Erza didn't notice any of this exchange, instead grabbing Natsu by the arm.

"Natsu. The game is afoot. All hands on deck!" she commanded him, her boozy breath washing over his face.

"Erza, I would love to come help you with whatever you are doing as soon as this bitch is done blackmailing me...what the fuck have you been drinking?" His eyes skittered over to Mystogan in question as he gestured to Michelle, his fear ramping up when the blunette's eyes went wide and tried to convey something he couldn't decipher. He tilted his head and furrowed his eyebrows as he tried to figure it out.

Which was why he almost missed Erza turning on her heel and punching Michelle in the face, knocking her out instantly. The girl crumpled to the patio as Natsu's eyes darted back to follow her down, stunned, though in hindsight, he really shouldn't be. Erza had always had a weird way of taking care of his problems for him. Her next words jarred him out of his thoughts.

"Don't curse. It's rude. Now take her phone and deal with it later. I have need of you."

Nodding quickly and grabbed Michelle's phone where it had fallen before stepping over the fallen girl, Natsu scurried after her. Mystogan sighed. Guess it was up to him to get the blackmailer to a couch or something...or he could just pull her aside and follow Erza some more…the girl was only a blackmailer after all…and Erza was pretty damn fun to follow...

Grabbing the woman by the arms, he dragged her over to the edge of the patio and laid her on her side, just in case. Blackmailer or not, no one deserved to asphyxiate on their own vomit. Well...very few people. Satisfied with her position, he rushed after Erza.

As Mystogan set foot in the house, he took all of the party changes to his home in stride. Black-lighting and loud music were pretty par for the course for a Fairy Tail blow out. Looking around, he couldn't see Erza from the entry, so he headed toward the dining room.

Bacchus and Elfman were at their posts, looking a little worse for wear, but getting pumped up pulling bar tricks. The ice luges (which really had turned out spectacular, props to Gray for that) were surrounded as some blonde freshman licked the ice-melt off one, trying to sooth what was apparently a pretty burnt tongue. Mystogan didn't need to hear any of their conversation to know another idiot had tried to replicate Natsu's Fire Dragon Roar. Happened every year at least once. Dumbasses.

Not seeing Erza anywhere, he waved a hand at a Elfman's _what the fuck are you doing here?_ stare, and went to check the rec room, where he could feel Bickslow's subwoofer doing its work. Glancing around the much darker room, lit only by stray white garments that lit up in odd moving shapes as the people wearing them moved to the music.

Squinting, he didn't see Erza, but he caught sight of Mira grinding against their guest of honor. He choked on his own saliva. There was a sight he thought he would never see. Gildarts didn't dance. And Mira was notoriously not interested in the boxer. Well, there was a first time for everything. Laxus was not going to be too happy to hear of this little development…

Pushing himself back on track, he quickly scanned the rest of the room, determining that Erza as nowhere to be seen and hadn't been there recently. Mira definitely wouldn't be dancing with Gildarts if she knew the Titania was in the vicinity. He sent up a brief prayer to whatever god might be listening that they didn't run into each other. That was the last thing any of them needed. He tucked that worry in with the others at the back of his mind and focused on the current issue. Where else would the fiery redhead go?

The last two logical locations left to search were the basement and outside. And the basement was closer.

Mystogan took the stairs two steps at a time, bursting through the doorway into a weirdly quiet room full of people. As he surveyed the stunned looks and still bodies, he knew the Titania had been there. Only moments before him, he would venture to guess. Taking a shot of Moon Drip from one of her unsuspecting victims who still held it halfway to his mouth, the blunette threw it back. There was no point in him staying sober at this point. He had already failed his mission and might as well enjoy himself in the aftermath. As he turned to go, one of the younger members of FT, Sho, stood up with an uncapped black marker in his hand as he turned away from a corner of the room full of limp bodies. Mystogan raised an eyebrow as he locked eyes with his light-haired brother. Sho grinned.

"I love it when she does this. It's tradition that all victims of Erza get cat whiskers. I gotta go find Wally! He won't want to miss this!" Sho exclaimed as he booked it up the stairs. Mystogan was confused for a second, before he vaguely remembered that Sho and Wally had been childhood friends of Erza's...or something, before Natsu and Gray even. He would definitely have to ask about that more in depth later. Right now he had a semi-violent nudist to find.

He felt the Moon Drip hit him as he set a foot on the first stair. Like a pro, he leaned against the nearest wall to let it pass. Many a drunk frat brother had succumbed to injury climbing these stairs under the influence of the purple elixir. Once the wave had passed, he took steady hold of the banister and hauled himself up to the ground floor again, following cheering noises and jeering cries to the backyard.

As he left the house he was met by the sight of Natsu holding Bora's arms behind his back while Erza took off all of her knives and laid them out one by one on a picnic table. The pervert in question was struggling and releasing a steady stream of unoriginal curses that increased in volume and panic as she organized the switchblades. There were already six, and she was pulling another from her boot.

Mystogan then realized she had been doing all of that running in laced up brown leather boots. Who the fuck was her personal trainer!? Because when he woke up tomorrow, he was finding that person and signing the fuck up. Natsu saw him walking through the crowd and waved him over with his head. Mystogan pushed his way through the surrounding drunk populace and found a place next to Natsu and the struggling womanizer he was holding.

"Hey, you think you can do this? I've got something I have to do. He's a total wimp. Though I will say that even though she's definitely more mellow than usual, she really didn't need me. What the fuck did she drink anyway?" Natsu trailed off, more serious than Mystogan had seen him since _that night_ when he had carried Gray back to the house unconscious over his shoulder. Whatever it was he had to do must be pretty important. Everyone knew Natsu loved watching Erza fight people...when he wasn't challenging her to fight himself.

"Yeah, sure, I can take over. I thought the plan was to take him to the cops though...and she's usually MORE violent? That has to be the Moon Drip working on her then." Moon Drip had a mellowing effect on its consumers. That was one reason they always had to have it when Gildarts came. Otherwise he would destroy half the frat every time he came. Most people didn't know that though. Including Gildarts.

Natsu briefly wondered if the Moon Drip in his system was keeping him from looking at this normally too. After all, he had felt Lucy making out with Gray and hadn't punched anyone. That just wasn't normal. And he totally wasn't the type to confess is love to anyone with or without booze...maybe he should try harder to abstain from Moon Drip in the future...and Erza definitely should...

"What the hell?! How did she get her hands on Moon Drip?! You know what. Never mind. I don't even want to know. At least that explains her weird-ass behavior. And she probably was planning on taking him in. Before she walked out here and saw him stealing one of _their_ swimsuit tops." Mystogan stepped forward to take the struggling man's arms, but Natsu shook his head. "You're gonna wanna take off your shirt. It'll save you time getting the blood out later."

Blinking a couple of times to process his explanation, Mystogan pulled off his shirt and glanced at the group of women Natsu had gestured to, all wearing swimwear and carrying Fairy Tail shot trays like shields. As one impenetrable unit they stood around a single girl, whose mascara had made trails down her cheeks. After a moment he realized he recognized her. She had come for a previous Greek event or something. What was her name? Milly, maybe? He wasn't sure, but he totally remembered her. Not a lot of people wore cat ears everywhere. Shaking off his thoughts, he moved to take Bora from the pinkette again, this time with no resistance.

Erza had finished divesting herself of her weapons and had moved on to her hair, securing the long ponytail up into a twisty bun instead, like a hair ninja. Mystogan got lost in her motions for a moment, admiring the swift and sure actions. He was starting to believe that he could easily watch her doing just about anything and find it interesting. The combination of beauty and badassery she displayed he found utterly fascinating. Luckily, she seemed to be coming out of her flashback-to-Jellal-drunk phase too, which was confirmed when Erza addressed him.

"Mystogan, release the prisoner, but keep him from escaping. Only cowards run from a trial by combat, but I suspect he will prove his cowardice soon enough."

And with that, Mystogan released the struggling man and stepped back, maintaining his braced stance. Several of his fellow frat brothers came to stand on either side of him. He smiled at the ready backup and relaxed a bit. This guy wasn't going anywhere.

Natsu heard Erza asking Mystogan to release the perverted fucker as he headed back into the house, phoning Lucy again, getting more and more pissed as it just rang and rang. He felt her eyes well up with tears, and his own respond accordingly. Her phone didn't have a voicemail message, simply ending with a beep. This time he left her a fucking message.

"Godsdamnit Lucy. This is shitty. Answer your phone. At least tell me why! Lucy? I talked with Michelle! I know she was the one you were talking about! This is so fucking stupid! Just pick up the phone! We need to talk...oh, fuck it."

He hung up, if possible more pissed than before. She knew who it was. She could pick up if she wanted. But she was ignoring his calls on purpose. With no explanation. And Natsu wasn't in the mood to ride her crazy roller coaster of emotion right now. There had to be another way to find her. Maybe Gray knew something. He pulled back the blinds on the nearest window and checked the parking lot. His beat up old Camry was in its spot, so the back-stabbing bastard had to be here somewhere. The pinkette gritted his teeth and set off to find his missing roommate, wiping Lucy's tears from his eyes as they overflowed.

* * *

Lucy tried not to cry. She had done enough to hurt Natsu tonight. The last thing he needed right now was for her to add another layer of her weakness to the mix. She turned her phone to silent as it lit up again with his name and number, and flung it a few feet away into the grass. She had made it back to Fairy Hills on adrenaline alone, but the sight of her apartment complex unexpectedly drained her of energy and she hadn't bothered to enter, instead taking refuge in the shaded area between the building and a copse of tall bushes. The warm bricks at her back served as little comfort as she buried herself in her guilt.

She could still feel the tightness in his chest. The clench of his jaw. She tried to block it out, but found that the more she tried not to focus on it, the quicker his body's actions flew to the forefront of her mind. Her fists clenched and unclenched with his out of reflex. Thankfully Michelle was no longer weighing down his leg. That feeling had made her almost trip more than once while running home.

How the fuck was she going to fix this?! She couldn't drag him into her problems with her dad. She didn't know what she had been thinking when she asked to meet him! It was like her heart completely overrode her mind and took control of her body. Was that a drunk thing? Or a love thing? Was she in love with him? Or was she just assuming she could be because she knew he was her soulmate?

It felt like the adrenaline from her panic had cleared her head a little, steadily melting back the layers of warm tingle from Natsu's words and revealing the same scared little girl she used to be. Shutting down externally, but freaking out on the inside. Her father, once more, an insurmountable force determining her fate. She felt alone again. So alone. And the tears finally flowed down her cheeks, unchecked. Thank god she had put on waterproof eyeliner. Just one more thing to add to the ever growing list of messed up things she had inflicted on him tonight.

She doubted Natsu would be finding ways to hug her this time. She had fucked up too bad. The only saving grace of the situation was that he wouldn't remember getting hurt. He would wake up and not have to remember the pain of her constant unexplained betrayal. He wouldn't even know about Gray. And maybe that was best. It would hurt to keep something like that from him, but wouldn't he be happier not knowing his soulmate made out with his best friend? Sure it would be shitty to live with keeping from him, but wouldn't it just be better to keep him in the dark? For him, and for their relationship? That's what her father would tell her to do. Lying was a currency in which he had generously paid her.

She could hear her father whispering in her ear again. _Heartfilias take any advantage they can get. It's the only way to stay on top._ She smiled sadly at the memory that came with it, her father coaching her to fake an asthma attack to get out of a speeding ticket. It was just the first of many times he had taught her how to always come out of any circumstance as the victor, no matter the immorality of the actions that got her there.

But that wasn't her. Not anymore. What her father thought was right, was more than likely the complete wrong choice. She couldn't lie to Natsu. Not forever anyway. One day she would tell him everything. When her father wasn't around the corner waiting to cage her again. When it wouldn't endanger him too. He deserved to know. He deserved to know what his soulmate had done to him. And decide for himself if it was something he could live with. She just hoped he could forgive her. And Gray. It had been an honest mistake. Especially for Gray. The look of horror on Gray's face as he saw the writing on her arm and backed away would stay with her for a long time. And the guilt when he had tried to get her to stay.

What would it have been like if she had stayed? Hidden in their room until Natsu could find his way to her...the night certainly would have ended a lot different. She probably wouldn't be crying outside her apartment building. Though, maybe she still would be. Maybe everything was fated to end up the same every time. Lucy alone and scared.

One more win marked up for Jude Heartfilia.

* * *

Gray wanted to throttle whoever had pranked their goddamned rooms. It was a miracle the girl clutching his arm hadn't run for the hills already. They had been victim of an avalanche of water and then sugar which stuck and stayed until they tried to shower it off and ended up adding Kool-aid to the mix. Eventually finding a shower that still spewed clear water (after three tries) where, instead, everything in the room had been turned upside down, they had abandoned the bedrooms and were heading to Cana's trusty closet. At this point, Gray wasn't picky. He needed to release some of this tension. And this was the only way he knew how.

He cautiously knocked on the supply closet door when they reached it and the door burst open to reveal Jet, hastily zipping up his pants and avoiding their eyes. He booked it down the hall. Behind him, Cana grinned and pulled her shirt back on. Gray's eyebrows rose. How the fuck was the girl still standing? Magic liver aside, there was a limit to what the human body could withstand. And she had to be close to reaching it. Cana winked as she passed Gray and his newest conquest.

"I'd offer you a condom, but I just used my last one. Closet's all yours hot stuff!"

Gray watched her walk away, stretching out her back. Fuck that chick was nuts.

His attention was successfully averted by his next lay dragging him into the closet and closing the door behind them.

Cana stopped walking to lean against a wall and grab her ankle from behind to stretch out her quad. She was getting an excellent workout tonight. All of her muscles had that glorious hum of near exhaustion. Now she just had to track down a bed to sleep in for the night...where did that attractive bartender end up...or better yet, Pinkie himself was headed her way. And he was shirtless. Bonus.

"Yo, Natsu! Wanna snuggle up and take a nap with me? I'll make it worth your while.." she said with a playful wink. The brunette knew he wasn't going to take her up on it, if that weird confession by video during the relay had been any indication, but that didn't mean he wasn't super fun to flirt with.

"You know, at this point, I'm tempted to take you up on that," the pinkette growled at her, running a hand through his hair and glancing around the hall. Cana's eyebrows went up at that. What the fuck had happened to lover boy?

"Feelings not returned? That's the breaks kid," she sympathized. Unrequited love could do shitty things to you. That's generally why she avoided it all together. His eyes were red, like he'd been crying. She couldn't imagine him being the crying type though. He was much more the punch the shit out of everything type. Like her dad. And based on her internal Gildarts-Wrecking-Gauge, Natsu was just about ready to pop.

"No, not really the issue. Just...listen, I can't get into this. And frankly, I barely know you. I'm just looking for my roommate. He drove you guys here from the airport I think." Natsu fidgeted, scrubbing his hair with his hand harder than needed. He was itching to punch something again...maybe the Moon Drip was starting to work it's way out of his system finally...or he was finally mad enough to feel it.

"Gray? Yeah, I just saw…" Cana trailed off, watching Natsu. Gray was... _busy_. And it would be poor form to return his polite knock on her closet with an Angry Natsu cockblock. Casual sex enthusiasts had to help each other out. Gods only knew no one else would. And she had no doubt that Natsu would absolutely barge right into that closet fists first. Because that's exactly what her temperamental daddy would do. Particularly if there was a girl involved. So she changed tactics.

"You know what? That was someone else actually. Got mixed up. Gray walked some girls home and didn't think he'd be back tonight I think. All this booze I've had. Making me fuzzy in the head and all that unfortunate drunk stuff. I should really be passed out by now. How about that nap? No funny business. You just really look like you could use a break…"

Natsu released a sound somewhere between a growl and a scream, discouraged that he wouldn't be able to find Gray and see if he knew where Lucy might be so they could have it out already. He had only one choice left. And the chances of Lucy responding to a message on his arm was about as likely as her calling him back. Unless he could march up to her and cage her in face to face, he wasn't going to get the answers he needed. Which wasn't going to happen. So he might as well get some sleep. Then maybe he could wake up and he wouldn't feel lik putting his hand through the wall.

Still wearing his belligerent expression, he grabbed Cana's arm and dragged her back to his and Gray's room. While he put on a t-shirt - because despite his roommate's habits, he had fucking standards - Cana examined the couch-o-porn sitting where their sofa used to be.

"Shit, that is a lot of porn," she said, eyeing the pinkette with speculation. "That yours or Grays? Or do you watch it together?" Natsu snorted.

"Neither. Someone at the party pranked our room and replaced our couch with it."

Cana kicked over a stack and examined the titles.

"Where did they get all the hard copies? Doesn't everyone just use the internet anymore?"

"Beats me. But by the sheer amount I'm guessing they raided every stash in the house, though most of it is probably leftover from when Macau and Wacaba lived here," Natsu said as he pulled himself up to his loft and pointed to the ladder nailed to the wall. "You comin' up? Or if you want you can take Gray's bed. Not like the fucker'll need it tonight."

Cana eyed her choices and decided on Gray's bed. Rock hard abs were hot to look at, but not the most comfortable for snuggling. Plus, she didn't get involved with people she knew were attached. She didn't need the drama. And Natsu screamed unavailable. She climbed the ladder and dove onto Gray's mattress, hearing something crackle under the bedspread.

"I don't know if I should be insulted or disgusted that you prefer ice-prick's bed to mine," Natsu commented with little investment in the tease. He clearly had other things on his mind. Cana rolled to the side and pulled back Gray's bedspread to see what was making all the noise.

To reveal what had to be every condom in the house.

"Well, how can I not take advantage of a bed full of condoms? Jackpot!" Cana said with a grin, stuffing a handful into her pocket and several into her bra before lovingly covering her pervy trove back up and hugging the mattress with a blissful smile. She murmured her thanks to the sex gods. They had treated her _very_ well tonight. Natsu just watched her actions with amusement.

"You are one freaky girl, you know that? I can't decide who's the weirdest: you, the prankster who decided Gray and I needed all the porn and condoms in the house, or Lucy." The moment after her name left his lips, his jaw clenched and his brow furrowed again. Feeling the tone of the room change, Cana turned her head towards the other loft bed and eyed her nap-mate. He was on his back now, staring blankly at the ceiling with his corded arms crossed tightly over this chest.

"So, Lucy's the almost love of your life that has been keeping you from banging me all night?"

Natsu breathed out a chuckle of laughter. Cana grinned. She was nothing if not good at defusing tension.

"And what makes you think I just don't want to fuck you?" he said. Cana's grin settled into a wry smirk.

"Well, no one but you has turned me down tonight, so I say if _you're_ single and feel free enough to screw whoever you want, then _I'm_ a fucking lightweight. Plus, you're forgetting, I saw you write that message on your arm. You lit up like a fucking christmas tree. You clearly have it bad." Cana yawned and settled into Gray's condom-filled bed a bit more, hugging his pillow to her face. "My experience with people who have fallen for the Big L, is that even when things aren't going well, they never really want to shut up about it. So spill. You'll feel way better. And I don't really know either of you, so where's the harm? Chances are you'll never see me again, right? So get it off your chest."

Natsu considered her words for a few minutes, eventually turning to face her again and curling up on his side. He took a second to search her face for something. He must have found it, because the next thing Cana new he was spilling everything. All about the freaky weird connection with this girl. And what had been happening the last few weeks, and what had happened with Gray, and his phone call and pretty much more than anyone had ever said to Cana in one stretch. The word vomit just kept on coming.

Admittedly, she had to suspend belief on the whole shared writing thing. But for an undrunkable girl with an booze converting mechanical liver, suspending belief had never really been a problem. So she listened, making the right noises in the right places. And waited for him to talk himself out. Eventually, his ramble turned into a murmur, which turned into a hum, which morphed into a light snore.

Shit did she not envy the mess he was in. But at the same time she envied him. He would never be alone again. That kind of gift shouldn't be taken lightly. Not everyone got an unconditional witness to their life. She hoped they could work out their shit. Because underneath all the frustration and the anger, she had seen eyes that shined brighter and a smile that crept unbidden onto his face that made his earlier competitive grins pale in comparison. Wherever Lucy was, Cana hoped she knew how lucky she was. With that final thought, Cana drifted off, letting her body heal the damage she had inflicted the only way it knew how: blessed oblivion.

About five minutes later, Gray entered his room, hoping to find it empty. What he found instead was an opportunity. Natsu's arm had fallen over the side of the loft, dangling down enticingly.

Smiling grimly, Gray searched for a marker on his desk and turned up a blue sharpie. He uncapped it and approached his writing surface with care, thinking over the easiest way for Lucy to read what he was going to write. Eventually standing under the loft and deciding to write on the inside of his forearm, he went to put marker to skin and paused. Permanent marker...he didn't want to leave evidence for Natsu tomorrow if he couldn't change Lucy's mind...reminded of the first conversation he had witnessed happening between the two, he dug deep in his memory and started writing.

グレイです。話し合いが必要です。あなたの電話番号は何ですか？

(It's Gray. We need to talk. What's your phone number?)

It wasn't elegant, or even written in the correct direction, but it would hopefully get the message across without tipping off their intermediary. He just hope she had actually studied Japanese like he suspected she had. Several minutes went by before a response steadily appeared, hesitant, but clear.

奈津は電話でそれを持っています。私たちはこれをしてはいけません。

(Natsu has it in his phone. We shouldn't be doing this.)

Reading that, Gray cringed and peeked over the edge of the loft. Thankfully, Natsu's phone was on the mattress right near the edge. It was honestly the first piece of luck Gray had had all night. He carefully grabbed the phone and swiped in, knowing Natsu's stupid pin by heart (7777, the dumbass) and went to his contacts. There she was. He pulled out his own phone and copied her info into his contacts, silencing the pinkette's cell and carefully putting it back where he found it. He seriously needed the sleep. He glanced at his roommate's arm again and did a double take as he saw another line of kanji appeared before his eyes.

明日私にテキスト。私はその後、物事を説明します。

(Text me tomorrow. I'll explain stuff then.)

He was just getting ready to write back when a familiar, hushed voice startled him.

"Holy shit it's real!"

Gray jumped and looked around, finally thinking to look up into his loft to see Cana leaning over the edge looking at him. He quickly capped his marker and dropped it.

"What's real? My hotness? Because I think I made that pretty clear earlier tonight," Gray covered cooly but softly, with only a slight hesitation to betray his humming nerves. Not the best lie he'd ever spun, but it would do.

"Oh shut up," she whispered. "Natsu told me all about Lucy. And your escapades too, you naughty boy you."

Gray paled and the guilt reared it's ugly head again. It was all going to be fine, he reminded himself. He was going to convince Lucy that Natsu needed to know and tell him everything. It would all shake out...hopefully. In the meantime...there was Cana. Damnit Natsu. He was the one who wanted to keep this a secret in the first place! At least now there was clearly no point in lying, if Natsu had told her everything.

"I didn't know it was her, ok? We didn't know her name, and how the fuck was I supposed to know the babe wandering into Fairy Tail looking for a good time was _her_? There was literally no way of knowing…" The guilt practically leaked from his pores. It was the truth, but it still felt like they had done something wrong.

"Yeah, that's what it sounded like to me. But I wouldn't expect Natsu to let it go so easily. He's still pretty pissed at you."

"That doesn't surprise me. But it's not like he'll remember anything tomorrow anyway. It would be so much better if he did."

"Really?" Cana raised her eyebrows. "You really prefer he would remember that you made out with his girl? What are you, some kind of masochist?"

"Well, yeah, it would be better if it had never happened. But it did, and he'll find out eventually either way. I just wish I could be the one to tell him."

"Then why can't you?"

"Lucy was really scared. Of something happening. I guess Natsu knowing her name would put him in a lot of danger. So she made me promise I wouldn't tell him it was me. That I was the one that kissed her. Except Natsu figured it out on his own. Which was great. But come morning he won't remember it. And I made a promise. So, yeah, I barely know her, but I think she honestly cares about Natsu. And if she is really that scared of what could happen to him if he is associated with her, then I have to trust that it's the right thing to do for Natsu. At least for now. Anyway that's what I'm doing. Trying to get her to talk to me, so I can judge for myself and maybe convince her that Natsu needs to find her. Shit, listen to me! This whole thing is so fucked up! They're linked through their bodies. They clearly belong together on some cosmic level. Why is it so hard for them to just hook up and be together?!" He finished whispering and looked at Cana for answers. Which she didn't have. It seemed pretty straightforward to her too. But then she only had half the story. She wondered what Lucy's side was like.

At that moment Romeo burst through the door to the room.

"Is Natsu in here? It's time for the fireworks and I can't find him!" he yelled in a panic.

Natsu jolted awake at the noise instantly, almost hitting his head on the ceiling again, but just barely catching himself. His eyes flickered around the room, taking in Romeo and Cana, and settling on Gray.

In the time it took for the group to collectively inhale, he had leapt head first out of the loft and tackled Gray to the ground.

"You JACKASS! Where the fuck is she? Where did she go?! Why didn't you stop her?" Natsu accompanied each question with a punch to the face. Gray did his best to block the worst of the hits, taken surprise by the fury with which Natsu struck. Usually when they fought it was marked, more about the movements than the force behind them. But Natsu was actually hitting him now. Trying to hurt him. And that made him mad. He bucked his hips, dislodging Natsu, who adjusted and threw a left hook at him. Gray just dodged and got his feet under him.

"Fuck Natsu! I didn't fucking know it was her! What, you expect me to ignore every gorgeous blonde woman I meet on the off chance that it's your fucking girl? That's bullshit and you know it. AND I'M SORRY, ALRIGHT?!" Gray paused to take a swing back at Natsu, finally holding his own. Natsu ducked it and went for his ribs, which Gray didn't quite block in time. Pain blossomed from his side, as his breath was forced out of him. Fuck, he felt like he had just been kicked by a horse or something. As he struggled to regain his breath, Romeo jumped on Natsu's back, managing to get a decent hold on one arm and around his neck.

Which was the worst possible thing he could do.

"Let go of his neck!" Gray gasped, trying to force air into his lung, doubling over again from the sting of pain. He was pretty sure his rib was broken. But he was more worried for Romeo, who hadn't heard him.

Natsu's eyes went wide, his pupils shrinking as they skittered to the air around him, torn between anger and absolute terror. He flipped Romeo over his head and put his back to the wall under Gray's bed, desperate to keep them all in view, but not really seeing them. Gray moved as slowly as he could, trying to breath slowly and shallowly so he didn't fuck up his lung any worse than his ribs. Luckily he had run into someone who could help on his way back to the room. In a low voice, he spoke to Cana, who thankfully had gotten down from the loft during the fight, and was closest to the door.

"Cana, get Erza. Now!"

"Who's Erza?!"

"Red-headed woman, born fighter, you can't miss her." He wheezed, trying to take in a little more air. "Just call her name loud enough and she'll come running, now go."

Gray put himself between Natsu and the door as Cana took off through it. He tried reaching out an arm, but barely snatched it back in time to avoid Natsu breaking it. Yeah, he was in full on flashback mode. Not good. The last time he had been forced to "defend" himself from his spontaneous terror, he had knocked out six frat brothers and destroyed the front door to the house. When he got like this, Erza was the only one good enough to keep him from hurting her. And she had something he didn't that helped calm down Natsu.

In the meantime, they should at least try to get through to him. Talk to him. Convince him that he wasn't in a warzone. That no one was coming to kill him. Or force him to kill someone else. Gray was still having trouble getting enough breath to speak, but luckily he had Romeo.

"Romeo, talk to him," he gasped out, flinching at the pain in his side at the action. "Tell him where he is. Tell him it's not real. Whatever he's seeing…No one is trying to hurt him, stuff like that."

"Um, ok...Uh, Natsu, it's Romeo. You're in Fairy Tail. In your room. Gray and I are here and Erza is on her way. Whatever you're seeing, it's not real. We are not your enemies. No one is trying to hurt you. Everything is ok. You're safe, ok? You're in Fairy Tail…" Romeo rambled on, repeating himself in as soothing a voice as he could. Slowly Natsu slunk to the ground, still not taking his eyes of them, but no longer actively seeking to get away from them. Then Erza arrived. She took in the situation instantly and stepped next to Gray.

"Natsu, it's Erza. You're not there. You are not in Pergrande. You are not going to hurt anyone. You're ok. You're here at Fairy Tail with us. Close your eyes. It will be ok. No one is going to hurt you. Listen to my voice. You know my voice. There weren't girls in the camp with you, so you know it can't be real. Where are you Natsu?"

The pinkette shook his head, his eyes squeezed shut.

"Answer me Natsu. Open your eyes now, look at me and tell me where you are. You're ok. You're braver than this, I know you are. Now open up your eyes and look at me."

Natsu clenched his fists, still squatting as close to the ground as he could get and turned his face to her voice. Wincing and flinching, he opened his eyes, finding Erza's.

"Where are you Natsu?" Erza asked again.

"Fairy Tail," he said through clenched teeth, slowly relaxing his hands. Erza slowly stepped forward, lowering herself to his level as he stayed where he was. Carefully, she held up the object she had snagged on the way in the door.

"Take it Natsu. Put it back on."

The pinkette reached out and took the scarf she held, wrapping it around his neck like it was some kind of armor. Bullet proof. Once he had the scarf on, he looked back at Erza and exhaled heavily the breath he had been holding, bringing one shaking hand up to wipe the sweat off his brow.

"How many did I get this time Erza?" he asked, trying to smile, but failing.

"Not one Natsu. Now stay there, I'll get you some water."

"Ok," he replied feeling numb. His gaze floated to Gray and Romeo, hanging back behind her.

"Romeo? Did you need something?" Natsu's biggest fan just shook his head.

"Nah, don't worry about it. Nothing I can't handle. You just get some rest ok?"

Natsu nodded, managing something closer to a real smile now. Romeo ducked his head and left, closing the door behind him.

Sliding to the floor against the wall across from Natsu, Gray wheezed out another breathe. Leaning over seemed to help a little. Though would be a lot more comfortable without all the porn and notebooks everywhere. They really needed to track down what had happened to their couch.

"What set me off?" Natsu asked, his voice dead and emotionless.

"Romeo, he grabbed you around your neck. Took less than a minute and you were gone."

"But I didn't hurt anyone?"

"No one but me. And that had nothing to do with the flashback."

Natsu's eyebrows drew together as he stared at Gray. Erza handed him a glass of water and left the room to check on her prisoner, left in the keeping of Mystogan until they could find a proper ride to the police station...via the hospital. When the two boys were alone, Natsu turned back to Gray and spoke, his voice still a little shaky, but growing in confidence again.

"Look, I know you didn't mean to. And you didn't know and all that. But it doesn't change the fact that you kissed her. And touched her. And I can't just forget that. I mean I may forget tomorrow, but I don't think something like this can stay buried. And every time I look at you now, all I can think about is you touching her. So...I want to forgive you. You're my fucking brother. But right now, I just can't. Ok? I'll try. But, just, I can't right now. Everytime I see your fucking face, I just want to punch it."

Gray's mouth quirked up at one side in the mockery of a smile. Natsu was actually _trying_ to be mature about the whole thing. Would wonders never cease? Once again Gray was tempted to thank Lucy, but he kept that particular missive in his head. He had been punched enough for one night.

"Fair enough. I get it."

"Now, you back-stabbing popsicle, get someone to drive you to the hospital and set your ribs before you puncture a lung."

"Aye sir."

* * *

Lucy leaned against her building trying to get her heartrate down. She was pretty sure she had just had a heart attack. And since there was no stress on her heart at all, it hadn't come from her. It was him. Something bad was happening to him! She glanced down at the kanji on her arm and scolded herself for not getting Gray's number. Then she could fucking call him and ask. But she had no choice now. She scrambled to her phone and quickly selected his number, holding the device to her ear and placing the other hand over her racing heart.

It rang and went to voicemail.

That was fair.

And her heart seemed to have calmed down a bit.

But as she go up from the floor of her room, where she had ventured to get a writing utensil to respond to Gray, she had to wonder…

What the fuck _was_ that?

The question plagued her all night, until, finally, she fell into a fitful but decided sleep.

* * *

 **Phew. One fucking day this arc will be over! Probably next update...because the next chapter is called Daybreak. Three guesses as to what that will be about. )**

 **Quick announcement: Due to some personal things and epic developments in writing process thanks to some help from Shedauwz (author of Hangover, fucking great, go check it out if you haven't), I will be updating once a week instead of twice. On Tuesdays, because it turns out Mondays are my busiest days...who knew? I want to remain able to answer all your reviews and still manage to see my husband occasionally without compromising the quality of my work, so I'm giving this a shot. I will try to make up for the less frequent updates, by maintaining the longer chapter length. 8,000-10,000 words if not more. This will also give me more time to edit, and get feedback on whether character development is consistent...something I have been struggling with a bit these last couple of weeks. So yeah. Tuesdays will be it I think. As always though, I'm all over the place, so who fucking knows?**

 **I think just the one thing someone might not be familiar with...PM me if I missed something. Or if you just want to talk. lol.**

 **Kanji** -the alphabet originally created by the chinese that makes up the Japanese written language. It was not used correctly orientation-wise, as I was limited by formatting. So please, Japanese people, forgive me for butchering your language.


	19. Daybreak Part 1

**Yep, you read that right. Part 1. I just can't seem to end Moon Drip to save my life...lol. Wish I could have finished it all out in one, but considering all the last minute painting and packing I've been doing for the con the last couple of days, I'm almost shocked I pulled out a chapter at all…which brings me to the last bunch of reviews. I just haven't had time to answer this go around...figured you would want the chapter instead. Review responses will return after ComiCon. Because all hail ComiCon, ruler of my pop-culture-crazy life!**

 **We leave tomorrow and get back Monday, so hopefully I'll have down time in the evenings to write my next chapter. But since my time will be taken up by meeting Dick Van Dyke and learning how to wield a lightsaber from a trained professional...I'm not making any promises. But I give you my word I will absolutely try.**

 **Tried out a thing with parallel structure this chapter. Still not sure if it 100% works, but it tickles me in a silly place, so I said, what the hell. Hope it doesn't get redundant for you.**

 **Also, trying this new thing, where I might go back and put some of the Fairy Tail House Rules at the beginning of the previous chapters to replace some of my long-ass A/Ns...let me know whatcha think! Though I won't be responding, I will be reading the shit out of your reviews like normal!**

* * *

 _Fairy Tail House Rule#30: As of her honorary initiation into Fairy Tail on the occasion of her graduation, any party hosting Mirajane Strauss will be provided with breakfast the morning after at the expense of Fairy Tail by said buxom foxy lady._

* * *

Max was fucking thirsty. Like, steal-a-juice-box-from-a-defenseless-screaming-child-and-have-no-second-thoughts-about-it-thirsty. And no matter how hard he tried, he couldn't find any drinkable water.

First he had gotten up from bed, and made it to the bathroom, but couldn't find a cup. So he tried to drink from the faucet. Only for the water to mysteriously quit working. As in, every time his mouth got close to the damn water it sputtered itself out, refusing to gift his parched tongue with even a drop of that sweet elixir of life.

Desperate for liquids, he was at the house vending machines (when had they gotten vending machines?), only to discover that all the water bottles (which was weirdly all that was stocked in said vending machines) had clearly been opened and were more than half gone. Willing to risk indirect spit-swapping in his desperation, he went to get one anyway, digging in his wallet for cash. Pulling out a Jewel bill, he discovered the machine only took coins. Which he had none of.

As he Hulked out on the vending machine, somehow not even putting a mark on the cursed concession receptacle, he managed to knock a bottle of water loose. But just as he was putting the blessed bottle to his lips, Bickslow showed up out of nowhere and knocked it out of his hand, spilling every drop out onto the carpet. Couldn't a bro help a bro out and let him drink some fucking water? What the fuck?! Head swimming, he ran for the pool, jumping in, mouth wide open-

Max woke up as a splash of water hit him squarely in the face, tainting his mouth with chlorine. Sputtering, he tried to wipe the water from his eyes with one hand and came up short, jerking his wrist painfully against a solid piece of metal that bit into his skin. Shifting his weight, he used the other hand to wipe the water from his eyes and looked around.

He was laying in the grass next to the house pool, which seemed to be a lot bluer than usual, and his hand, that had been brought up short...was apparently handcuffed to a violet-haired beauty in sopping wet clothes, who was curled up next to him. He tugged experimentally on the handcuffs, dragging her arm across his bare chest as he tried to see if there was any way to get them off.

He blinked down at the metal handcuffs with MPD clearly stamped on them. How the fuck had this girl gotten her hands on Magnolia Police Department cuffs?! What the fuck had happened last night?

He was drawing a complete blank.

Fuckin' Moon Drip.

Another wave of water hit him across the torso, drawing his eye back to the pool where Bacchus and a hot brunette were chasing each other, apparently trying to steal each other's remaining clothes. The brunette, having yanked the sopping t-shirt off of Bacchus, spun around sending a torrent of water right at Max's head, plastering his hair to his face.

He glared, through the wet blue bangs impeding his vision, at the pair of fuckers who had woken him up. A headache was coming on fast and he still desperately needed a glass of water.

Wait, his hair was FUCKING BLUE?!

GODDAMNED FUCKING MOON DRIP!

* * *

Mira was hot. Like, seventh-circle-of-hell-level-sell-her-soul-for-a-fucking-snowcone hot.

But seriously, she was practically bathing in her own sweat. In some kind of plastic bag or something, and her head was killing her. And she couldn't move. Experimentally trying to roll forward, she met with resistance and was pulled back into place. Finally deciding it was time to open her eyes, she carefully peeled her mascara-glued lashes apart and looked around. She was laying on the floor...well on a really big mattress on the floor...covered in sheets that a kindergartner could have designed. With about a dozen other people, haphazardly strewn across it. The only light in the room came from an almost solid wall of television screens, all displaying the same blue screen, giving the room an eerie glow. For a second she fantasized that she had been the victim of some crazy suicide cult pact...but then she heard a snore from across the room and almost laughed. This was Fairy Tail after all, not some kind of made up world where someone could go around indirectly killing people by suggestion. Like with a notebook, for instance. That was just silly. She reached out to touch the unfamiliar primary-colored nylon surface she was laying on and a massive flabby vinyl arm reached out instead.

Panicking slightly, Mira finally looked down. She seemed to be wearing an inflatable sumo suit, partially deflated now. Well that explained the sweat pool she was swimming in. She tried to get up again, only to notice another puffed up arm flung over her vinyl-covered chest, somehow managing to find and grab her breast even through the plastic and air. Slowly turning her head and body into the arm instead of away from it, she was met with the sight of Gildarts Clive, also sumo-suited-up, fast asleep next to her.

Huh. Well, she had ended up in weirder places at the end of a night. But not many. (Like maybe that barn party hosted by Quat Cerb before they were shut down. That was some weird shit. )

Struggling to remove Gildarts' very persistent arm, she eventually was able to roll a substitute person into her place (not an easy task in an inflatable suit, she might add) and had ripped open the velcro down her back allowing sweet sweet fresh air to kiss her damp skin...and a lot of damp skin there was.

Ok, so in an inflatable sumo suit in nothing but her underwear, on a platform of technicolor mattresses with a dozen other people in the basement of her brother's frat house with no recollection of the night before.

Yeah...maybe she _hadn't_ woken up in a weirder situation.

Peeling the suit off of herself, she waved her arms around in circles, fanning herself for a minute until her body had almost reached normal temperatures, the self made breeze was like heaven against her skin. It felt great to be free of her plastic prison.

She cringed as her bare foot stepped on something that rolled and almost sent her crashing to the floor. Mira stooped carefully, so as not to go top heavy by her free-balling boobs and topple over, and plucked up the black marker that had been abandoned on the floor of the room.

Slowly a maniacal grin spread across her face and she turned back to Gildarts, who was now groping whatever poor schmuck she had shoved in her place. On closer examination, it looked like Warren. Poor poor Warren.

She uncapped the marker and got to work on her devilish revenge…

Satisfied with her masterpieces, Mirajane recapped the marker and headed upstairs.

Well, may as well get started on breakfast. And find a shirt. And a shower. Ew.

Crossing one arm over her very naked chest, she sashayed up the last few stairs to find somewhere to freshen up.

* * *

Natsu was blissfully and deeply asleep. Like, feeling-like-his-mattress-was-made-of-kittens-and-was-slowly-melding-with-his-body-but-he-didn't-care-because-it-was-so-fluffy-he-was-gonna-die level of sleep.

"BE A MAN! WE MUST BE SWIFT AS A COURSING RIVER! BE A MAN! WITH ALL THE FORCE OF A GREAT TYPHOON! BE A MAN!-"

The sound of Elfman's CD alarm clock radio smashing to pieces thankfully silenced the blaringly loud rendition of that one song everyone fucking knows from Mulan coming through the wall next to Natsu's loft.

Cracking open his gooey-feeling eyes, just enough to see that it was still dark outside through the narrow window at the end of the room, he cringed. Who the fuck set their alarm for this early on a weekend. At least he thought it was...a weekend...probably….fucking...demon...alarm...clock….

Natsu had fallen back into a deep sleep ridiculously quickly. Like quicker-than-a-thirteen-year-old-virgin-getting-a-handjob-for-the-first-time quick.

BEEPBEEP BEEPBEEP BEEPBEEP BEEPBEE-

His Pete's Dragon alarm clock went off at top volume 15 minutes later. Fuck his life. He slammed a hand onto the snooze button and narrowed his bleary eyes as he tried to bring the digital display into focus.

Four-fucking-thirty?! What the fuck?! No wonder it was still dark out. Pulling the plug for his clock out of the wall to keep it from making any more terrible decisions without his permission, he buried his face in his gloriously soft pillow and conked out again.

When Gray's alarm then proceeded to go off half an hour later, he covered his ears with his pillow and vowed vengeance on whatever god was determined to fuck with his sacred sleep!

* * *

Gray was antsy. Like, would-have-gnawed-his-own-arm-off-if-he-had-to-lay-in-his-bed-any-longer-waiting-for-Natsu-to-wake-up-and-not-remember-what-happened-the-night-before-antsy.

Then his alarm went off. He didn't even have an alarm clock! Whoever had pranked the house sure had been thorough. He was starting to wonder who had done it. Probably Leon. That elitist bastard.

Actually on second thought, this shit was to "plebeian" for him. Leon wouldn't waste his time collecting the porn of the house into one stash, or balancing water buckets above doors. He'd call the fire department and tell them that Fairy Tail was harboring a known arsonist. That was more his style. Inconvenient and expensive.

Gray turned off his alarm and left the room, unable to keep his mind quiet enough to fall back asleep. He picked his way through the mostly deserted halls of Fairy Tail, every so often strolling past the odd passed-out party-goer. Surprisingly, one of them turned out to be Jet. Buck-ass naked and asleep face down in the first floor hall. His room wasn't even on that level. Gray wrinkled his brow. Maybe he was too drunk to get up the stairs last night? That was a serious one-eighty for Jet. He was his "golden boy" reputation to the letter, and never partied hard. Maybe something happened...or maybe it was just Moon Drip. The stuff clearly fucked people up.

Ducking his head into the bar room as he passed, he traded waves with Freed, who supervised a team of pledges putting the room back in order, preparing for breakfast.

Jeez, at five in the morning too. That was pretty harsh. Even for pledges. They really needed to throw those guys a party soon. And initiate them. They had gone above and beyond.

Just as he stood lingering in against the door frame, the remains of one of his ice luges slid off the table and crashed to the floor, splintering into fragments that went skittering across the floor in a starlike pattern. One of the pledges dropped the side of the table he was carrying to stare at it.

"That is so COOL!" the blonde yelled at the top of his lungs.

He was promptly knocked unconscious my half a dozen brooms and a dustpan. Even these pledges had their limits.

Gray moved on, strolling through the house on the after party tour. Droy was tripping down the stairs, Macao was propped up against Loke, both asleep outside the door to Loke's room, where the handle seemed to conspicuously missing, Mira was making her way out of the basement wearing nothing but her underwear, Simon was knockin on Mystogan's door...

Wait. Mira was making her way out of the basement wearing nothing but her underwear?!

She lifted an arm in a little wave toward him as his eyes glazed over. He barely heard her when she asked him for his shirt, stripping it off and handing it to her before her words had even registered. Thankfully, she had slipped into the dark shirt and he was able to function enough to send her in the right direction to use Elfman's shower.

Which also happened to be his and Natsu's shower. He cleared his throat and turned away, trying really hard not to imagine the model getting naked in his shower. Aaaaaand failed. It was really a good thing Elfman couldn't read minds…

He was swiftly distracted from his thoughts by the commotion happening outside. Cana and Bacchus seemed to be in a splash war against an army of party guests, led by Max and a purple-haired chick who was handcuffed to him. Oddly enough, Cana and Bacchus were holding their own against the horde, clearly less hungover than their opponents.

But even the greatest individual warriors can be overtaken by an angry mob, and the two had backed themselves to the edge of the pool. As if they had planned it, the two jumped from the pool simultaneously and made for the door to the house, while the group in the pool bellowed out their lackluster victory cry and promptly began floating in the pool, or lazing in the sun like a pride of sea lions.

The defeated duo made it to the shade provided by the house and grabbed random clothes from a discarded pile to start drying themselves off. Bacchus had put on his swim trunks, but Cana was still rocking her now signature blue-sequined lingerie, which looked a little worse for wear at this point. Catching sight of Gray, her eyes lit up!

"Hey Gray! How's Natsu doin'? That was a bit of doozy last night."

"WAIT. What? You remember that? HOW?!" Gray exclaimed in shock. Cana responded with a wink and a suggestive nod in Bacchus' direction.

"I guess my magical booze guzzling powers make me immune to the dreaded Moon Drip after all," she quipped, clearly giving Gray the signal not to talk about her unique super liver in front of Bacchus. She didn't want him ruining her fun.

"God I wish _I_ could remember what happened last night. Because waking up next to you has been pretty wild already!" Bacchus said, popping the cap off a random beer on the edge of the patio table and downing it quickly. Finding another, he offered it to Cana, who had him pop the lid and downed it too, making a face.

Gray just grinned. Only these two would suffer through warm beer just to keep drinking. They really were quite the pair… But as Cana pushed Bacchus into the house past him and pinched his ass, he once again had to reclassify her in a league of her own. He didn't think even Bacchus could keep her attention for long.

He followed them into the house just as the sun breached the fence of the yard, causing a collective groan and group cringe from the sea lion wannabes around the pool. He pulled his phone out to check the time. It was close to 6:30 already.

But was it still too early to call Lucy? He was anxious to talk to her before Natsu was up and about, but he also didn't want to wake her up… But, she didn't have to pick up now, did she? He could always leave a message so she at least had his number and could call him back…

So, Gray went to her name in his phone and hit call.

* * *

Lucy was getting pissed. Like, not-quite-physically-kicking-someone-out-of-her-apartment-and-then-painfully-down-the-block-pissed, but definitely getting there. The loud music and noises coming through her connection to ND and waking her up in the wee hours of morning were wreaking havoc on her dreams.

First she had dreamt she was being chased by a creepy Kiss wanna-be with an insane amount of hair who kept playing that one song (from Mulan? that everyone always knew?) on his electric guitar. Then there was a giant chicken man chasing her, honking and spitting eggs at her. And finally, just as she was getting back to sleep, she had been thrown into a flashback. This one was familiar...but different.

 _She raced through the streets, already late to meet her father at the track for lunch. Without looking, she stepped off the low curb and out into traffic. The honking of a horn blared in her ears, making her freeze and turn to see the a bright blue convertible skid to a stop inches from her silk-stocking-bedecked calf._

 _Her eyes traced the distinctive hood ornament of the 1930 Cadillac v16 that had nearly broken her shins. It was a beautiful vehicle. Almost as nice as one of her father's._

 _Her eyes darted to the driver of the gorgeous piece of machinery as he stepped out of the automobile in all his familiar pink-haired glory, and stalked around the now stationary vehicle, glowering as he checked the front fender, squatting within inches of her patent leather spectators. Apparently, he was less worried about her safety, than that of his car. He hadn't even really looked at her yet, though that didn't mean he held his tongue._

 _"Bloody hell lady! Maybe watch where you're going before running in front of a motorist!" he grumbled with a hint of an English accent as he ran a hand over the shiny metal bumper. Traffic continued to move around them, to the tune of shrill honking horns, the other drivers airing their grievances at his choice to park in the middle of the street. Which oddly, didn't seem to faze him._

 _Lucy cleared her throat and took a small step back, finally catching his attention, his gaze shifted to her navy blue and ivory shoes shifting on the pavement next to him, tracing the curve of her sheer silk-covered calf up to the modest ruffle at the hem of her dress and further, past her curvy figure to her face. By the time he made it to her raised eyebrow his glower was gone, replaced by a wary, speculating look. Her demeanor and clothing screamed money, and in a world where money equaled power, he was right to be wary. With anyone else. He didn't know how lucky he was._

 _"I apologize. I was running late and became distracted. I suppose I should thank God for making you such a responsive driver," Lucy said. "Not everyone could stop on a silver dollar like that in a v16 Cadillac. And anyone with such a lovely car is certainly worth knowing. So, I'm Ashley Tucker, and thank you for not killing me. I greatly appreciate it." She accompanied the phrase with an offering of her hand to shake. Perplexed and stunned for the briefest moment by both her words and the American English she spoke them in, the driver grinned and took her hand, shaking it firmly._

 _"And any beautiful American socialite who can name a car on sight by make and model is well worth the effort of an acquaintance. Sterling Moss," Natsu/Sterling returned, releasing her hand. They just stood there smiling at each other for a moment before Lucy (Ashley? That was getting a bit confusing...but Lucy supposed the odds of her having the same name in her previous incarnation was rather slim) remembered her manners._

 _"Well, Mr. Moss, my father and I are meeting for lunch at the auto club if you would like to join us. I can wait for you at the door and let them know you are a guest of ours."_

 _"No need. I'm a member myself. Tell you what, I'll go park Happy here and I'll meet you inside," he said, jerking his thumb to the automobile behind him. What kind of motor enthusiast named his car Happy?_

 _"Very well then. I will see you again soon then," she said, stepping backwards a bit with a little wave. She was still looking at him when it happened, so she saw the alarm blossom in his eyes before he leapt forward and pulled her against his chest, just as another honking auto flew past Happy, narrowly missing taking Lucy/Ashley out of the world...for good. Heart pounding, she gingerly looked up from where her hands were pressed against his firm chest, sheepishly peeking out from under the brim of her pleated felt cloche._

 _Natsu/Sterling's perplexed look had returned, along with something warmer that lit up his eyes, making the deep green glow in a way that made her forget where she was. He seemed just as loathe to let go of her. Eventually, the sound of a wolf whistle from a passing car finally shook her out of her daze. She felt her cheeks heat up with a blush, breaking eye contact and lifting her hands away from him. He immediately loosened his grasp, but instead of letting go, swiftly spun her around so she faced the opposite sidewalk._

 _"Now, do me a favor and watch where you're headed this time. If I get there and you aren't waiting for me, I will be sorely disappointed Miss Tucker," he chuckled behind her._

 _"I shall endeavor to try Mr. Moss. For I have the hint of a suspicion that lunch will be very entertaining indeed!" And taking advantage of a lull in traffic, she darted to the opposite sidewalk without further incident, turning at one particularly loud and persistent horn behind her to tell off the driver..._

And Lucy woke up again, some of her ire from earlier having waned with the unexpected flashback...until she caught sight of the time.

Then it was back in full force. What the hell was going on over there!

Her eyes ached and she winced as rubbing her fingers over them only irritated them more. She felt like she had been crying...why had she been crying? The blonde sleepily pondered the question...she had been at that party last night...and kissed...HOLY SHIT. She made out with Gray! And saw ND! No, not ND. Natsu...something. Dragon? Dragion? Dragneel!

Natsu Dragneel!

And she had made out with his roommate. And then...fuck, what had happened next? She just, couldn't remember. She seemed to remember being really anxious...or maybe excited?

On a hunch, she looked at her arm. But didn't see what she thought she would.

Japanese? Oh. Gray?

Huh, that was pretty clever of him actually. Natsu couldn't read Japanese, as far as she knew.

So, something had happened then. Because Gray had questions. And expected answers. Lucy wished she had just gotten his phone number instead, so she could call him and see if he could fill her in. Instead, she waited, unable to get back to sleep, watching the sunshine creeping up her wall, igniting her world in more color with every passing moment.

Until, finally, her phone lit up with a call from an unknown number.

* * *

Erza was more than embarrassed. Like would-be-redder-than-a-British-phone-booth-in-the-1950s-if-she-were-the-type-to-blush-embarrassed.

Because she was standing naked in her kitchen at eight o'clock in the morning holding a glass of orange juice and being stared at by a familiar blue-haired man lounging on her sleeper sofa. Which in itself wouldn't be that embarrassing.

If he hadn't been tenting the sheets with what appeared to be a massive erection.

* * *

Mystogan was ridiculously turned-on. Like, instantly-wide-eyed-can't-form-a-coherent-thought-or-figure-out-that-he-should-look-away-from-the-naked-woman-standing-in-front-of-him-turned-on.

Like, literally-thinking-of-nothing-but-bending-her-over-her-ridiculously-clean-kitchen-counter-and-plowing-her-like-a-dozen-acres-aroused.

Like aslvkniroea-phginhajgdnjakdjsafkldjslk-afndkalfdkl-erect.

Like...well, just really uncomfortably hard.

A strangled noise escaped from his throat, despite his muscles' best efforts to strangle him into a merciful death.

Thankfully, and regrettably, the goddess exposing her pale flawless skin, who was oh-so-kindly supplementing his usual morning wood, retreated to whence she had come and he was able to get his bearings a bit.

What a way to wake up.

But how the hell had he ended up in the Titania's apartment?

* * *

Levy was very naked. Like bare-chested-full-monty-baring-the-blue-bush-in-nothin-but-her-birthday-suit-naked.

And she was on top of Gajeel.

Who was also naked.

And, thankfully, still asleep.

Carefully peeling their sweat-glued skin apart, she rolled stealthily off the edge of her bed and quickly donned the first garment she could get her hands on.

Which turned out to be Gajeel's Metallica t-shirt. Of course.

While it was big enough to cover her like a dress, it wasn't exactly helping to conceal the fact that something had clearly happened between them.

The area between her thighs was slightly sore, sort of like a light bruise when pressed. Not what one would call a nice feeling, but intriguing in a way that made her want to "press" that bruise again. Rubbing her thighs together, she bit back a moan.

God, she was still so fucking wet. She must have liked what they did. Which was looking more and more like sex. Hopefully, hot, steamy, romantic love-making. Which wouldn't really be such a big deal.

Except, she didn't remember it. Any of it. The later part of the last night was a complete blank.

How the fuck had she lost her virginity and not even _remembered it?!_ She hadn't been that drunk! ...at least until that last shot of grape flavored shit. Maybe that had just put her over the edge and she had turned into some kind of wanton sex monster.

She _had_ been lusting after him for most of the previous day, so with inhibitions down, it didn't surprise her at all that she had probably jumped him. Which was awesome!

IF SHE COULD JUST REMEMBER IT! Because what was she supposed to do now?

What if she was terrible in bed!? And he woke up and couldn't look her in the eye!

Or, even worse, he had been offended by her drunken hussyslut (Lucy must be starting to rub off on her) ways and rebuffed her...

She glanced back at the naked man sprawled across her bed, lingering a bit too long on his really very impressively sized manhood. Nope. That was definitely not the case. A happy, naked, ripped ex-heavyweight boxer did not get forced into a petite woman's bed. He was definitely there willingly. Plus the sizable erection he was sporting clearly showed where _not-so-little Gajeel'_ s vote should be tallied. She rubbed her thighs together again, subconsciously.

Which brought her back to her original point...what the fuck was her next step? Just casually making breakfast like it was no big deal? Getting dressed in normal clothes, throwing a blanket over him, leaving a note and running away, avoiding the issue entirely? That sounded pretty reasonable right now...but it was Gajeel. He was her soulmate. He deserved better than that.

And where would she run to anyway? Lucy only lived across the hall. Her parents were out of the country. And Jet and Droy were out. Those fuckers had a lot to make-up for before she would be saying two words to either of them, if she ever did again. Especially to Jet.

Her anger from the night before bubbled up again, replaying the whole debacle in her head. Jet's betrayal really had her steamed, but Droy...the look on his face...it just made her feel sad to remember it. He at least had clearly regretted what they had done to her.

Yeah, he had helped come up with the stupid plan, but was that really any worse than her just not telling them she wasn't interested straight-out a long time ago? It had seemed like the right course at the time, and particularly so when she hadn't lost _them_ , at least, when all her girlfriends moved away after high school.

Ulterior motives for fucking with her love life or not, they had been steadfast friends in every other way. No other graduates came back to visit last year more than those two, even though they were busy with college and pledging their fraternity and everything. They still had come back to see her at least once a week. And, if she was going to be fair to them, she had to take that into account. Sober Levy was feeling a lot more forgiving than Drunk Levy had been.

She wouldn't do it today, or probably tomorrow, but at some point she would forgive them. Because they were like family. And no matter how much family fucked up, they were always forgiven. She assumed they would do the same for her.

As Levy lost herself in thought, standing in the middle of her bedroom, gazing out at her hoard of books and rubbing the soft, well-worn cotton of Gajeel's shirt between her fingers, the owner of the garment being fondled cautiously opened an eye, and seeing her safely clothed (sort of) opened the other as well.

He had been up for about an hour, just watching her sleep in full on panic mode. Because even though he couldn't remember what the fuck had happened after he entered the relay race with Natsu, he could read the room just fine.

He had woken up naked with a girl enough times to realize what he must have done. And it was killing him. How could he have taken advantage of her like that?! He must have gotten hit in the head or something pretty hard to have forgotten most of the night after taking just one shot, but that was no excuse. And as fantastic as it felt to have the soft little woman pressed up against him as she slept, he couldn't even begin to enjoy it, instead resisting the urge to grab her pert little ass and pull her closer.

Because he had fucked up. And he didn't even have the courtesy to fucking remember it.

So he had taken the coward's way out. He had pretended to be asleep and watched through his eyelashes while she got up, put on his shirt and fidgeted. It was almost impossible to keep up the charade, laying uncovered, spread-out, and naked on the bed while she stared at him. And fuckin' moaned.

What the hell?! Was she actually trying to kill him!? He thought he was honestly going to die of embarrassment if she he had gotten harder from just hearing her make that soft little noise. How could she _not_ notice the massive waving flag of sexual tension in the room!? And throw a blanket over him or something.

He had peeked through his eyelashes again, trying hard to regulate his breathing and watched her rub her thighs together and watch him, with this almost... _hungry_ look. Fuck, was he, like, fuck, what? Sending his arousal to her or something!? Was that even possible?

She eventually quit staring at him though, and fidgeting more, her eyebrows drawing down over her eyes as she turned to the door and just stood there, staring into space. He finally couldn't take it anymore and had fully opened his eyes.

He kept still, feeling like he was viewing a rare animal in her natural habitat. He could practically feel the wheels turning in her head, and wondered what she was thinking about. Whatever it was, it wasn't a happy memory.

Experimentally, he slowly reached for the blanket and dragged it over his lap, without her noticing. Feeling better in general about the situation, now that his raging libido was no longer on display, he ventured a few words.

"Hey. How long you been up?"

He had tried to pick some pretty harmless words, but the sound of his voice sent her jumping a foot in the air and landing on her well-endowed butt. He leaned forward to get a better look at her sprawled on the floor in nothing but his shirt and shot her a sheepish grin.

"Jeez Shrimp, I know I'm one scary-looking fucker, but I thought you had more backbone than that."

And just like that, the awkwardness was gone. Levy was on her feet and smacking him in the arm for naming her after a shellfish again ("And the stupidest of all shellfish too!") and they just, somehow, glossed over the whole issue. Apparently they had just unanimously, and silently, decided they weren't going to talk about it right then. Which, honestly, worked out fine for both of them. They wouldn't forget about this anytime soon, but when there was breakfast to make and showering to do,and hangovers to treat, the hard stuff just didn't seem important enough to bring up. So Levy pranced off to the kitchen, her old bounce in her step while Gajeel put on some pants and watched her go.

Gajeel was totally smitten with Levy McGarden. Like-close-his-arms-around-her-and-never-let-her-go smitten.

And he kinda thought he was pretty okay with that.

* * *

 **That one song that everyone fucking knows from Mulan-** I'll Make A Man Out of You by Donny Osmond from Disney's animated picture Mulan. Because I like to think Elfman wakes up to this song every morning. EVERY MORNING.

 **Hulked-out** \- yes, Max literally turns into an enormous green rage monster in his dream. Because I said so.

 **Stirling Moss** \- an actual race car driver for Mercedes Benz, though he did not race for them until the 1940s in real life, I will be displacing him a bit in time and using his background to inspire this particular incarnation of Natsu. The names and why they keep seeing each other as they are now instead of in their past iterations will be explained in an upcoming chapter, so stay tuned and all will be revealed. But I'm trying out basing the flashbacks in actual historical people and events, to ground everything and give it some fun structure to give the characters to look up. And, LEARNING. Because the more you know, right?

 **Ashley Tucker** -a fictional person who will end up being the daughter of Preston Tucker, an actual American car manufacturer from that time period who will be morphed into an investor with a car enthusiast daughter


	20. Daybreak Part 2

**Sorry for missing posting last week. I was worn out from ComiCon. Had a great time, despite the fact some douche showed up on the first day with real guns and threatened the police, getting all props banned the rest of the con. But, he was caught before anyone got hurt...so yay for that! Got to see Dick Van Dyke speak at his first and probably only con ever. That 91-year-old is ridiculously badass and still sharp as a whip. SO AMAZING. Kevin Conroy (voice of animated Batman) was also amazing to go to a panel for, and I nabbed Christopher Sabat's signature to continue in my quest to get all the Fairy Tail guild members' English voice actors' signatures. He plays Elfman, which means I've got Natsu, Happy, and Elfman so far. Slightly pissed that my very first con had Colleen Clinkenbeard (Erza) as a guest before I came up with this plan...oh well, someday… *looks out into the void with starry eyes* Anyway, won't take up any more A/N room with tales of lightsaber battle routines and learning the way to bring a wig back from the metaphorical dead...but know that they happened. And it was epic.**

 **Now, in apology for my missed update last week...the longest chapter I've written yet! Enjoy!**

* * *

 _Fairy Tail House Rule #22-Mystogan's mattress shall be respected at all times. No jumping upon or dragging about shall befall said springy sleep surface following the emergency room visit of 2012._

* * *

Gray only had to wait half-a-ring for an answer.

"Hello? Gray?"

"Whoa, uh, hi?...Lucy? I didn't expect you to be up this early...hope I didn't wake you up…"

"No, that's fine, I've been up a while. What the _hell happened_ last night?!" she exclaimed. "The last thing I remember is finding out about Natsu, and who you are, and then taking a shot and then _nothing_! Was it the Long Island thing? Or the glowy stuff? Moon Drip I think? And when did you write to me on Natsu's arm? Does he know we've talked? Is he there with you now?! Is he weirded out about the kissing thing?! Does he know who I am?!" She devolved into a coughing fit, hacking out something about getting water.

Geez, she was freaking out more than he was. Which was saying something.

"Doin' ok over there?" he queried when the coughing continued. She was silent for a moment and then fired back with a vengeance. Geez, guess he was wasting his time being concerned.

"Gray, I'm fine, just tell me what happened already, it's killing me! I've been scouring Natsu's texts from last night, and I know I talked to him on the phone, but I have no idea what we talked about. And then I apparently backed out on something and then he tried calling a bunch and I didn't answer and THAT'S ALL I KNOW! " _Isus Krist, would she ever shut up long enough for him to answer? This wasn't getting him anywhere..._ "So, please, for the love of all that is-"

"LUCY! STOP TALKING!" Gray cut her off, finally realizing that she was going to keep going unless she was forcibly halted. Taking a deep breath in the blessed moment of silence, he tried to decide where to start. "Ok, so, you clearly have a lot of questions, and I've got some of my own. So, I guess, I can at least start with what I know happened." He paused again to gather his thoughts. _Ok, so first things first._

"Almost right after Natsu wrote to you, you took a shot of Moon Drip out of one of my ice luges. Fairy Tail always has it for this kind of party. One side effect of it is that it makes you forget. Like pretty much everything from that night from the point after you drink it. And you apparently really needed a drink, because you pushed this girl out of the way and took her shot at the ice luge and then punched her when she got all mad about it. Which was pretty awesome, by the way." Gray couldn't help but smile remembering the image of the perky blonde decking the brunette. It reminded him a little of Erza. But hotter. Because Erza beating people up just made him want to hide...while Lucy beating people up made him want to...well, that was never going to happen. Wasn't even worth thinking about. _Damnit Gray! Focus!_

"And then you got weirded out by the girl, and scared, and refused to stay to meet Natsu, and made me promise not to tell him that I was the guy you were making out with or what your name was, because it put him and you in danger somehow. Which you're going to explain as soon as fucking possible. Because promise or not, I'm not keeping this shit from Natsu anymore without a damn good reason. And you were in too much of a hurry to leave last night to tell me anything solid."

"Anyway, then you left with your friends, and Natsu came looking for you, and talked to Mira, and figured out that I was the guy you were with-without me telling him, by the way-and then he got smashed all of a sudden, tried to deck me, and proceeded to blow chunks. And I left after that point, so I don't know what happened then. He was not exactly happy with me after the whole kissing-you-thing, so I went to DD for some people, and one thing led to another and I didn't see him again until way later, and by then he was asleep, so I borrowed his arm, since I didn't know how else to contact you. But he got woken up shortly after that and was royally pissed still. I thought he cracked one of my ribs-though it doesn't feel quite as bad this morning, so maybe not-and then he...well, he had a flashback, but that's something _he's_ gotta tell you about...just...yeah. And then pretty much everyone went to sleep, and he's still asleep now. And that's all I know. Now. What the FUCK is up with your dad, and why can't Natsu know your name and what's going on?"

Lucy breathed in sharply in surprise. How the hell had her father entered into this crazy mess? Her heart rate immediately ramped up to second gear.

"How do you know about my dad?! Who told you!?"

"The girl you punched. She knew you or something. And you were worried about her telling your dad where you are? Or something? I don't know! What the hell is going on Lucy!?" Gray was done answering her questions. He had been more than fair, and he needed answers.

"What was the girl's name?" Lucy continued in a panic.

"No. Tell me what's going on with your dad. You tell me, or I wake Natsu up right now and tell him everything."

"OK! Fine! Don't wake up Natsu!" She paused for a deep breath. As though she were about to take a massive leap into mid-air. What the fuck could possibly be _that_ bad? "My dad is...well...it's complicated." Gray breathed out heavily in frustration. That wasn't gonna cut it. Before he could speak though, she continued.

"Look, this isn't easy for me ok? I'm trying! Just let me get there ok?" She took his silence as consent to proceed at her own pace and let out a shaky breath. "Ok, so to get what's going on with my dad, you kind of have to know a little bit about my family. We're a big deal in the resort and hotel industry. And have been for like three or four generations, on my mom's side. But my parents took it to a whole new level. And I was a big part of that. They called me Lucky Lucy."

That name rang a bell. That brunette chick had called her that. Lucky Lucy Heartfilia. But he thought he had heard it somewhere else before. While Lucy continued, he quietly ducked back into his room to grab his laptop, thankful that Natsu was still dead to the world.

"Gods, it took years to get people to quit calling me that. Everyone thought it was _so_ clever. And I guess as a kid it wasn't so bad."

Gray quickly typed Lucky Lucy Heartfilia into Google while Lucy excused herself to drink some more water. He got instant results. But not what he was expecting. A hand drawn picture of a little girl, that was clearly a younger Lucy, was almost the only image that popped up. She was grinning, with a missing tooth and held an oddly shaped stuffed animal. Like some sort of snowman or something. Even Gray recognized the famous picture. He didn't know how he hadn't put it together sooner. Who hadn't seen that drawing at some point? Lucy continued as he looked through his search results.

"...and a picture of me was in my family's hotels everywhere when I was a kid. My parents made this big deal about the business being family-run and even dragged me to board meetings and dressed me like a miniature CEO. Which is, I guess, where it started. But when Mom thought it up, it was just a gimmick. As far as I remember, my life was pretty normal at that point and I got to do normal little girl stuff. It was only later that my dad started treating me like a nonperson." Her voice turned bitter. "Like an _asset_ to be used for-" She cut herself off with another bout of dry coughing.

Skimming past the image section of his search, his eyes landed on an article in the online business section of the Crocus Chronicler. Clicking on the link, he read the short article, entitled, ' _Luck or just Lucy?'_ It basically skimmed what Lucy had just told him, though with more focus on the business side of it all. Apparently it had been a brilliant move in the industry, as family-friendly companies fell over themselves to be associated with the tiny Heartfilia heiress. Smucker's, Kellogg's, even Disney signed deals with the hotel dynasty within weeks. Little Lucy Heartfilia had won over the hearts of Fiore in record time. And he could see why. Off to the side of the article, a grainy photograph showed the hotel princess, hand in hand with her parents and dressed in the tiniest pink pantsuit he had ever seen. She grinned right at the camera, displaying that now famous missing tooth and clutching that weird stuffed animal. Fearless and radiating joy. Layla Heartfilia, according to the caption under the picture, beamed down at the miniature version of herself, while Jude checked for cars before they crossed a street. They practically screamed 'perfect happy family' at the photographer. Who wouldn't want to be a part of that? Before Gray could stop himself, he was interrupting her.

"What about your mom? Can't she help with your dad?" Gray couldn't help but ask. Layla had such a mom smile. The kind of smile that made you feel loved and taken care of. Like nothing was too much to handle. It had been a long time since he had been under the effects of such a smile. A hell of a long time.

"She's...not...here anymore." Her hesitant words planted a lump at the back of Gray's throat. _Shit_. "She died when I was seven. We were visiting one of our hotels in Oshibana and there was a random shooting at the train station. Just some guy, blaming the world for his problems and taking it out on innocent people. He shot up a bunch of people and our security detail eventually ended up bringing the guy down, before the cops could even get there. But Mom didn't...make it."

Gray quickly opened up a new search tab and looked up 'Layla Heartfilia death'. This time he got a ton of varied results. The society pages and business pages alike had mourned the loss of the blonde beauty in full page obituaries. He skimmed one of the obituaries and followed the link to more at the bottom of the page, which revealed a fuzzy picture of the aftermath at the train station, centered on a stunned blonde little girl, with a splatter of blood across her otherwise pristine blue dress. Next to her was a huge guy with a gold nose ring. A sport coat had not been created that could contain his enormous shoulders, so he knelt behind the tiny blonde human, in slacks and a red-spattered white t-shirt, surrounded by men in black suits. Off to one side, there was a shot of Jude Heartfilia as he sat with his head in his hands, barely visible in the sea of security personnel and cops.

"Which is pretty much when everything went to shit. My father fired the head of our security, blaming him for not stopping it. Mr. Stier had been with my mom since she was a teenager, so he didn't take it very well."

The last picture at the bottom of the series for the article, showed a bawling Lucy hugging her bodyguard, who Gray assumed was the Stier guy she was talking about, as he cradled her in his massive arms. It was a heartbreaking picture. Made more so, by the image of Jude yelling at a cop right behind them. It didn't take an expert in familial relations to figure out what was wrong with that picture. Not exactly the 'Heartfilia Family way'...

"My father hired ex-military thugs to replace him and put me in self defense classes right away. He shut me away from everything except business meetings. He basically wouldn't let me do anything else. I got privately tutored in everything he thought would be useful, since he pulled me out of school. I sat-in on every board meeting. For a long time, I didn't even have normal clothes. I even had a tiny briefcase I carried around. It wasn't what Mom intended when she came up with the stupid idea, but he apparently didn't have any better ideas, so he took my mom's last big one and ran with it."

More like he didn't know what the fuck little girls needed in their lives. Though, with Erza as Gray's closest female friend-who grew up in a boxing gym-he couldn't say that he knew what that was any better than her father had.

"It worked out for him though. I took notes in every meeting, and no one took me seriously. So I got away with overhearing things for him. When I was older, he made me "befriend" the daughters of competitors and visit them to spy for him. I helped put a lot of decent people out of business by helping him. Anyway, when I was staying at one girl's house, I was introduced to online forums, and soon after that I met Levy online. I tried running away to meet her shortly after that. Levy opened my eyes to so much of what my father was doing to me, to how completely _not_ normal it all was that I couldn't stand it. I was 16 at the time, and my dad's security team had me back in under an hour. I wasn't allowed to leave the manor grounds for a month. And he barely left my side. For anything. He literally had board meetings in our house so that I never had to leave. As far as he's concerned, I'm an asset he can't lose."

Gray swallowed heavily, trying to rid his mouth of the bad taste it had aquired. Jude Heartfilia made his crappy childhood look decent.

"So, I waited. And when I turned 18, and was technically an adult, I got help before trying again. Mr. Stier, who my dad made sure never worked in security again, helped me disappear. I ditched my credit cards, changed my last name, got a new phone and moved to a new city. Levy lived in a hostel with me for weeks to make sure no one had come looking for me. I never had social media accounts, and except for the drawing of me as a kid and a few from Mom's obituary, there are almost no pictures of me on the internet."

No kidding. Gray could vouch for that. He had returned to his image search and wasn't turning up much. Past the age of seven, it was like she disappeared. There were a couple fuzzy tabloid pictures that _could_ have been her, but that was about it.

"My dad was super paranoid about photographers, which, for once, worked out on my side. So, I've been getting away with it. But if someone recognized me, that means they actually knew me before. And I'm not safe anymore. And that's the story. That's why I'm terrified of my dad finding me. So, Gray, now you've got to tell me. Who recognized me?" Her tone didn't allow for anything but answers.

"I don't know. Neither of you said her name. She was bitchy and a brunette. I think I may have seen her at Greek events before, so probably a sorority girl, but right now, that's all I've got," Gray answered immediately, still stunned by everything she had told him. Why the fuck couldn't just one thing in Natsu's life NOT be complicated as fuck. Just one. That idiot had enough on his plate as it was. _Too much to ask I guess,_ he thought with a sigh. Then he remembered something. "But if she was at the party, she probably had Moon Drip too! It doesn't matter who she was! She won't remember seeing you, right? No harm done!"

"But what if she didn't have any? That description could fit half a dozen people, all of whom would be happy to screw me over in some way. Or at the very least, mention to my father that they saw me. Just to piss him off. His privacy paranoia about me is well-known among the big business owners...no, the smartest course is to leave. Especially with Natsu to consider. If my dad ever figured out what we are, what we could do, he'd find a way to keep Natsu too. To control him. And if Natsu knew that I was his-" Lucy cut herself off. That was close. She had almost let slide that she was Natsu's-

"Soulmate?" Gray supplied, finally able to ask a question he had been ruminating over since she left the party. "That's what you were going to say wasn't it? You said something about that last night. Is that what you think it is? What allows you guys to...do what you do? And all the flashbacks to previous lives and stuff, that's what causes it?" Lucy swallowed heavily. Shit. She had really put her foot in it. There wasn't any backpedaling that would get her out of this mess. So, she went with the truth. It felt oddly good to talk about it with someone besides Levy. Levy had such a romantic view of everything, but maybe Gray would understand her side a little better.

"Yeah, I'm pretty sure we're soulmates. There's this blog that another bonded pair started that describes everything. That's what she calls it. Being "bonded" or sometimes, "soulbonded". Everything she's come up with has pretty much-"

"Wait. There are more of you guys? Like this is a thing that happens to people other than just you and Natsu?! Why have I never heard of it?" Gray interrupted, intrigued, and a little disgruntled. If there were pairs of soulmates running around, writing on each other's skin, why didn't he get one? Was he just meant to be alone? Fate _would_ fuck him over like that. Wouldn't be the first time.

"As far as I know it's pretty rare. Aside from the blog couple, I only know one other bonded couple...and that was sort of an accident. A friend and I were messing with stuff we shouldn't have been, trying to figure it all out, and bam, suddenly she's bonded. She didn't even have to touch him or anything first. Cause that seems to be how it works normally. You have to be in physical contact to activate it I guess. Natsu ran into me at the train station and it activated our soulmate bond and started this whole thing."

"Oh man, Natsu is going to be so excited about this! He's gonna be insufferable. It'll be like he's fucking glued to you!" Gray joked. Natsu had this weird thing about people and those people who were "meant to be" sticking around. Really more of a defense mechanism than anything. But Gray got it. Having people leave you sucked. Worse when you knew it was your fault. Better not to get attached. But two souls bonded together by fate? Yeah, he'd think that was pretty fucking great. Someone who would never want to leave him? Fuck, sign Gray up for that shit. The one and only person for him...meant to be...who wouldn't want that?

"NO!" Lucy interrupted his thoughts abruptly. "You CAN'T tell him!" Gray was shocked at her response.

"Why the fuck not? He's your soulmate! Why the hell can he not know about that? How could that possibly hurt anything?! Lucy, you have got to quit keeping shit from him." Gray was getting mad on Natsu's behalf at this point. What was her hang up? Yeah the stuff with her dad sucked, but nothing Natsu couldn't handle.

"Because he can't, ok? If my dad finds me, and locks me back up, and Natsu knows who I am, or where I am, and that I'm his soulmate, what do you think he'd do?"

"He'd fucking come get you. And he'd do it too. You don't know what he's capable of. You wouldn't be anywhere you didn't want to be for long," Gray argued back. "Lucy, I'm still not getting it. It's literally the solution to your problems. Someone to protect you from your controlling psycho father, where's your issue?"

"Were you not fucking _listening_? My dad basically hired mercenaries! They're like his own personal army! Natsu wouldn't be saving _me_ from anything. I'd be dooming _him_ to being stuck in the same goddamned prison! And when my father saw what we can do? He'd exploit it. I don't know how, but he'd figure out some way to make money with it. Or take advantage of it somehow. Natsu can't know. For his own good. He'd take them all on. I know he would. And I love that about him. But he can't win this fight. No matter how good a fighter he is. He's not a soldier! He couldn't possibly take down a mini army of military trained fighters!

Gray drew breath to argue with her again, but his words stuck in his throat. Because she was right. Natsu couldn't know. Just, not for the reasons she thought. Natsu wouldn't have trouble taking down ex-military.

But that was the real problem. With Natsu's past...he wouldn't take well to the way Jude treated Lucy. Not at all. Add the fact that Lucy was his soulmate? Belonging to him in any way shape or form? Yeah, Natsu wouldn't just bring back Lucy, he'd straight up kill the fucker who'd taken her. No matter how much Natsu retrained his brain, the conditioning that had been drilled into him was always going to be there. Gray had lost track of the number of times the pinkette had lost his temper and responded in ways he shouldn't. And that had been over stupid shit. Stuff that didn't really matter in the long run. After watching Natsu for weeks, changing unknowingly for the girl on the other end of the line, in ways he _never_ thought he would see, Gray shuddered to think how Natsu would react to the scenario she laid out. It would definitely land him in jail. If not something worse.

Lucy had bitten her nails down to the skin as she waited for Gray to respond. His silence was killing her. She was about to go over her main points of argument again when he finally spoke up.

"Ok. Fine. I won't tell Natsu that you're his soulmate, or about the shit with your dad. But you have to tell him your name. And I get to tell him what happened last night. I'm not keeping that shit from him. We didn't do anything wrong. Fuck we didn't even know what we were doing! But he still deserves to know. _Especially_ if he's your fucking soulmate. And _you_ need to stop underestimating him. What he's capable of...I can't even begin to tell you. And it's not my story to tell. So someday, just...you guys have got to fucking talk to each other about this shit. Because, Lucy, you can't begin to know the hell that we've witnessed. Someday, he's going to need you to know." Lucy was stunned into silence. She had so many questions, but they all seemed to get caught in the overarching feeling of relief that Gray wasn't going to tell Natsu about her dad. She had finally formed a response in her head, when Gray started up again.

"And one more thing. You don't get to deal with all this shit on your own anymore. Natsu might not know what you really are to him, but I do. And I can't let you keep running away, and take that dumbass' chance at being happy with you. So, I'm going to figure out who that girl was. And find out if she remembers anything. If she does, then I'm going to help you deal with it. We're going to find a better way to deal with this shit. Because you have friends now. And this is what friends fuckin' do. So, yeah. That's my final condition. You let me help you, and I'll keep my mouth shut." _For Natsu's sake_ , he finished in his head. He better be fucking grateful, the stupid idiot. Ah, who was he kidding. Gray was totally going to get punched for this someday. He sighed.

Lucy expected to feel upset; an overwhelming anger at his presumption to control her actions, to make her do anything. But instead of the familiar ire, she was flooded with relief. Tears pricked her eyes as she tried to keep Gray from hearing her cry. Finally letting the silent tears fall down her cheeks, as her body shook, keeping in her sobs, she mustered up a wet sniffle and choked out her agreement through a watery smile.

"Deal."

* * *

Natsu woke up crying.

What the fuck? He had been having a great dream, so that was definitely not what was going on. And it wasn't like he'd been crying a while ago or something...the tears were still flowing down his cheeks and burning his eyes.

And then it hit him. (To be fair, it was _really_ fucking early for a Sunday...or was it Saturday?)

They weren't _his_ tears.

Taking a second to concentrate on it, he felt not only her tears, but her sobs, rough intakes of breath burning the back of his throat. Rolling over the edge of his bed to the floor with a groan, he did a double-take at the missing couch and the ridiculous mountain range of porn in its place, and headed to his desk to grab a pen.

However, when he went to write on his arm, it was already full of...what the fuck? Chinese or something? When had that happened?!

He flipped his arm over and wrote a message to the Weirdo amongst the fine pink hairs on his upper forearm muscles.

 **hey weirdo! thought we said no crying...are you ok?**

Her chest was heaving with sobs and it was freaking him out a bit. He grabbed his lighter off the desk and flicked it open, lighting it, and then quickly flipping the lighter lid closed again. Flick it open, watch the fire ignite through watery eyes, close it again. And again. And again.

The repetitive motion helped to untangle the ball of anxiety in his chest enough to try focusing on her again.

It was such a weird feeling. But she was almost...smiling too. Feeling her upturned lips took away a little tension he hadn't realized he'd been carrying in his shoulders.

Flip open the lighter, light it, stare at where the little blue flame met the orange one, extinguish it.

As though summoned by the familiar pattern of sounds, a white furry tail brushed against his calf, prompting him to look down at his other, recently absent, roommate.

"Happy! Where have you been little buddy!? I know you like to roam the neighborhood, but five days is too long! I was starting to get worried."

The pure white Exotic Shorthair lifted his massive eyes to his human slave/father and yowled out a simultaneously annoying and endearing mew. Natsu shifted to pick him up, but he slipped through the pinkette's fingers, running over to the corner where the bones of a fish were all that graced his sizable food bowl. Turning back to look at the pinkette again, Happy licked his smooshed-looking nose and mewed again. Aaaaand continued non-stop until Natsu opened up a can of salmon-flavored cat food for him. Happy sniffed the offering and then turned back to Natsu with a softer, questioning mew, rolling it a bit in his throat. His face looked unbelievably sad.

"Sorry buddy, I don't have any fresh fish at this exact second. Eat that and I'll nab you something from the kitchen later."

Whether the cat had actually understood him or had merely picked up on his tone of voice, he turned back to the food with a final mournful sniff and began to eat. Natsu was doing a quick inventory of the canned cat food he had left when he felt the familiar tingle of the Weirdo responding.

 _It's Lucy actually. Call me after you talk to Gray. We need to talk._

Wait. WHAT?

He scrambled for his phone, finding it on his bed and scrolling through his contacts until he found her. A new number under the name Lucy. Checking his call history, he saw that he had tried to call her a bunch of times the night before.

…

…..

….

WHAT THE FUCK HAD HAPPENED AFTER HE TOOK THAT SHOT OF MOON DRIP?!

* * *

Erza finished dressing and steeled her resolve to go back out into her living room.

Which vexed her.

Because Erza Scarlet didn't get nervous. Particularly because of a man. Half-naked and attractive or otherwise.

But, she also didn't wake up to find men in her apartment that she didn't remember inviting over. So, she guessed there was a first time for everything.

Readjusting the heavy elastic on the underside of her sports bra and tugging her perfectly fitted-and stylishly coordinated-running shorts one more time, she finally decided that she had given him enough time to get his shit together, and re-entered the common area of her apartment.

Thankfully, he had gotten up and gotten dressed, though the overnight bag he was rustling through was a bit disconcerting. So that hadn't been a spontaneous thing? Or did he just keep an overnight bag in his car?

Did they even take his car?

Or a car of any kind?

Why didn't she remember?!

As Erza struggled to remember why she couldn't remember anything, Mystogan pulled the second cross trainer from his gym bag and avoided looking at the redhead that had been occupying his thoughts since he woke up. As he bent to put the shoe on, he felt a pang in his abdomen again. He had discovered a rather large bruise right in the middle of his stomach shortly after waking up. He rubbed in absentmindedly and wondered what the hell had happened last night.

When he finally finished fussing uselessly and had tied the perfectly tightened laces of each tennis shoe, he couldn't find another reason to stall. So, he looked up to see a furrowed brow on her face. He couldn't say he was surprised. The blunette had been pretty confused himself this morning too, and he hadn't had Moon Drip until much later in the night. Plus he knew about the demon drink beforehand. She had to be all kinds of confused. Mystogan suddenly had an overwhelming urge to ease her discomfort.

"So, how much do you remember?" he began. It was as good a place as any to start.

Erza jumped a little, clearly jerked out of her own thoughts by his words. Not even trying to smile, her eyes narrowed and she turned her famously sharp gaze on the blunette. That same gaze had struck fear into the hearts of students all over campus, but for some reason, it didn't seem to hold the same anxiety for him now as it had in the past. Behind those piercing eyes, he could practically feel the wheels in her head turning, grinding against one another in the morning grit that Moon Drip left behind.

Erza struggled to think of what she actually did remember of yesterday. She had spent most of the last day shopping. And Mystogan had followed her for a bit. Before she confronted him. Then they had set off to capture a pervert...Bora! Ok, so she remembered waiting for him in the bar, and drinking with Mystogan...and she thought she remembered Bora coming in? Maybe? After that it was a bit fuzzy...and then...nothing. Concentrating again on the man carefully stripping the sheets, politely, off her pull out couch and folding it back up, she finally spoke.

"Last thing I remember is seeing Bora come into Galuna's. After that it's all blank. What happened? Did I get knocked unconscious or something?"

Mystogan's eyebrows raised a hair as he looked back at her. How often did she get knocked unconscious, that _that_ was her first assumption? He cleared his throat and tried to figure out what to tell her. This was a bit of a godsend, in a way. If she didn't remember last night, then she didn't remember the party at Fairy Tail...so, mission accomplished.

But, unexpectedly, he didn't want to lie to her. Somewhere along their crazy adventure of the day before, she had stopped being the fearsome "Titania" and had become Erza, his beautiful and strong, yet also quite fragile,...friend. He didn't have a lot of people he considered real _friends_. Lots of idiotic brothers, but not so much in the friend department. So, he decided on the truth. He'd deal with the Fairy Tail fallout later.

"No, you didn't get knocked unconscious. You were posing as bait for Bora at Galuna's and he bought you a drink the bar specializes in, called Moon Drip. It makes you forget pretty much everything after you drink it until you wake up the next morning."

"Wait, so the pervert roofied me?!"

Admittedly, Mystogan had never thought of it that way before...it really made him wonder again what was actually in the stuff...maybe Fairy Tail should stop serving it at their parties…

"Weeell, not exactly. As far as I understand it, you are still able to function as well as any drunk person would...you just don't remember it later. So, not quite like being roofied, I guess…" Mystogan hedged, quickly moving on to distract her. "So then Bora took you to the marina, with me following you, and we were just about to find out where his yacht was when he groped you and all hell broke loose. You were a little too intoxicated to finish apprehending him, so he got away and we gave chase."

Erza felt a swift sense of shame come over her. She didn't remember it, but she had to be pretty damn drunk to let anyone get away from her.

"I humbly apologize for letting him get past me. So did we catch him?"

"Eventually...I think? We tracked him to a party...at my fraternity actually...and well, I kind of can't remember what happened after that...the party had Moon Drip too, so I'm pretty sure I took a shot of it somewhere in there...but I think there were several cameras recording stuff, so maybe one of them caught what happened? We could go check it out if you want."

And Mystogan _totally_ wasn't just saying that to spend more time with her. They had unfinished business. They had to know what happened with Bora, right? _Right._ Spending more time with her was just icing on the cake. Which reminded him… Mystogan smirked as Erza cut off his thoughts.

"Well, can we go after my morning run? I never skip it...come hell or high hangover!" she quipped, still clearly concerned about the hours missing from her memory, but maybe not feeling quite so foolish now. Mystogan's smirk grew into something closer to a smile, and he blurted out his next sentence before he realized what he was doing, quickly averting his gaze back to his shoes and pretending to check the tie of his laces again to avoid looking at her. His brain was stuttering all over the place for him, but thankfully he wasn't a thirteen-year-old girl. Instead, it came out cool and collected.

"May I accompany you? I seem to have brought my gym bag with me at some point, so I'm already dressed for it, and if there is one thing I remember about last night, it's that your workout is clearly better than mine. Plus, I seem to recall promising to buy you some cake...but what about breakfast instead? After the run of course. Drunk or not, I do try to keep my promises…at least the ones I remember..." Mystogan trailed off, finally venturing a peek through his disheveled blue bangs at the woman he had sort of just asked out. He almost did a double take at the one-eighty her visage had pulled.

Holy shit. He had somehow forgotten how excited she got about cake. His logical side wanted to regret reminding her, but he couldn't quite do it. There was something stunningly beautiful about the way her face lit up when he mentioned it.

"Unacceptable. You will _not_ be backing out of buying me cake. We will have cake for breakfast," she said decidedly with a twinkle in her eye, grabbing his arm and pulling him out of the apartment. "I know just the place. Come on!"

Mystogan had just enough time to grab his wallet, and they were off.

* * *

Levy sat on her kitchen counter, munching on a cold pop tart, while Gajeel lamented her lack of edible possessions.

She didn't get what the big deal was. It's not like she was Julia Child or Simone Beck. Why would she waste money on food she would just burn to a crisp trying to cook anyway (though she had thoroughly enjoyed _Mastering the Art of French Cooking_ , even if she couldn't execute it worth crap)? If the fridge-and oven for that matter-weren't part of her lease agreement, she probably would have replaced them with both book shelves by now (well, the lease _and_ because she needed somewhere to keep the take-out leftovers and her offerings to the caffeine gods, praise be unto them).

But Gajeel seemed to be taking her lack of interest in the culinary arts personally. It was actually pretty amusing to watch him vacillate his gaze between her face and the open refrigerator-containing nothing but a styrofoam take-out box, a jar of green olives (Lucy's), a mostly empty bottle of soy sauce, and half a dozen cans of iced coffee. Feral-sounding growls issued from him in between interjections of hopeless indignation.

"Seriously Shrimp?! You don't even have milk? Or butter? Or fuckin' ketchup? Who doesn't have ketchup?!"

"Hey, I've got soy sauce, why would I need ketchup?" she asked as she finished off the pop tart. Deciding she wasn't hungry enough for the second one, she hopped down off the counter and reached past him into the still open fridge and set the shiny foil wrapped pastry next to Wednesday's leftover chicken tikka massala. Finally, after another growl of frustration, he slammed the door to her (in his eyes) depressingly empty icebox and pushed past her.

"Get dressed. We're going to my place for breakfast."

Levy weighed her options, shrugged, and went to track down some pants. She had been wanting to see his place anyway.

* * *

Natsu sat cross-legged on the basement floor, in front of the television-palooza he had commissioned for Fairy Tail, with a notebook and a massive stack of pancakes. Shoveling in Mira's famous pancakes with one hand, he used the other to take notes on what was happening of interest on each screen, occasionally talking around the food in his mouth to ask Sho to pause or rewind part of the videos.

For Sho's part, he was coping pretty well for having been dragged out of his hammock (which he had jerry-rigged out of a curtain to replace his missing mattress) at the crack of 7:30am. He had merely nodded sleepily at Natsu's myriad of technological demands and allowed himself to be dragged to breakfast. The veritable Jenga-tower of bacon he was gradually working his way through was adequate compensation for his lack of sleep.

Honestly though? He had grown up hanging around Erza. This was hardly the first time he had been pulled out of bed at the crack of dawn. Probably wouldn't be the last. Plus he was really enjoying watching what had happened over his blanket period of amnesia. And he wasn't the only one.

Shortly after Natsu had paraded Sho down and demanded instant replay, heads had started popping up from behind couches and out of doors. Steadily, a crowd was gathering on the sofas behind the pink-haired boy-man. When the couches were full, the floor around him reverted to prime seating. A petite woman with short white hair plopped down next to Natsu and silently offered him the opening to her half empty bag of potato chips without taking her eyes off the drama unfolding on the screens before them. Like clockwork, he shoved a handful of chips into his mouth with his left hand, while his right took note of Gajeel's complete owning of Orga in shopping cart jousting. He needed to remember to ask the tattooed freak when he had even gotten to the party.

"Thanks," he muttered around the fried crisps in his mouth. "Didn't know you were back in town Lis. Could have used you on our relay team last night."

Lisanna shrugged, shoving a handful of chips into her own mouth. She and the rest of the crowd cringed as Loke and Leon slammed into each other, each taking a hard hit to the chest. They were pretty evenly matched actually.

On a couch behind Natsu and Lisanna, Loke lifted his shirt to look at the bruise left behind and pulled a random, well-endowed freshman into his lap for comfort. Still half asleep herself, she turned and cuddled into him with a mumbled apology at the skin on his neck, before drifting back off to dreamland.

Natsu grabbed another handful of chips out of the bag and practically inhaled them. There was nothing like junk food for a hangover. And Lisanna always had the best food with her. It's how they had become friends in the first place.

"This shit show? No, thank you. I wasn't back in town 'til really early this morning anyway," Lisanna smirked, but then her lips turned downward in a pout. "Can't say I was particularly happy to discover that literally no one I knew was sober enough to pick me up from the airport though. Some friends you are." Passing the mostly empty bag of crushed chips and grease to Natsu to finish off, she Mary Poppins-ed a couple of quart bags of homemade puppy chow out of her purse, handing one to Natsu. The first handful of the powdered sugar covered greatness that touched his tongue finally jerked his full attention away from the action playing out on the screens.

"Sweet! Strauss chow. You are _so_ my favorite lesbian right now."

"Oh, shut up. I'm _always_ your favorite lesbian," the fair-haired junior said with a roll of her eyes, but a tiny self-satisfied smirk. "Speaking of which, any new lambs worth seducing?"

Natsu shrugged and shoved a massive handful of "Strauss chow" into his cheeks. Lisanna had tried to explain it to him once, why their puppy chow was better...double the chocolate? Or peanut butter? Whatever. As long as they kept making it, he never had to remember.

"Couldn't say," he said, puffing powdered sugar out into the air in front of him with every word. "Don't really remember anything. None of us do. That's why we're watching it now. I made sure there were at least six different cameras running around to catch the action. I'm sick of hearing how awesome these parties are secondhand. Great right?" He turned to Lisanna with a big chocolatey grin, his lips and cheeks smeared with powdered sugar. She chuckled and offered him the mirror from her purse. He declined, wiping his mouth on his shirt and getting most of it.

"You have such disgusting eating habits. I so don't get how anyone kisses you," she said, watching herself lick a smear of powdered sugar off her own lips before putting the mirror away.

"Hey, you would know. Been there, done that, got the t-shirt."

"Yeah, because only you would actually make a t-shirt that says, 'I kissed Natsu Dragneel and now I'm a lesbian.' Like, literally only you. Dick."

"Dyke. And Gray made that shirt! Tch, like I would advertise that shit."

"Well, you're the one who gave it to me. Fuckin' fire crotch.

"Hey, _ice princess_ made it, I just gave it to you in a moment of drunken weakness. And I immediately regretted it _and_ tried to get it back. You're the one who wanted to keep the damn thing. I'm never going to live that shit down am I? Carpet muncher. "

"Nope. Manwhore."

"Bean flicker."

"Pyromaniac."

"Kitty puncher."

"HOLY SHIT I HAVEN'T HEARD THAT ONE!" Lisanna's extra loud exclamation woke up more than a few people and a general groan of unhappiness was forced from the lazy crowd's lungs as they shrank away from her. She made apologetic motions with her hands and leaned slightly closer to Natsu to whisper, "Gods I missed you. You really are the best ex-boyfriend a girl who likes girls could ask for." Turning back to the screen with a new mouthful of sugary goodness, she held out her fist to bump, which of course he did, grinning at her.

"I missed you too Lis. Wait 'til I tell you what's been going on. It's like crazy-level sh-"

"NATSU DRAGNEEL! WHO THE FUCK ARE YOU CONFESSING TO?!" Lisanna's scream cut him off and put her earlier outburst to shame. But this time, no one blamed her. Not even him, as he followed her pointing finger to see an image of himself, just finishing writing what was clearly a love confession on his arm. To the Weirdo. That is, Lucy. On camera. _Shit_.

As one, the occupants in the basement turned toward him with dropped jaws. Which was right about the time that Cana and Bacchus wandered in.

Cana took about ten seconds to read the room, from the slack jaws to the now paused video of a determined, eyeliner-bedecked Natsu staring at the arm that contained his sort-of love confession, and broke the silence.

"Yeah, Natsu, how did that all turn out with Lucy? She call you back yet?"

Natsu, and pretty much everyone else in the room, directed their attention to her.

Except the white-haired girl next to the pinkette.

"NATSU! Why didn't you tell me you were dating someone?! I know it was hard to line up our schedules while I was overseas, but come on! Love confession level stuff gets discussed. Period. Now, where is she, I want to meet her!"

The eyes of the crowd volleyed back to her, like the drama unfolding was the final match point of the Wimbledon finals. Natsu was even pretty sure he smelled popcorn.

He opened his mouth, but was interrupted by Cana's almost incoherent mutter of "so does he."

Finally fed up with all the godsdamned women crashing his motherfucking business, Natsu slapped a hand over Lisanna's mouth and leveled a glare at Cana.

"You! I don't know you, or how you know the things you obviously know, but shut the fuck up. I'm sure that shit was told to you in confidence. Also, we need to have a fucking conversation. As soon as I'm done watching this batshit crazy video footage." He turned back to Lisanna. "Now you. I didn't remember _that_ happening," he gestured at the frozen image of his love confession, "until literally just this minute. So chillax the fuck out alright? As soon as I know what the fuck is going on, I'll let you know. Probably." He took a deep breath in the silence of the room as everyone kept their eyes glued to him. "What the fuck are you all looking at? Sho, can we move the fuck on please? There has got to be at least another four hours of footage to go over, so leaving it paused on me is just a godsdamned waste of time."

With that, he turned back to the screens, dumping the remainder of the plastic bag of sugary chow-jizz into his cavernous maw. Cana settled next to him on the floor with Bacchus smoothly dropping down behind her to serve as her backrest while he handed her another beer. Cold this time, thank the gods.

Twisting, she planted a kiss on his cheek in thanks and opened the bottle of beer with her belly button.

"So, can we go out sometime? Because I miiiight be in love with you…" Bacchus said offhandedly, entranced by the vixen in front of him.

"Sure. Why not? We've already fucked like, what? Three times now? I think that earns you a date." Cana winked at Natsu and took a swig of beer.

Natsu just stared at her for a minute while Bacchus complained loudly about the injustice of not remembering sleeping with her the first or second times. The pinkette had clearly met her last night. God, he hoped _he_ hadn't slept with her. His life was complicated enough at the moment. Just one more thing to figure out. But it sounded like Cana remembered most if not all of the previous night, so maybe she'd be able to help him fill in the blanks that the video left out. A pale arm crossed his vision as Lisanna leaned across him to stick a hand out to Cana. He followed the arm back to the cleavage show blocking the many flickering screen in front of him.

Great. Unattainable boobs in his face. Just what he needed.

And why was that giving him a weird sense of deja vu?

"Lisanna. Call me Lis. Natsu's ex. Into girls now," she deadpanned. Natsu groaned, trying to ignore the woman leaning over him and get back to taking notes on whatever the fuck happened last night. She was never going to let him live that down. Cana took the offered hand with a sharky grin.

"Cana. Daughter of the Crash Wizard. Into everything once," she deadpanned back. Lisanna's brows rose as Bacchus choked on his beer.

"Gildarts' kid? Man, that's a life I wouldn't mind hearing about sometime."

"Well, I'm thinking about sticking around for a bit, so hopefully we'll bump into each other again soon."

"Give me your number and we'll make it a plan," Lisanna purred, pulling her phone out of her cleavage and offering it to the brunette. Which, at this point, was exactly where Natsu expected it to come from. He was beginning to think there had to be a public service announcement out that only girls received.

Attention: You've all been storing your cell phones incorrectly! Cleavage is the only way!

"Done." Cana typed in her digits and handed the phone back to Lisanna, who immediately texted her info to Cana. Cana promptly removed her own phone from her own ample breasticles and put Lisanna in as a contact.

Natsu and Bacchus just stared at the two girls in front of them, who had settled into friendship like breathing; Lisanna laughing at whatever Cana had just texted her back, and Cana grabbing a handful of puppy chow when Lisanna offered.

What the fuck had just happened? The fraternity brothers, in consternation, looked at each other, jumping when they noticed that Loke had appeared behind them, practically drooling over the girls' interaction.

"Fuckin' perv," they muttered together, and promptly elbowed him in the ribs.

* * *

Mystogan was still nursing a bit of a headache from a slight hangover, and, to make matters even less comfortable, his mind wouldn't seem to leave the gutter as he jogged just behind Erza. More than once he had to stop his hands from reaching out to grab her ass. They seemed to have a mind of their own. He eventually had to pull up next to her to stop staring at her.

Which just gave him a great view of her chest bouncing up and down in his peripheral vision. Godsdamnit all.

As Mystogan struggled to keep his mind on harmless subjects, Erza was ruminating over what he had told her about their mission concerning Bora. Or, at least she was trying to. Every time she tried to focus on the details of their possibly successful pervert-hunt, her mind drifted back to the look on Mystogan's face when he had asked her to breakfast. Or the one earlier, when he had stared, unabashedly, at her naked body. A shiver ran down her spine at the memory. He had looked almost...hungry, but awed at the same time. Like a starving man seeing a life-size recreation of the Eiffel Tower in gingerbread: excited to finally have sustenance, but unable to suppress his appreciation of the brilliant monument before him. Honestly, it had been extremely flattering. She couldn't hold back a grin as she pulled back her shoulders a little, threw her long ponytail over her shoulder, and picked up the pace.

Mystogan's head whipped around to follow the change in movement he sensed beside him and stumbled at the sight, though quickly righted himself. Between the radiant smile on her face and the way the sun was being absorbed and diffused by her slightly translucent skin, she looked like an otherworldly being. Like the fairy queen for which she was nicknamed. Maybe there was more to that title than he had first assumed.

It seemed like the more time he spent with her, the more sides Erza Scarlet revealed. She was a study in contradictions; hard and soft, strong and fragile, joyful and serious. But somehow, they all worked on her. Mystogan's hand drifted over to her on its own again, barely brushing her hand before he could pull it back.

As though the whisper of his fingers had sent a burst of electricity through her, Erza whipped her head in his direction and smiled wider, grabbing his wrist and picking up speed.

"Come on leadfoot! We've still got to get the rest of the way around campus! And there's _cake_ waiting for us! What could be better motivation?"

Mystogan grinned in response. Twisting his wrist in her grip until he was holding her hand, he pushed his sore muscles to jet past her instead. It would hurt like hell later, but the look on her face as he dragged her behind him for those few seconds was so worth it.

* * *

Lucy was standing outside of Levy's door with her fist raised to knock, but frozen in the air, as she listened to one of the weirdest conversations she'd ever heard, muffled, but understandable nonetheless.

"-is your problem with soy sauce anyway? It's not like I murdered your cat, or crucified you on a tree or something, it's just a fucking condiment! Merde!"

"It's the principal of the thing Shrimp! How can you possibly eat fries with fucking soy sauce?! They were practically invented with ketchup in mind!"

"Oh for the love of Cadmus... The Belgians, who were frying potatoes long before the French I might add, eat the damn things with mayonnaise. There are people who practically bury them in ranch of all things and you have a problem with soy sauce? I hardly think my tastes are that unusual!"

"Mayo!? What the fuck?! Why would anyone do that?"

"I don't fucking know! I dip the damn things in soy sauce, remember? You know, the reason you stole my fucking pants so I would have this inane argument with you in the first place?"

"You were ignoring me! And your lack of condiments is disturbing! Hell, your lack of anything remotely edible is disturbing. How are you fucking alive right now?"

"If you like condiments so damn much, I'll get some. And then you can lick them off my naked body anytime you fucking want, you lustmolch! Happy? Now will you give me back my fucking pants you-"

Aaaaaaand that was the point at which Lucy about-faced and scurried back to her own apartment. Some conversations just weren't meant to be overheard.

* * *

Freed was zeroing in on the culprit.

The crime? The thorough and horrific pranking of every bedroom in Fairy Tail.

That is, _almost_ every bedroom.

Using logical deductions, the red bathrobe bedecked grad student had managed to eliminate almost every Fairy Tail inhabitant from the suspect list. After a thorough search, taking close to four hours, through each and every bedroom, in search of his missing clothes and evidence of the perpetrator, Freed had returned to a single room. The only room that was entirely untouched and impeccably neat post pledge cleaning, save for a pile of empty food bags on the floor next to one of the desks.

However, Jet and Droy were conspicuously missing from said room. Turning back toward the stairs, Freed proceeded to the dining hall, tugging his robe belt a little tighter. Unfortunately, the search had not turned up his missing clothes. It had taken an hour of cleaning up the collapsed bookshelf containing his sword collection to even notice that all of his clothing had mysteriously disappeared. But his search was almost over.

The floor of the dining room was hardly visible past the pancake eaters sprawled everywhere and shoving their hungover faces. But Freed was more distracted by the group of girls wearing his ironic t-shirt collection and high-water jeans. Mira stood among them, wearing his super-top-secret-piece-de-resistance of the grouping: a custom printed shirt with a rasterbated image of Laxus' head and shoulders. Wearing cat ears. And glaring. It had been a Christmas gift. A wonderful, _wonderful_ Christmas gift.

And it was as though the gods were laughing at Freed in particular that morning, as, easily visible from his vantage point head and shoulders above the group of women clad in Freed's hipster shirts and carefully distressed vintage denim, Laxus glared out at Freed in an almost identical replica of the expression stretched across the eldest Strauss' chest.

"Freed…" he growled out, pointing to Mira's shirt with a raised eyebrow. "What the fuck?"

"Oh shut up Laxus! It's a great picture of you!" Mira butted in, grabbing the hem of the shirt and stretching it even more out of shape to better display the picture of the angry blonde made up of tiny dots. "I think it's pretty damn cute! I had no idea you owned cat ears. I have the exact same ones! We should wear them together sometime," she said with her sweetest smile before she stepped back into the kitchen.

Laxus grumbled and grabbed another plate of pancakes as she came back with a tray full of food. "Stupid bastard said no one would ever see the damn picture...fuckin' Natsu."

"Wait, Laxus, why are you even here? You're banned from the house, aren't you?"

"How the fuck should I know? I just remember getting a call from Gildarts telling me to get my ass over here and being handed a shot before I even got past the porch. Next thing I know, I'm waking up naked in Mystogan's room with a playing card taped to my head with 'Chocolate Thunder' written on it." Laxus turned back to the plate of pancakes in his hands. "Now shut the fuck up. I'm fucking hungry," he said as he dedicated himself fully to consuming more pancakes than humanly possible. It was lunch time, but Mira's pancakes were fucking delicious for every meal. Especially if hungover.

Freed just shook his head and sighed. Raising his voice, he called out above the crowd.

"Can somebody direct me to where all you floozies found my clothes?"

As one, the Body Shot Bitches who had appropriated his wardrobe glared and him and then pointed to Mira. Who pointed to Elfman. Who raised his hands in surrender.

"They were in my bathroom when Mira went to take a shower. No idea how they got there."

Suddenly, they all heard a stream of cuss words reverberate through the house from down the hall where the first floor bedrooms were. Freed raised his eyebrows at Elfman, who didn't seem surprised. Which he quickly explained.

"Another poor bloke tried to take a shower or a piss. The bathrooms are all ridiculously fucked up."

As if summoned to prove Elfman's point, Vijeeter stepped back through the door to the outside, zipping up his fly. Apparently the men of Fairy Tail had reverted to the Tactical Survival plan. Granted, it was drafted in the case that the house was booby-trapped by ninjas or the zombie apocalypse knocked out the city's utilities...but whatever worked. Behind him, Max was dragged into the room by Laki. Yelling above the low chatter of the room, the newly cultivated blueberry begged for everyone's attention.

"Everyone! I need your help. Can anyone tell us how the fuck we got handcuffed together and where the hell the key is?"

The room fell silent as everyone present looked around to see if anyone actually remembered what happened last night. Then a familiar voice spoke up from the doorway, newly arrived from a long day watching footage in the basement.

"We can." Natsu held up a ratty notebook, flanked on either side by Gray or Cana, all sporting smug smirks. "Between my notes from the camera footage, and what Gray and Cana remember from last night, we can put together a basic picture of just about every minute of the party that we're missing from our memories. So, if anyone needs a question answered, we can probably help."

"Alright! So what the fuck happened?" Max repeated, dragging a disgruntled Laki behind him this time as he approached the pinkette's group. Natsu consulted his notes, flipping to a later page and running a finger down what looked like a packed page full of scribbles. He stopped on one line suddenly.

"Aha! Yes! Erza and Mystogan chased some guy to our party and-"

"Natsu! We need your video footage!" a powerful female voice rang out, as the redhead and blunette in question conveniently pushed their way to the front of the group.

"Erza! Calm your jets, I'm actually, ironically, getting to what I'm guessing you want to know. Shut up and listen." Erza's eyebrows drew together at his impertinent words and she stepped forward, ready to teach Natsu a little lesson in respect, only to be restrained from behind by strong arms, drawing her against an equally strong chest, one hand moving to cover her mouth. She could feel the vibrations of his deep voice through her back as Mystogan replied calmly.

"Natsu, please, get on with what you were saying. I'm sure we all have questions."

"Aye sir!" Natsu replied cheerfully to his senior brother with a jaunty salute. "Now, as I was saying, Erza and Mystogan were chasing a pervert around town, who somehow ended up at our party. After he stole one of the Body Shot Bitches' tops-and no, I'm not making that up, apparently the body shot volunteers formed some kind of a unionized club last night or something and named themselves that-I helped apprehend him, until Mystogan arrived back on the scene to help Erza. Who dealt out a little punishment to Bora. At least, that's what I gather his name was…" he paused to look at Mystogan and his captive, receiving nods from both. Erza seemed to have completely forgotten she was being held by his senior brother. Interesting. That would merit further investigating later… "Ok, so yeah, after Erza gave him a sound thrashing, it appears the cops were called." Natsu was distracted for a second by movement at the back of the crowd as Simon pushed his way out of the room. He wondered if that had anything to do with what he had seen Simon do to Mystogan on camera last night...

"Ok...that's interesting and all, but that doesn't really answer my question…" Max piped up. Natsu waved his comment away.

"Trust me, I'm getting there, all in good time my young grasshopper. Where was I? Right! So the cops eventually showed up to take away Bora. Which was when, according to the cameras set up by the pool, this chick," he pointed to Laki at her place next to Max, "stole a set of handcuffs off of one of their belts without them noticing and promptly cuffed you two together. Then Simon punched Mystogan in the stomach, starting a decent brawl." Natsu frowned as he spoke. He was pretty disappointed he had missed the action. Stupid emotional drama. When had his life turned into a soap opera anyway?

Max swiveled to look at Laki, who turned bright red and tried very hard to pretend she wasn't the center of attention.

"Why would you handcuff us together?" he whispered to her, trying equally hard to pretend that they were alone at that moment.

"I don't remember, obviously...but I kind of have this thing for...um...being restrained? So...maybe...uh...I wanted to um...well...yeah," Laki stammered out, staring at her bare toes. Her shoes were long gone somewhere.

"Huh?" Max still wasn't getting it. Cana sidled up to Max and whispered a few choice things in his ear. A look of awe came over his face and he turned his eyes back to the embarrassed violet-haired girl in front of him, a new gleam in them that wasn't there before. "Ooooohhhh. Gotcha. Well, nothing wrong with that. But how are we gonna get out of these?"

"Loke? Still got that handy handcuff release thingy?" Natsu shouted out into the crowd, just assuming Loke would be there somewhere. He assumed right.

"Yep. As long as the ass who pranked all of our rooms didn't steal it or anything," Loke shouted out. Max and Laki made their way over to him as Warren spoke out now.

"Wait, what about that 'ass'? Did the video show anyone fucking with our rooms?"

"There aren't any cameras anywhere in the main house except on the boxing ring in the basement…" Natsu said as he shook his head, looking to Gray and Cana. Unnoticed by anyone, Mira slipped out of the room and down to the basement to hunt down some possibly incriminating footage. Cana and Gray looked at each other then back to Natsu and shrugged together.

"We don't remember seeing anyone setting them up. Though it must have happened during the relay or something, because our room was screwed up when Natsu came back from the race," Gray supplied. Freed took this opportunity to push a step forward, now decently attired in his own clothes, though he had been unable to find anything except a pair of plaid skinny pants and a Fairy Tail philanthropy t-shirt from his freshman year, a size too small.

"I believe I have the answer to this. Jet and Droy. Would you please step forward if you're here?" Because they all seemed to be undergoing a massive who-done-it conclusion of some kind, the pair were, in fact, in attendance. Some of the party-goers were beginning to wonder how everyone managed to fit in the dining hall without suffocating from lack of air. There must have been a decent number of insignificant party-goers who had gone home.

"What do we have to do with it?" Jet spoke for both of them. As he often did.

"One question. Was your room pranked?" Freed asked, already knowing what the answer would be.

"Um...no? But ours can't be the only room what wasn't pranked. No one could prank that many rooms in one night…" Jet replied a little less confidently, briefly glancing over at Droy, who remained silent.

"I personally examined each room myself, but, since everyone is here, why don't we ask the house? Who here had their room pranked?" the green-haired hipster called out, pushing his unnecessary glasses up his nose. Immediately a cacophony of shouts answered his question.

"I did! I've got someone else's clothes in my drawers and my shower won't turn off!"

"Our room was pranked! Fuckin' flour on everything!"

"Our doorknob is missing!"

"All the Playboys that were willed down to me are gone! Which, um, I totally only read for the articles!"

"My alarm clock was missing! And our shower is blue raspberry flavored!"

"Oh god, the alarm clocks! At the crack of dawn! So many fucking alarm clocks!"

"There was shampoo and shaving cream EVERYWHERE in our bathroom!"

"Pretty much all the toilets were cling-wrapped!"

"Nope! Ours was covered in oil!"

"All of our furniture was upside down!"

"Ours is still missing!"

Freed yelled above the crowd, "Enough! Is there anyone here whose room didn't get pranked?"

Jet and Droy looked around frantically for someone else who may have escaped the armageddon.

"I have not discovered a prank in my room," Mystogan spoke up. Jet and Droy sagged in relief. Too early it would seem. "But, I haven't been back to see it yet."

"Oh gods. You haven't seen it yet?" Freed said with widened eyes. "I assure you, you most definitely got pranked." He had barely finished the sentence before Mystogan was pushing through the crowd with Erza in tow mumbling something like "not my fucking mattress" under his breath over and over.

Mystogan's mattress was something of a legend in the house. There weren't many things that would get the cool-headed blunette riled up, but fucking with his sleep would do it. He had bought a top of the line, memory-foam, monster of a mattress when he moved into the house as a freshman and woe be to the brother who so much as touched it. No matter what other shenanigans they all got up to, they knew: _that mattress_ was absolutely off limits. Per House Rule #22. All of the residents of the house cringed. A biological signal to run and hide went off in every frat brother's brain, save one.

"So, do you now see what I have discovered? What do you have to say for yourselves?!" Freed accused Jet and Droy, drawing the crowd's attention back to the pair.

"But we don't remember doing any of that!" Droy finally spoke up in a panic. He was too young to die...or to be stapled to the fence in his underwear (the punishment doled out by the last house vote in regards to Loke's accidentally sleeping with another bro's girlfriend).

"That's hardly an excuse!"

"Yeah! None of us remember anything!"

"You are the only ones that didn't get pranked! It obviously has to be you!"

"WAIT!" Natsu's outburst rang out over the crowd before they could get too riled up again. "Gray, didn't you say it had to happen during the relay? Jet was on my team. He couldn't have done it!"

"Yeah, but he was the first leg of the race. And there is no way Droy could have gotten all of that done by himself. I think it's actually totally possible it was the two of them. Remember Christmas break last year?" Natsu nodded at his roommate and turned his glare back to 'Team Shadowgear,' as they had once dubbed themselves, remembering how the two of them had donned night vision goggles and thrown Kool-Aid-filled water balloons from the trees at the late arrivals back from Christmas break. Being soaked from head-to-toe in January was no one's favorite prank. And particularly not Natsu, who already spent much of his year generally being pranked with freezing cold water, and who had climbed the trees, bringing them each down and pounding them to a pulp in revenge for his stained scarf.

Reminded of the Team Shadowgear Christmas Caper, Jet and Droy looked at each other with the same thought. Because the Christmas Caper hadn't been their idea...and they weren't the only members of Team Shadowgear…which they hadn't even named...

"Um, was there by any chance a petite blue-haired girl at the party last night?" Droy ventured timidly.

"Yeah, she came with Lucy and Gajeel," Gray supplied. The minute her name had escaped from his mouth, Natsu's head snapped in his direction. Gray sighed. It was time to _finally_ fucking talk about it. "Natsu and Cana and I have to do something for a bit. We'll be around to answer questions. And someone take notes for us on this prankster thing. We definitely want in on the retribution. Oh yeah, if anyone is missing porn, it's probably in our room. Plus, our couch is missing. So if you see it, send it our way, yeah?" He grabbed Natsu and Cana by the shoulders and shoved them out of the room. This was not a conversation Natsu would want to have in public.

Cana grinned when she realized Gray had conveniently not mentioned the condom stash in his bed and let herself be led out of the dining hall. These boys sure knew how to liven things up.

"Wait! You three aren't going anywhere until you can explain why the fuck I woke up naked, here, and with card stuck to my head!" Laxus growled over the chatter of the crowd. All of the frat brothers seemed to notice him for the first time.

"What the fuck, you Russian bastard? Didn't we ban you?"

"Yeah, seriously, what the hell are you doing here?"

"Laxus, I thought you didn't care about the house anymore right? So why are you back?"

"I don't fucking know!" Laxus roared, the chatter grinding at his hangover. If it weren't for Mira's pancakes, he probably would have punched someone out by now. "I got a call from Gildarts. So I came, and obviously had Moon Drip, and now I've got no fucking clue what happened!"

"If I may?" Cana spoke up. "I've got this one. My dad called you, because someone told him about you getting kicked out of Fairy Tail. When you got here, he gave you a shot, and, when you were drunk enough, he grilled you about how you feel about Fairy Tail, and you went total blubbering baby and apologized and the whole fucking house was crying, and they decided to re-induct you on the spot. So they took a vote and did. Apparently they had majority vote or something? This was like...1am? Somewhere around there? Anyway, we played strip poker in Mystogan's room, because you missed him or some shit and wanted to wait for him to come home so you could tell him the good news? Honestly, you were pretty incoherent at that point...there were a LOT of celebratory shots. Anyway, after strip poker, which you totally lost by the way, we played the Post-It game. But we couldn't find any Post-Its, so we used the cards we were playing with. About halfway through the third round, you fell asleep. End of story!" Cana finished with a flourish. Then she leaned forward into the blonde behemoth's space and whispered in his ear. "Oh, and we definitely fucked at one point. Big thank you to the condom gods, right?" And with a laugh, she let Natsu pull her after Gray, finishing up her current beer and tossing it neatly into the trash on their way out.

Laxus stared after her and blinked. Twice. Then his mouth curled up into a tiny smirk as he dug into another stack of pancakes. It felt great to be back at his home away from home. Totally fucking disorienting and crazy...but hell, that was just Fairy Tail.

Then Cana ducked her head back into the room.

"Hey, someone should probably check on the dog-faced kid at the hospital at some point!" she yelled out then disappeared again.

Yeah, it was totally great to be back.

* * *

Lucy was just waking up from an afternoon nap when she felt Natsu's knuckles collide with something.

So Gray had finally told him. About fucking time. She had been waiting all day and her nerves were shot. She rubbed her hand across her knuckles to rid herself of the odd feeling and went to make a cup of coffee, unplugging her now fully charged phone, and taking it with her to the kitchen. If Gray had told Natsu about last night, then he would be calling soon.

As she stood waiting for her Keurig to finish brewing her single cup of hazelnut goodness, she couldn't keep still. Knowing that she would finally get to talk to Natsu voice to voice was amping her up, even before she could get any caffeine on board. The nap and copious amounts of water had done wonders for her hangover, the constant headache dulled to just an annoying twinge when she turned her head too fast. And a couple of aspirin would take care of that.

Just about giving up on Natsu's impending call, she settled onto her couch with her coffee and a book she had borrowed from Levy. So far it wasn't quite as good as the all-nighter she had borrowed last, but Levy assured her it picked up considerably in the middle. And this one had sequels. Gods, she loved a good series. It fed the avaricious need for the written word that she couldn't believe such a large portion of the human population didn't have. She felt sorry for them. What a colorless life they must lead.

 _But, they also probably had spending money that didn't go straight to books,_ she mused.

Just as she was hooked on Amy's self-made adventure into Richard's world of aristocratic spying in The Secret History of the Pink Carnation, reveling in the impropriety of a Regency Era lady of Amy's standing doing _those_ kind of things in a boat of all places, she blinked and was thrust into a quick flashback. She was starting to wonder if she was triggering them somehow...

 _Lucy (AKA whoever she was in this past life) was crushed under him on the floor of the little boat, both of them holding their breath, daring not even to breath, lest someone hear them. He had pushed her down into the shallow rowboat when he heard a shout, and lay, barely peeking over the side, while she stared up at him. The rough action of getting them out of view had loosened his cravat and a sliver of skin was revealed at his throat, tantalizingly close to her tingling lips. All she would have to do was lean forward and…_

 _At that moment, his eyes snapped down to hers and the intensity of his gaze took her breath away. Or perhaps that was just the combination of his weight on her chest and her corset strings pulled just a little too tight. Whatever it was, she found that once those green eyes had captured hers, it was impossible to look away. He carefully adjusted his hands where they were braced against the side of the boat, keeping most of his weight off of her, even as they lay crushed together out of the necessity of secrecy. His foot slipped a bit, slamming their hips together and causing the boat to rock dangerously. He froze, their faces only inches apart._

 _She watched his gaze flicker between her eyes and her lips, wondering what was keeping him from doing what he clearly desired to. Perhaps it was out of respect to her rank. She doubted he had highborn ladies in the bottom of his boat very often. At least, she hoped not. But whatever was stopping him ceased to be important as he took one last longing look at her lips, before he shut his eyes and closed the gap between them. He broke the kiss and gently rolled, an expert when it came to moving in his boat, settling his weight next to her, turning her body to face him in the same action. The boat swayed slightly at the movement, but remained steady otherwise. Turning freed up one of his hands to push the sweat stuck curls from her forehead. She did the same to the pink bangs that clung to his own skin. He leaned in again to kiss her and-_

Lucy's phone rang, jerking her out of the flashback. Why did something always happen when it was just getting good?!

Frustrated and mildly peeved, she grabbed her phone, forgetting everything else when she saw who was calling. It was him. How had she forgotten she was waiting for his call?! It was amazing what a well-written steamy love scene (or flashback) could do. She tapped the button to answer the call and put the phone to her ear in a hurry.

"Hello?"

"Lucy? ...Right? I kind of can't believe I finally know your name."

"Yeah. I mean, yes! hi! This is Lucy...and it's you! But you already know that. Sorry! This is really weird, isn't it?"

"Yeah. It's like I know you...but I also don't. Add in that I know we spoke last night but can't remember it, and it really does weird things to my head."

"Likewise. So, um... I assume you spoke to Gray then?" Lucy bit her lip. She could feel the smile on his lips turn downward into a frown. She hated it when he wasn't smiling. Even when she wasn't concentrating on it specifically, it always felt just a little bit...wrong. Like that first dark cloud rolling over a previously sunny afternoon.

"Yeah, he told me what happened last night."

"Are you mad?" Lucy held her breath. Gods, she hoped not.

"Well, I'm definitely not happy about it." Her excitement dropped a little as he went on. "But I get it. It's not like you knew how I felt about you, or who it was you were kissing. Still, I can't help feeling a little put out about it. It's frustrating to know you were in my freakin' house, kissing my _roommate_ , and I missed you by like, minutes."

"I'm sorry." Her apology came out in a whisper. She had never meant those words more. Gray had been a great first kiss, and she had had a fun time at her first college party, but she really wished the 'random' guy she had found to practice on had not turned out to be Natsu's roommate. If she could turn back time, she would have done anything to spare him that pain. It felt weird to feel that strongly about anyone. Sure, Levy was just as important to her...but this was different.

His happiness made her happy. And his disappointment and sadness bled into her own feelings of regret and helplessness. And don't think she hadn't caught the casual mention of his feelings. Or the way his heartbeat had subtly increased when he said it. She was starting to think she would be able to recognize that heartbeat anywhere. It was just always...there now.

"Thanks. I'm not really that mad at you. I probably should be...but I just can't seem to get mad right now. Maybe I'm just too tired. I don't know. I'm pretty much just disappointed, you know? Like about a lot of things. I'm pretty bummed I don't remember our first phone call...and I really wish you would have stuck around. I'll admit, I'm pretty curious to meet you. Why did you run? Gray wouldn't say. Bastard said it needed to come from you." Well, at least Gray was keeping up his end of the deal.

"Yeah, I guess it does. I'm sorry for leaving. But...I can't tell you completely why, partly because I don't remember that part of last night...but also partly because if I told you, it would put you in danger. And I don't want to do that."

"Does it have anything to do with the girl who tried to blackmail me last night?"

"Wait. WHAT? Someone tried to blackmail you? How the hell do you know? Who was it? What were they blackmailing you with?"

"Well, I don't really remember it happening…" He sounded a bit sheepish. It was such an odd sound, coming from him, but sort of cute at the same time. "A friend of a friend who hadn't had any of the crazy amnesia juice heard the tail end of it I guess? He didn't know who she was, but apparently she got knocked out cold shortly after. I haven't seen her around the house, so I assume she went home and doesn't remember much of last night. Figured I wouldn't worry about it unless it came up again...but if that girl is keeping us from meeting-"

"No! Natsu, really, you shouldn't go looking for her. It will all shake out, and we just have to be patient until it does. Or at least until I can figure out who the hell the girl was." Natsu was conspicuously silent. When he didn't say anything, she concentrated on his breathing. It seemed a bit fast. "Natsu? Are you ok?" The minute she said his name, his heart rate jumped, and his stomach flipped. Huh. Well that was interesting.

"Oh, yeah! No, I'm fine! Just...my body's acting weird is all…" he trailed off again. Working on a hunch, she inhaled deeply and said it again. "Natsu?" Same physical reaction. Her lips curled uncontrollably into a smile. She was getting a serious case of deja vu. She didn't remember talking to him last night, but she obviously had. Maybe she had discovered something similar then. Maybe they had talked about it...after they had talked about his confession. She was longing to ask about it. But she wasn't sure if he wanted to go there. He had barely mentioned it. Did he want her to bring it up instead? Was that one mention a hint to get her to ask about it?

"Lucy?" Natsu's words brought her thoughts back to the warm voice on the other end of the phone.

"Yeah?" Her pulse quickened. Maybe he'd bring it up now?!

"Can you maybe stop saying my name over and over? I think I might be having some sort of attack or something. My stomach is feeling really...weird when you say it." Her smile widened. Feeling a spurt of her usual confidence returning, she replied flippantly.

"Well, what did you expect? I am a weirdo right? Sounds like a perfectly normal reaction to me." She felt a real smile finally return to his face. Suddenly the world was feeling just a little bit more...right. "Besides. I like saying your name...Naaaaatsuuuuu." She slowed the word way down...tasting every syllable of his name as it rolled off her tongue, confidence in her approach building as she felt his reaction to her almost double in intensity. Shit, maybe she _should_ stop. All this concentrating on his reaction was making her more and more aware of every part of him.

She could feel the heat of his phone pressed against his ear, the warm wind brushing his face, the hard surface he sat on and the feeling of his tongue as he licked his lips. It was a heady feeling, being that in tune with him. He must be sitting outside somewhere. Maybe on the front porch of Fairy Tail. She closed her eyes and tried to picture him sitting on the stairs out front, or leaning against the wall by the door. But what she got instead was the mental image of him, shirtless, leaning up against the corner of the building at night, surrounded by people, but focused on his phone. It was only a flash, but it startled her enough that she opened her eyes. It took her a moment to realize that he had closed his eyes and fallen silent as well. Eventually, he spoke up again.

"Well, shit. I guess I can't really complain about that. I like saying your name too. Well, knowing it at all really. Though, I'm not sure which suits you better, Lucy or Weirdo. I still kind of like Weirdo…"

"Don't you dare keep calling me that! Now that you know my name, you better remember it!" Lucy could feel his smile broaden.

"Gods, you're so easy to tease. Don't take everything so seriously! I don't think I could forget your name if I tried."

"Well, um. Good. Then." Lucy avoided mentioning that he obviously already had. Her good mood lessened slightly. But it wasn't like it was his fault...she had forgotten that she told him after all. Then something occurred to her. She almost didn't want to bring it up, but it had been bothering her most of the day, and she wondered if he had noticed it either. "Hey, uh, Natsu?"

"Yeah?" He refrained from teasing her about saying his name again. Maybe he sensed she really had something to say this time.

"I was reading through our texts from last night, and the last one I sent you has been bugging me. I was wondering...do you happen to remember what that was about?"

Natsu was silent for a few moments as he tried to decide what to tell her. Sometime the previous night he had spilled the whole convoluted tale to Cana, so she had filled him in on the blanks that the video and Gray couldn't. He had kept the details about Michelle from Lucy so far. The way she reacted...he really didn't want to spook her again. He was so close to winning her over, he couldn't stand the thought of her pulling away from him. But surely it couldn't hurt to tell her what the last text was referring to. Maybe it would even help convince her they needed to meet sooner. Though he doubted it. Hearing what Michelle was planning on doing with the information of Lucy's whereabouts, he sort of understood her paranoia. That brunette bitch was nothing but trouble.

"I don't remember firsthand, but someone filled me in on most of the details of last night. I guess, after we talked on the phone, you agreed to come back and meet me in person. And then you saw something that stopped you when you were almost here and texted me. And then you wouldn't return any of my calls. I don't really know what stopped you." Natsu winced slightly at his white lie. It wasn't _really_ a lie. She had never fully told him why she couldn't come to back to the house, but he had pretty much figured it out. At least that's what he had told Cana.

"Oh gods, Natsu...I'm sorry. Really _really_ sorry. I don't remember what was going on to make me bail on you like that, but I'm sure it was important." Lucy's mind wandered back to everything going on with her dad. It had to have something to do with him. She had to figure out who that girl she had punched was.

If it weren't for that bitch, she could tell him that she really wanted to meet him. That they could meet now even. But because of that cameo from her past, she couldn't do that. Gray had told her to trust in Natsu...but a lifetime of her father's control had more influence. She wouldn't make him suffer like she had. If there was the slightest chance that could happen, she had to protect him from it. At least until Gray told her who the mysterious blackmailer was. Lucy assumed it had to be the same person. It was just too big a coincidence if it wasn't.

"Lucy...I'm not gonna lie and say I don't still want to meet you in person. Because I absolutely do. But, if there is something going on that scares you this much I get it. I just wish you would tell me what it is. I can help. Or at least try to help." He paused, almost hopefully. Lucy wanted to blurt out the whole truth about her father so badly. But she bit back her words. Not yet. Wait for Gray to figure out what the girl knows. Then she could decide with facts to back her up. With a sigh Natsu continued. "Well...in the meantime, I'm not going to push you about it. Just...you do still want to meet me, right? You don't still think I'm going to murder you or something, do you?" Finally something Lucy didn't have to hold back. So instead she tripped all over herself.

"Hell yes. I mean...I do. Want to meet you, I mean! Not that I think you're going to murder me. I totally don't think that at all! Shit, you know what I mean, right?!" Smooth Lucy. Real smooth. The urge to facepalm was real. Natsu laughed into the phone, prompting warmth to spread across her cheeks. Which only seemed to feed his joviality further. She wasn't sure if he was laughing at her or just laughing to laugh, but it was infectious. It became a lot harder to hold onto her initial pout. Playfully, she poked her own ribs, smirking when she felt his muscles spasm and the tone of his laughter change.

"Hey! What was that for? Are you forgetting this goes both ways?" And with that an all out tickle war ensued, neither realizing the idiocy of what they were doing as they literally tickled themselves to get at the other. It just felt so good to laugh after all the stress of the last day and a half. As the minutes stretched on, the tension hanging over them faded away into smiles and laughter, ending with them both lying breathless, Natsu on the front porch of Fairy Tail and Lucy on the floor of her bedroom.

As soon as Natsu had caught his breath he rode the courage his over-oxygenated high gave him.

"Hey Lucy? Can you promise me something?"

"Sure." She followed up her stunted response with a giggle. He couldn't help but chuckle at her.

"Well don't you want to know what it is first?"

"Sure. What do you want me to promise?" Lucy giggled again and Natsu rushed forward, high on the sounds of her laughter.

"No more kissing other guys. I want you to promise you won't go around kissing random guys anymore. Please," he added belatedly, realizing how pushy he sounded.

"Well, that seems reasonable, as long as you don't go around kissing other girls. And other guys for that matter!" Lucy let another giggle escape her grin. "I mean, that had to feel super strange...plus it must have felt like you were basically kissing your own roommate…"

"No! I mean, well yeah, I don't even want to think about how weird that probably was, but that wasn't really what I meant. I mean...I don't want you to kiss anyone else because...well, I want you all to myself." Natsu took a deep breath and continued. "I mean, not like you're property or some stupid shit like that...I just...well, clearly you already know that I like you." Understatement of the year Natsu, geez. "And if you think you could maybe feel the same way, well...just don't kiss other guys?" Natsu took another deep breath when he was done and held it. Gods he hoped he hadn't just royally fucked this up. It wasn't exactly the most romantic thing to say…

"Ok...yeah. Like I said, that seems fair. Because I don't want you kissing other girls either. For, um, the same reasons," she finished in a rush. "So, if you promise not to kiss other girls, I'll promise not to kiss other guys. Deal?" Natsu's smile could have powered the city of Magnolia for a night it was so damn bright.

"Deal. I promise."

"Then, I promise too." He didn't think he'd ever felt her smile so big.

They lay in comfortable silence for a few minutes before Lucy ventured a question.

"So...you up for a shower right now?" Every nerve ending in Natsu's body perked up at her words.

"Definitely."

* * *

 **Yeah, before you ask, Happy is MEANT to be white. He will eventually be blue...you'll see...I have plans. AND, yay Nalu back on track! AND Moon Drip is officially over! HUZZAH! The plot will finally move on from here. Thank you all for all of the messages and concern over my lack of posting last week. I tried to write while at the con, but nothing good was coming out. This ridiculously long chapter was definitely worth the wait...well, I think anyway. Lol**

 **THINGS! LEARN 'EM!** **lol**

 **Isus Krist-** the Croation version of Jesus Christ, used as a curse in this case

 **Julia Child or Simone Beck-** co-authors with Louisette Bertholle of the famous cookbook in two volumes, _Mastering the Art of French Cooking_

 **Mary Poppins-ed-** a made-up term alluding to the title character of the film/books of _Mary Poppins,_ and her ability to store ridiculously sized things in her seemingly magical carpet bag. Basically Lisanna just has an unlimited stock of snack food in her purse at all times. Basically the whole reason Natsu asked her out in high school.

 **Puppy chow-** just in case there is a poor soul out there who has not yet experienced the ecstasy that is puppy chow...chocolate and peanut butter covered Rice Chex cereal that is then liberally coated in powdered sugar. Fucking delicious. Especially frozen.

 **"** **the final match point of the Wimbledon finals"-** Tennis references. I'm not a sports person, but it fit...so *tosses bone to the sports fans out there*

 **Merde-** pretty sure everyone knows this one at this point, but French for "shit"

 **Cadmus-** the founder and first king of Thebes, credited with introducing the Ancient Greeks to their first alphabet

 **Lustmolch-** another golden nuggets from the glorious German language, used as an insult, implying that one is sex-obsessed, literally it means 'pleasure-newt'

 **Rasterbated-** no, this has nothing to do with masturbation. Yeah, I know you were all thinking it. It's actually the name of the process when an image is converted to a series of tiny dots to limit the amount of ink that is used in a print. Famously used in American comic books and utilized by Roy Lichtenstien during the pop art movement of the 1960s

 **'** **Handy handcuff release thingy'-** couldn't resist putting this in. It's actually a trick I learned at ComiCon last week when I bought my new set of lockpicks from a vendor. It turns out, with a thin strip of metal, you can break out of standard handcuffs really easily. And now I totally know how. Yeah, not gonna lie, I feel pretty badass...hehehe And you know, Loke _would_ know a trick to get out of handcuffs…

 **The Post-It Game-** just in case no one has played this, or you call it something different, it is a game in which nouns of some kind are written on a post-it note and stuck to someone's forehead and they have to guess who or what they "are". Usually played in a large group where everyone gets one question in sequence until they guess it. Last man standing with a post-it on his forehead loses. Great for long car trips. Can get very dirty when booze is involved…

 **The Secret History of the Pink Carnation-** a historical romance series by Patricia Wrede that I quite enjoyed. Set in the Regency/Early Napoleonic Era in a world of fanciful British spies named after flowers. Great romances...made up history. But eh, still fun reads.

 **AUTHOR EDIT: Can't believe I forgot the most important one this chapter...**

 **Stier-** Taurus in Dutch! ;)


	21. Threesomes

**No! This chapter is not going to be filled with raunchy three-way lemons! Get your minds out of the gutter!**

 ***slaps random character across the face, shudders when it turns out to be Mira***

 **Oh God! I went too far! Mira, don't hurt me! *exits stage right pursued by Demon Mira***

 ***pops head back in* Enjoy! *gets dragged away to the sound of tortured screaming*  
**

* * *

 **AUTHOR EDIT: Soooo, just hit 700 reviews guys...when the hell did THAT happen?! So RIDICULOUSLY excited about it. My vault full of warm fuzzies is getting really full though...may have to build on a new wing...**

 **But seriously, thanks for all the love. It makes my day. And week, and hell, let's just skip to year and be done with it...**

* * *

Lucy trailed behind Levy as Gajeel walked the blunette to class, her mind lost in thought as she let their random conversation flow into her ears and out again. Their chatter was almost enough to soothe the anxiety she still felt about the mystery girl from her past. Reminded again that the girl probably went to their school, she pulled the ponytail holder from her hair, screening her face a modicum more effectively from the world.

Her senses seemed extra sharp, alerting her to the slightest motion in her peripherals. For some reason, she couldn't shake the feeling that she was being followed. She felt like she was in a Hunter S Thompson novel: high as heaven and twice as paranoid.

 _We can't stop here, this is bat country!_ Lucy quoted nervously to herself in her head using her best Johnny Depp impression. (Ladies do not quote drug movies!) The sudden Miss Aquarius-like reprobating thought startled her. She didn't realize it, but it had been a while since she had heard the bitchy governess' words in her thoughts. Lucy wasn't sure if that was a good thing or not...probably? Did it mean she was no longer ladylike?

She heard a twig snap off to her left and angled herself away from the sudden noise. The paranoia was really starting to get to her. Lucy quickened her step just slightly, closing the growing gap between her and her friends, just in time to catch them in the middle of yet another pointless argument.

"-because I can take care of myself just fine! I don't need you to "protect" me from the big bad prowlers on campus. It's eight o'clock in the morning for gods' sakes! No one is going to 'get me'..." Levy said with a huff, using her fingers to form air-quotes as she stared up at her much taller boyfriend. Her steps skipped along at a fast pace, two of her short strides matching up to each one of his long ones. Her brightly patterned top and coordinated scarf fluttered around over her denim shorts as she tripped along, swaying her hips in her natural walking rhythm. Lucy wished she could learn to look as delicate as Levy did naturally. Gajeel, on the other hand, was dressed in all black again, this time jeans and a black fitted tank top. Lucy did have to admit he had ridiculously nice arms. Not as nice as Natsu's...but contenders for top 5 for sure (or would it be top 10? Would each individual arm be ranked? Because the differing tattoos would definitely affect ranking...Ah hell, her list, her rules! Top 10 sayeth Lucy!). Not being a student, Gajeel carried no bags or books, instead sticking his hands in his pockets. He had offered to carry Levy's straining bookbag, but boyfriend or not, she wasn't ready to trust him with her books. Her heart was hers alone to give away, but those helpless crackly bindings were counting on her to protect them. Plus she had a self-sufficient streak that ran about a mile wide, and ten long. Which had prompted this argument in the first place.

"Listen Shrimp, there are a lot of twisted people out there. I should know. Somehow they always end up in my shop! If I want to come walk my girlfriend to class and my presence happens to keep the weirdos away, all the better!" Gajeel grumbled, his hand betraying his belligerent tone as it sought out Levy's. The blunette smirked up at him as his fingers laced through hers.

"Oh really? Well, then maybe I shouldn't have agreed to help you out by working there, if, you know, it's just going to expose me to the weirdos." The sarcasm was palpable. "Seems pretty counterproductive to "protecting" me doesn't it?" Gajeel rolled his eyes.

"HA! 'Help me out'? It's not like I wouldn't be payin' ya!" He snorted. "Besides, I'll always be there when you're there, so if anything it's twice as safe: I'm there, _and_ it's on my turf. Win-win."

"How is that a win-win? The only person winning there is you!"

"Oh, I think you're getting a pretty good deal out of it too!"

"Wait, Levy, you're going to work for Gajeel?" Lucy interjected, surprise evident in her voice. Both Gajeel and Levy jumped slightly, seemingly having forgotten she was behind them. She couldn't really blame them; aside from the occasional mutter, she hadn't done much to make her presence known. "But what about your work study at the library? Plus I didn't think that was really something you were interested in..."

"Well, though I've never really had ambitions to work for a tattoo artist, you know I'm interested in just about everything Lu-chan. Plus, Gajeel really needs a front desk person if he's ever going to have the time to do all the extra things he needs to in order to get his business growing. And, everyone around here is apparently a moron, so I'm the clear choice! Plus we'll get to spend more time together without taking time out of school or work. Particularly because I can study when it's slow. Now that's what I call a win-win," she finished triumphantly.

Gajeel glowered down at her and scoffed. Levy just grinned, turning back to Lucy. As soon as her back was turned the glare turned into a grimace, which turned into a reluctant smile, which ended in Gajeel pretty much forgetting about everything except the girl holding his hand and grinning like a goof. Lucy had already seen this cycle of emotions twice since they left the apartment building.

She had no idea where Gajeel lived, but it couldn't be far, because he had gotten to Levy's door that morning just after Lucy had, also bearing coffee. Lucy had been just the slightest bit put out by his invasion of their morning routine. Levy, on the other hand, was in particularly good spirits. Twice the caffeine, meant twice the productivity; always a good day in her book. And having Gajeel around in any capacity was a plus in her private opinion, no matter how she argued the contrary aloud.

"Anyway, Lucy, aren't you going to tell us what happened on Saturday to you during "the gap"?

'The gap' was what they had agreed to call the section of time that was missing thanks to their misadventures with Moon Drip. "We haven't really had a chance to talk about it at all! Any new developments with Mr. Matches?"

Lucy opened her mouth to answer, but her eyes darted instinctively to Gajeel, who was twisting one of the rings in his lip with one hand, as his other thumb made circles on Levy's hand. Her lips pulled down in a slight frown. Just because he was dating her best friend and was soul-bonded to her, didn't mean he instantly got her approval. He had a long way to go before she would even accept him as proper boyfriend material, let alone deserving of Levy's love. Not that she would ever let Levy know that. Gajeel's eyes met hers and a shiver ran down her spine. She could tell he felt the same. Something just didn't click between the two of them. It felt like they had some previous grudge against each other...which was absurd, because they barely knew one another.

"Yeah, there have been all kinds of developments actually! But I would rather hang out and go through it all in one go. You have a break in your schedule at all today? Maybe we can grab lunch together again?" Lucy hedged as she looked at Levy, who was looking at Gajeel. Gajeel nodded as he glanced back at Levy, who turned back at Lucy. Apparently this was just the way things were going to be now. Lucy's gaze flicked back to Mr. I'm-too-cool-for-sleeves and nodded slightly in acknowledgement. If all of Levy's plans had to go through him now, at least he was being decent about it. Gajeel turned his gaze on her, doing his best to convey both his displeasure at missing lunch with his girlfriend and his superior ability to sacrifice their time together at the same time. Meanwhile Lucy returned the look with one simultaneously conveying her thanks and her disgust with his superiority complex.

"I had lunch plans with Gajeel, but this is more important! The picnic tables again?" Levy chirped, ignorant to the new eye conversation going on between Lucy and Gajeel. Lucy broke their staring contest as she turned back to Levy with a bright smile.

"Yeah, that works out great. I'll see you around eleven thirty then? This is my stop," she said, veering off the path to the nearest building.

"Let's make it noon actually. I need to hit the library and adjust my work study hours so I can figure out a schedule at, um, Black Steel." There was just the slightest pause before she said the name of his business, unnoticeable to those who didn't know her, but the two individuals with her immediately narrowed their eyes. Lucy made a note to ask her about it later.

"Ok, noon it is. See you then!" And with a cheery wave, she made her way to her first class.

Levy and Gajeel continued on in silence for a few minutes. Levy's eyes out of focus on the air in front of her, and Gajeel's on Levy.

"You need to stop thinkin' about that so much Shrimp. It's not like there's anything you can do about it."

"I know. And it's not like I've had any more visions about it...but it doesn't mean I'm not curious...and concerned. I know you don't care, but the state of your soul is important to me. I _need_ to know what happened. But there weren't enough clues in the flashback to go on. All I can seem to do is hope I'll get another one that is slightly more enlightening."

"Well, in the meantime, it's no use worrying about."

Levy sighed and opened the door to the science building, holding the door behind her for her boyfriend.

"Trust me, it's the last thing I want to be worrying about now. Anyway, this is me," she finished, effectively halting both their steps and the conversation. She went to pull her hand from Gajeel's and enter her first class through the propped open door, but found herself pulled into his embrace instead. She rose on the tips of her toes as he captured her lips in a kiss that was guaranteed to distract her from her thoughts. At least he hoped.

Levy responded eagerly, immediately opening her mouth and weaving her fingers enthusiastically into Gajeel's unruly mane of hair. She didn't think she would ever get used to how it felt to kiss him; she felt it down to her toes every time. In the end, it was Gajeel that broke the kiss, carefully straightening and pulling away from Levy as she opened hazy eyes, her pupils blown wide, giving her even more of a dewy doe look than she had going for her naturally. She became vaguely, but steadily more aware of the catcalls coming from her classmates as they witnessed the whole steamy spectacle through the open doorway.

With a cocky grin to cover up the sappy one he couldn't seem to control, Gajeel chuckled and stepped away from her. Then he turned around to leave.

"Have a good day Shrimp! See ya later!" His last words over his shoulder snapped her out of her own twitterpated grin.

"Don't call me that! And you have a good day too!" Honestly, she didn't mind the nickname so much now...but it was the principle of the thing. Levy turned to enter her classroom and was greeted by two faces she had completely forgotten were in her first class. As Jet and Droy stood just inside the door with shocked looks on their faces, she remembered the events leading to her own 'gap' from Saturday night and her blood heated up all over again.

"What are you sfigati looking at?" she barked, shoving past them and finding a different empty seat to fill than the one she normally took near the boys' lab table. Instead, she found herself beside a brunette whose gaze was locked on her phone, fake acrylic nails tapping as she typed something into the latest tablet the wireless companies had the nerve to call a phone. Levy immediately hated her. Unfortunately, except for her usual spot, every other seat was taken. Oh well, at least it wasn't lab day. Wednesdays and Fridays were reserved for biochem labs. Mondays were lecture days. She wrinkled her nose thinking about the rest of the semester ahead of her. Magnolia U required students to complete classes in a broad range of general education classes before they could entirely focus on their major, so she had signed up for biochem with Jet and Droy for her science requirement. It was a bit more than she needed, but it was apparently a requirement for Jet's exercise science major, so they had decided to Three Musketeer it and go through it with him to make it a little easier. But now...Levy slumped over her desk, trying to ignore the incessant tapping from her neighbor as she contemplated a semester of unnecessary biochemistry without a study buddy.

"Alright everyone," Professor Azuma began as he strode through the open door and dropped his briefcase against the front wall. "We're going to have a lab day today since I'll be gone for a conference Wednesday and my grad assistant Meredy can go over today's lecture notes then instead. So grab your lab partner and open your books to page 13. We'll be starting with an experiment on the effect of heat and pH on the color and texture of green vegetables. Meredy will be coming around with green beans for everyone and you'll need your hot plates."

As half the class got up to move to their partners, Levy's brow furrowed. Her lab partner for this class was Droy. Better than Jet right then, but still not someone she had any inclination to work with at the moment. Her perfectly lovely, overcaffeinated Monday was already taking a nosedive.

When she saw the brunette sitting next to her had no intention of getting up, Levy grabbed her bag and headed to Droy's table instead. Jet had already moved to work with Sawyer, a fellow exercise sciences major with an unfortunate habit of wearing his stupid mirrored sunglasses everywhere. Levy had only spoken with him a couple of times, but due to her childhood fascination with Mark Twain's famous works, his name was forever etched in her memory. Ignoring Jet's eyes burning into the back of her head, she placed her bookbag under the table and went to get a hot plate. By the time she was back, Droy was shoving Cheetos in his mouth and making eyes at her like a kicked puppy. With a sigh she plugged in the hot plate and turned to him.

"Are you sorry for what you've done?" she asked, crossing her arms and leaning back a bit to look down at the stress-eater sitting next to her.

"Yes...?" he replied, clearly having no idea of what she was talking about.

"What, you don't even remember? The huge fight we had about Gajeel on Saturday?" Droy blanched.

"No! Jet and I had Moon Drip with the rest of the guys! We don't remember anything! What did we do? Who's Gajeel?"

Levy swiveled her gaze back to Jet, who was listening intently. So was Sawyer. To be fair, she was standing right in front of him, he didn't really have a choice. She still gave him the evil eye until he quit staring at least. The least he could do was _pretend_ he wasn't listening to all the drama going on around him.

"Gajeel is my boyfriend. Who you literally just saw me kissing! Yeah, I managed to attract a guy willing to date me even though you kept guys away from me for our entire friendship. Which is what we fought about on Saturday. According to Jet here, you guys have been cock-blocking me since day one. Which he decided was his goddamned right for some reason."

"Dude, that is pretty messed up," Sawyer was back to staring, this time at Jet, and couldn't resist giving his two cents. Levy glared him back into silence again. Then turning back to Jet, who was looking a lot less confident than he had on Saturday.

"As completely none of Sawyer's business all of this is, he's got a point. It is _really_ messed up! You were supposed to be my friends."

Levy said turning from Jet to focus back on Droy.

He hadn't lost the abused puppy look, but had finished his Cheetos, somehow made overall more pathetic-looking by the cheese dust coating his face and limp fingers. It didn't take him long to crack under her gaze.

"I'm so sorry Levy! I knew you weren't interested in me, but I didn't want you to get a boyfriend and stop hanging out with us. It was selfish and stupid." Droy bowed his head, fighting tears.

"I'll say! I would never do that! You guys are like brothers to me! And what about you? What do you have to say for yourself?" Satisfied for the moment with Droy's apology, she turned to Jet. Somehow, she didn't think he would be quite so contritious. His scalp had bristled at the word 'brothers'.

"What do _I_ have to say? Seriously? You prank our house, get us blamed for it, turn into a slut overnight for some guy when we've been waiting for you to get over your hang-ups for years, and I owe _you_ an apology? Yeah, I don't think so. You've been stringing me along for years! If you weren't interested, you should have just said so." Levy's face turned red as she fought to keep angry tears from causing an even bigger scene in the class than the group already had.

"Jet, I think I made it pretty obvious over the years that I wasn't interested. It isn't my fault that you can't take a hint. But that's not the biggest issue here! You aren't even sorry you basically doomed me to thinking I'm undesirable and will be alone for the rest of my life, are you? You don't care that I missed out on a quintessential high school experience. You don't think you did anything wrong!" On the last word her voice cracked and a tear slipped down Levy's cheek, but she kept her eyes locked on Jet's. Sawyer looked on with wide eyes, sunglasses perched for a rare moment on his spiky blonde hair while he quickly ping-ponged his gaze back to see what Jet would say.

"Yeah, I don't. But the thing that gets me, is you don't think you did anything wrong either! All you had to do was say, hey, guys, I'm not interested in you that way. But no, you always had some excuse. So yeah, I'm not sorry. And I won't apologize until you admit that _you_ were wrong. Because god forbid you ever admit to anything that shows you as less than little miss fucking perfect."

Levy spun around, finding herself face to face with Meredy and a handful of beans. Taking them from her, she wiped her eyes and tried to ignore the look of pity the pink-haired grad assistant was sending her way.

"I really am sorry Levy. Really, really sorry. I didn't mean to make you feel alone." Droy's quiet words made her look up at him with an attempt at a smile.

"I know Droy. Thank you for apologizing. It _does_ mean a lot to me. I'm just not...ready to stop being mad at you. You know?"

"Yeah, I get it. You have every right to be mad. Lets just do the lab, and then I'll leave you alone."

"Just give me a few days? Then let's catch a movie or something, yeah?"

"Yeah. Sounds like a plan." The relief in Droy's voice was tangible; like she could reach out and touch it where it hung between them. She couldn't help but feel her anger at him crumbling a bit at the edges. He had done what he did for the same reasons she did. They both didn't want to lose their best friends. At the very least, she could understand that.

They made it through the lab without any more incidents, even getting done a little early. After finishing up her notes for the report that would be due Friday, Levy grabbed her bag and was finally able to escape the cage of tension Jet had carefully maintained for the past hour. Her eyes burned from keeping her tears inside.

Only to see her boyfriend leaning against the wall outside the classroom. His gaze shot to her the minute she hit the hallway.

"Who did it?"

"Who did what?" she tried, not even convincing herself.

"You know what. Who made you cry?" he practically growled out.

"It doesn't matter. I handled it."

"It does matter. I can still feel how tense you are. It's been almost an hour. So where are they?"

Levy didn't see this going well under any circumstances. But before she could convince Gajeel to leave, the worst possible people walked out the door.

"So this is the jackass you gave yourself away to? What a waste." Levy felt tears prick her eyes again in rage as she turned to give him a piece of her mind. Only to find he was no longer standing there. Instead, he was desperately trying to stand on the ends of his toes as Gajeel kept him pinned to the wall with a hand around his throat. Levy was stunned into silence. Gajeel definitely wasn't.

"Gotcha. So _you're_ the _jackass_ who made her cry. Excellent. You just saved me all kinds of trouble tracking you down. Listen up. Levy picks who is in her life and who isn't. That's nobody's fucking business but hers. Not even mine. Which is pretty great news for you, because if it was up to me, you wouldn't breathe the same air as her. Ever again. But, like I said, that's up to her. What is up to _me_ is what I do to you if you ever make her cry again. I'll give you a hint..you won't like it." He emphasized his last words by pushing just a little harder on the smaller man's windpipe. But then he backed off and dropped him. "And that's as much time as I fucking have to waste on you. Bye Levy, have a great rest of your day." He quickly pecked the blunette on the cheek and walked toward the door out of the building.

Levy stood paralyzed still trying to process what had just happened. But the smallest of smiles crooked up the side of her mouth. Ignoring Jet where he was wheezing on the floor, she headed out the same door her boyfriend had, hoping to grab a snack from the vending machine before her next class. Maybe the day wouldn't be a complete waste after all.

Because something about the way he said her name made everything feel just a little bit better.

* * *

Lucy was getting a little sick of Natsu's cockiness.

Pretty much from the moment she had sat down in her first class, he had been texting her. And that didn't bother her at all. She actually really liked having someone to talk to during her lecture. She hadn't really made any friends in class. Unless you counted the weird blonde guy that somehow shared every single one of her classes and spent most of them staring at her. It was honestly starting to creep her out.

At least if he decided to jump her in between classes or something, Natsu would be close by on campus and feel it and come looking for her...wait, when had she started to think like that?! She was a badass in her own right! While the creepy dude clearly worked out, she bet she could still take him. With that thought securely in her mind, she returned to the issue at hand. Which was Natsu's enormous ego getting out of hand.

She left the lecture hall, her class over, and headed to the library to spend the half hour or so before she had to be somewhere else. Her phone vibrated, letting her know that Natsu was still going strong.

 **ive had 12 different people come up and tell me how awesome the Gildarts party was. and how awesome they thought the relay and stuff were. cuz im the man and all.**

 _Yeah, it was cool. But you weren't the only one working that party. The bartenders were pretty awesome too._

 **what? bacchus and elfman? theyre alright. nothing i couldnt do.**

 _Uh huh. Whatever you say, master of the universe._

 **hey, i cant help how awesome i am!**

 _And soooo modest._

 **HA. i'm so good, i can totally feel you rolling your eyes right now.**

Lucy stopped rolling her eyes and bit her bottom lip.

 **And now you're biting your lip.** She promptly released it. She closed her eyes and concentrated. She thought she caught a whiff of cologne...but it was gone in a moment, and she was able to concentrate on Natsu again.

 _So? That's amateur shit. You're taking notes in a class right now, and you want to kick someone but you're holding back. I'd say you're probably with Gray._

 **Oooooh, getting fancy now. Alright.**

There was a pause in his texting before she got another one.

 **You're in a library.**

 _And why do you think that?_

 **You're sitting in a comfy chair, it smells like books and copy toner, and you're smiling. You're also holding the page in a book with one hand, and are taking notes occasionally, so I'd say, library is the best guess. And you had hazelnut coffee, like an hour ago.**

 **And now you're annoyed that I'm so much better at this than you.**

Lucy worked hard to take the disgruntled expression of her face. Then she had an idea and smiled just slightly, trying to keep the conniving grin she wanted to have off her face.

She went back in her messaging app and started a new conversation. This time with Gray.

 _Hey, are you with Natsu right now?_

She had a response in seconds.

 ** _Yep._**

 _Does he know you have my number?_

 ** _I don't think so..._**

 _He's being a cocky SOB right now. Want to help me fuck with him?_

 ** _Absolutely._**

 _Awesome. What is he wearing? Be specific._

 ** _Dark purple t-shirt with a white Fairy Tail emblem, white cargo shorts, white socks, black chucks, white scarf._**

 _Thanks. Stand by._

Switching back to Natsu, she typed in a message.

 _Ok, you're wearing a t-shirt and cargo shorts._

 **pff, that's nothing. you're wearing shorts and a tank top.**

 _Your t-shirt is purple._

 **wait, yeah. howd you know that?**

 _I can see through your eyes. So, I can obviously see your shirt is purple._

 **WTF? no way. u cant see through my eyes! lucky guess.**

Lucy could feel him looking down at his clothes. He was falling for the bait perfectly. Just a little more and she'd have him hooked.

 _You just looked at yourself. You're wearing white shorts, a white scarf, your shirt has a white symbol on it._

 **HOW THE FUCK ARE YOU DOING THAT?!**

Lucy got another text from Gray.

 ** _OMG, what are you doing to him?! He's flipping out, its fucking hilarious!_**

 _Just making him think I can see through his eyes...hehe_

 ** _LMFAO_**

 _LOL, what else can he see?_

While she waited for his response she flipped back over to her convo with Natsu.

 _I told you. I can see out of your eyes. You're also wearing worn black chucks._

She was taking a gamble on that, but come on, no one wore shiny new chuck taylors. For one they squeaked. Nothing more annoying than breaking in a new pair of chucks.

 **ok, well if you can see what I can, what am I looking at right now?**

Quickly Lucy switched back over to Gray's message box. He had basically given her as much as he could.

 ** _He's writing in red pen, about halfway down the page of notes, the professor is super fat with black hair, he's writing on a whiteboard in blue marker, he's got a textbook open in front of him to pg 24, we're in a lecture class, I'm wearing a green button down and jeans, and my necklace, and green sneakers_**

 _What's he looking at right now?_

 ** _Staring at the guy sitting on his right. Guy hasn't noticed, still taking notes, has on a gold tank top, really light blonde hair, black tribal tattoos on his left arm, braided cord necklace with a coin on it. Pretty much every girl around him is staring at him, he's in pretty good shape. Black sweatpants. Pretty sure he's wearing Axe or something. Smells terrible._**

So that was what that smell was. Lucy wrinkled her nose and went back to Natsu's messages.

 _Wow, he's pretty cute. I've never really been into other blondes, but his tattoo is definitely upping the hot factor. I wonder if his necklace is special...and what, did he just come to class in his pjs? Or work out clothes maybe? Because he clearly works out._

Gray sent another message before Natsu could respond.

 ** _The guy just noticed he's staring!_**

Lucy carefully and deliberately winked at the air in front of her, not really paying attention to her surroundings. Natsu just had to feel her winking. Her phone vibrated with Natsu's message.

 **HEY! what are u doin? u trying to wink at the guy with my eyes!? i thought we agreed we werent trying to get with anyone else! AND HOW COME YOU CAN SEE OUT OF MY EYES BUT I CANT SEE OUT OF YOURS?!**

 **this is so unfair** Lucy could feel his lips pull down and his eyes blinking rapidly.

Gray's next message vibrated her phone.

 ** _Oh my god, this is priceless! He's full on pouting and blinking at everything. It's hilarious. He hasn't even noticed that the prof noticed him blinking like a crazy person….LOL_**

Lucy grinned and hopped back over to Natsu.

 _Pay attention! The sumo wrestler trying to teach you is starting to think you're nuts! The hottie has terrible taste in cologne btw._

 **srsly tho, how the fuck r u doing that?** Just as she was going to text him back, a blonde guy (what did she have an advertisement for hair bleach printed on her forehead today?) sidled up to her, clearing his throat. She looked up, surprised, and waited for him to say something. He seemed to have the same idea.

"I'm sorry, can I help you?" she eventually said, turning her attention back to her phone.

 _If you admit that you're not as talented as you think you are and that I'm better at being bonded than you are, maybe I'll teach you how._

The guy in front of her just smiled wider before saying, "Oh, you can't play both games, babe. I clearly saw you winking at me a minute ago, so the hard to get thing just isn't going to work."

Lucy looked up at that.

"I wasn't winking at you. Or playing hard to get. Please go the fuck away." (Ladies were polite.) She ground her teeth. "I'm in the middle of an important conversation," she explained further, gesturing to her phone. A message from Natsu popped up, gaining her attention again.

 **who r u talking to? he sounds really familiar.**

The guy in front of her flashed another grin and stole her phone, holding it out of her reach. Her face blanched.

She had to get it back before he read any of their conversation. Turns out she needn't have worried. The minute he saw Natsu's name, he turned his attention back to her, eyes alight.

"You're a friend of Natsu? What a coincidence! We go way back...Sting Eucliffe, at your service beautiful!" The blonde guy held out a hand to shake, but Lucy grabbed her phone from his other hand instead. She eyed him suspiciously before turning back to their conversation, shaking Sting's hand when he didn't drop it.

 _Sting Youcliff apparently? He definitely knows who you are._

He was quiet for a long time. Lucy could feel his brow furrowed and the way his teeth were grinding kept making her want to open her jaw and ease the tension. She went back to Gray's message box.

 _What's he doing now?_

 ** _He keeps picking up his phone and starting to type and then setting it down again. What did you say to him?_**

 _Well, first I told him if he admitted I was better than he was I might teach him how to do what I'm doing. Then some guy named Sting showed up and I never got an answer._

Sting had settled into the chair beside her, leaning on one elbow as she stared at her.

"Will you please go away?"

"Nope," he replied, popping the 'p'. "You're just too beautiful to not admire." Lucy rolled her eyes.

 ** _LMAO. He HATES admitting he's second best. At just about anything. And Sting is always competing with him too. What timing! Thanks for this btw. SO ENTERTAINING. The same old pranks were starting to get boring._**

Her phone finally buzzed again with another text from Natsu.

 **what is that ass doing now?**

Sting leaned over to her. Lucy instinctively leaned away.

"Wanna go out sometime? I promise, I'd show you a brilliant time…" Lucy ignored him, replying to Natsu instead. Two weeks ago, she would have been swooning at being asked out...now? Well, now there was Natsu.

 _Asking me out apparently. You know him right? How the hell do I get rid of him?_

 **are you at MU library? I'll come take care of him for you.**

 _NO! I'm somewhere else. Don't look for me._

 **youre really actually in the library aren't you?**

Lucy could feel his muscles leap out of his chair and stride forward. She suppressed a panicked squeal as she got another message from Gray.

 ** _Now what did you do?! He just left class_**

Lucy panicked, grabbing her bag and sprinting out of the library without another word. Sting just watched her go, a stunned look on his face. Admittedly, that was the first time a girl had physically run away from his advances. He thought about running after her. Luckily another girl passed right in front of him at that moment.

"Hello gorgeous!" he popped up and matched the new girl's pace. She giggled and Sting forgot about Natsu's gorgeous blonde ice queen. He could have her.

Lucy stopped running when she felt like she got far enough away from the library. She was sitting on a bench enclosed by a hedge of wild shrubbery bordering a tiny a forest of trees at the edge of campus. This whole staying away from Natsu thing was a lot trickier when he knew she went to MU.

 **fine. i'm not as good as you at sensing through our bond. now tell me how to see through your eyes so I can find sting and pound him into the dirt.**

 _I don't think I will. Too easy to find me that way. Plus you'd be able to see me changing, which just wouldn't be decent._

Lucy switched back over to answer Gray.

 _Told him some guy named Sting was asking me out._

 ** _Yeah, that sounds about right. Did he grovel at your feet first to learn how you did it?_**

 _Yep, still refused to tell him how I did it. And I reminded him that if he could do it, he'd see me naked at some point...so now hopefully he'll be paranoid whenever he's changing._

 ** _Thank you. From the bottom of my heart. This is going to be so godsdamned entertaining. I bow to your clear mastery of psychological torture._**

 _*takes little bow* You're welcome! And thanks for the help. If you come across any great moments to do it again text me and I'll keep doing it until he figures it out._

 ** _Done._** Lucy bit her lip and hesitated before hitting send on her next question. She looked around her and relaxed. The chances of Natsu finding her now were pretty slim.

 _So...have you been able to figure out who the girl at the party was?_

 ** _I found her in the video footage and grabbed a pic I've been showing people. No name yet, but someone thought they saw her with Mira being pretty chummy. Sent her the pic, but haven't heard back yet. She's probably still sleeping though. Bartender hours…_**

 _Wow, that sounds promising! Thank you! Can you keep me updated?_

 ** _Sure. I'll text you when I know something._**

 _Thanks Gray! Guess you're good at something besides stripping after all!_

 ** _When did that fucker tell you I have a stripping habit?! Ug. Nothing is sacred._**

 _Sorry, couldn't resist. That is one strange habit though. How does one develop a "stripping habit" anyway?_

 ** _You don't want to know. I gotta get back to taking notes._**

 _Alrighty! Keep me posted on the mystery girl!_

 ** _Of course. Said I would._**

Lucy smiled to herself, finally relaxing again. It was really awesome to have another friend to joke around with. If Levy and Gajeel got any more sappy, she was going to need some new people to talk to anyway. She sat back in her chair, her hands resting bonelessly in her lap as she let her eyelids fall.

She could feel the hard pavement under Natsu's feet, and the hand tugging at his scarf. She could also feel his eyes start to sting from lack of blinking. She grinned at his efforts to figure out how to see through the bond. He would think twice before bragging to her again. Checking the time, she hiked her bag up on her shoulder again and headed to her next class. Natsu always seemed to have a way of making her day that much more interesting.

* * *

Erza was suddenly running into Mystogan everywhere.

It had started out with a casual passing on their way to class that morning. Then, discovering that they actually had a lecture together a couple hours later. Now, as she sat sipping a smoothie at her favorite lunch haunt, he waltzed right in, doing a double take when he noticed her too. When he found a table across the room to sit at, seemingly unbothered by the sudden close proximity of their schedules, she couldn't take it anymore. She grabbed her bag and her drink and marched over to his table.

"Are you following me or something?" she asked calmly. He almost choked on his soft drink, raising his eyes from the article he was reading.

"What? No! Why would I follow you?"

"I don't know, but I'm suddenly seeing you everywhere. And you followed me on Saturday, so it seemed like a reasonable guess."

"Well, yeah….but that was to get your help with Bora. I'm definitely not following you now. I've just been doing what I do every Monday. Just trying to get through some more sources for my dissertation. I could just as easily ask why your schedule has suddenly changed…are you following _me_ around?" he replied. Behind her, Laxus approached the table, ready to take the seat across from his friend with lunch in hand, as planned.

"Obviously not. I haven't changed anything," she retorted, looking down her nose at him. He waved to an open chair at the table and responded.

"Did you want to sit down? The standing and staring down at me doesn't really scream private conversation…" He gestured around them and she followed with her eyes, noticing all the people staring at them quickly look away.

She took the chair.

Laxus paused and raised an eyebrow a couple of feet behind the redhead. While she didn't scare him the way she did most of the men on campus, she didn't really inspire him to spend time with her either. He wondered what Mystogan had done to incite her attention.

"Fine. But if your schedule hasn't changed, then how are we suddenly seeing each other all the time?"

"Well, I'm guessing we just didn't notice that we actually have pretty similar schedules until we became friends. Like when you learn a new word and suddenly it feels like you hear it everywhere? Amazing how the human brain works right?"

Erza begrudgingly smiled back at him, bemused. It made sense. But what were the chances that they spent so much of their day doing the same things? She picked up her smoothie and took a drink, instinctively reaching for her napkin to wipe off the condensation from her hand, but discovering she had left it at her previous table. About to get up and get a new one, she was stopped short by Mystogan holding an extra out to her, as he returned to his article. She took it, eyeing him closely. He kept his eyes studiously on the article. Or tried to. After about a minute of her staring at him reading, he broke and looked back at her with a raised eyebrow. Who was he kidding; he hadn't read a single damn sentence while she was looking at him, so he set the article down and gave her his full attention.

Which somehow turned into an unspoken staring contest.

Which became a very _competitive_ staring contest.

Laxus sat down in the free chair next to Mystogan, neither of them taking any notice. He took a bite of sandwich as he watched the drama unfold.

Erza tried throwing Mystogan off by breaking their silence and asking a random question and it went downhill from there, the questions and comments getting more and more raunchy...yet delivered in deadpan. While staring deeply into each other's eyes. They both refused to be the first one to flinch and look away.

"Surely you've gone down on a girl before."

"Is that an invitation to see if your carpet matches your drapes up close and personal?"

"Are you implying that your blue balls are any better?"

"I'm sorry, I had no idea you had any interest in my balls," Mystogan leaned forward, resting his forearms flat on the table in front of him, never breaking eye contact.

"No, I was referring to female pleasure not the comfort level of your phallus or its...friends." Erza mimicked him, leaning forward as well, taking a drink of her smoothie with her eyes locked on his.

"You're the one who brought up my balls. And now my "phallus". You sure you aren't interested?" He narrowed his gaze, but stayed on target as she fired off a quick response.

"I never said I wasn't interested. Nothing wrong about a girl taking measure of a potential lover."

They both seemed to realize what she said at the same time, blinking simultaneously and leaning back from each other. Mystogan's eyebrows went up. Laxus was frozen mid-bite unable to look away, with wide eyes.

"Wait, did you just…" he eventually said. The contestants of the stare-down both jumped in their seats, finally realizing he was there.

Erza leapt from her seat, grabbing her bag.

"Nope," she intoned as she turned to leave. She got about three steps, before turning back around to grab the rest of the smoothie she had almost left behind. As she went to turn and run again, Mystogan caught her wrist. Clearing her throat, she tried to appear calm and collected as she turned back to him and raised an eyebrow. A small part of her screamed at her to drop the smoothie and run...but her no-sweet-treat-left-behind policy kept her rooted in place.

"Can I get your number?"

Erza swallowed the lump that had leapt into her throat, but otherwise remained outwardly composed as her eyes drifted back up to meet Mystogan's.

"Why?"

"In case I come up with any other questions to take measure of my potential lover?" He said it with a smile, but his eyes said something a lot more serious than his joking tone.

Laxus choked on the newest bite of sandwich he was trying to force down. He decided to quit trying to eat until the encounter was over. For his own safety.

Erza had to swallow heavily again before replying. That lump just wouldn't stay down.

"Well, that seems reasonable." She held out a hand for his phone and he promptly supplied the device. As quickly as she could, she input her phone number and handed it back to him. Pivoting, she made a beeline for the door. Mystogan just watched her go, letting her run from him to find her composure once more. He was struggling to do the same.

Had that seriously just happened? Laxus seemed to be having the same thoughts

"What the fuck just happened?"

"Well, if I had to guess, I'd say I'm about two encounters away from dating the Titania," Mystogan replied, more bemused than anything, but with a well-hidden jolt of excitement flashing through his system.

"Well, good luck with _that_ ," he said with a snort. "I know she's hot and all, but that woman is a serious handful."

"She's not what I expected. The way all the guys talk about her...they don't really do her justice in my opinion…"

"Shit Mystogan. You're actually pretty serious about her, aren't you?" Mystogan gave Laxus' insinuation the thought it deserved. If someone had said that three days ago he probably would have laughed at them. Ok, maybe not out loud - that just wasn't his style - but in his head for sure.

But now…

"Yeah. I think I might be."

Later that day, when the couple saw each other in the hall outside their next classes, they both turned around and walked the other way without a word. Some things just needed time to simmer uninterrupted. They could find a different route to class for the day.

* * *

Natsu made one more futile effort to see through Lucy's eyes before giving up. Part of him still refused to believe she could do it...but the proof was irrefutable. It just made things way more complicated. He would have to be a lot more careful about what he looked at. Though the thought of Lucy watching him get changed or doing...other stuff held a weird appeal for him. The pervy part of him was really discouraged that he wouldn't have the ultimate keyhole to peek at the blonde through. He stopped his forward journey to nowhere next to a big tree on campus, and climbed up, needing a few minutes away from everything. Between the new development with Lucy and Sting showing up, he was still pretty steamed. Taking out a pen from his bag, balanced on a series of limbs nearby, he started doodling on his calf. This time, a cartoon dragon chasing after a chibi princess. Just as he was finishing up the hints at scales on the chubby little dragon, he got a text message.

 _What's his name?_

 **why do you assume he has one?**

 _Well, you named the other dragon you drew for me...or are they all named Atlas Flame?_

Natsu was pleasantly surprised that she remembered what he had named the dragon he drew across their torso weeks ago. He scrolled through his gallery of pictures in his phone to find the ones he had taken that night. It really was one of his favorite things he's ever drawn. Part of him wanted to get it as a real tattoo, though the impracticality and expense of having a tattoo that covered his entire chest and abs halted that thought before it started. He finally landed on the picture and admired his work again. The pinkette sighed. He would prefer to be looking at the design on her…or really just her in general. Her hang ups to them meeting were frustrating to say the least. Maybe he could get her to change her mind. With a grin he attached the full body picture of him in his underwear in the mirror with the dragon on his chest to the next message.

 **what, you mean this guy? naw, they all get different names.** He neglected to say he had named the cartoon dragon after himself. He closed his eyes and concentrated on her, breathing in her faint scent and trying to feel her reaction to the picture. He felt her finger swipe the message open and her breath catch in her throat. Her heart rate sped up, just slightly, and her cheeks got warmer. Natsu grinned. He loved making her blush. He thought he felt her finger typing back an answer, but when the message arrived, it wasn't a text, but a video. He almost fell out of his tree when it started playing.

It was a shot of her pelvic bone from slightly above her, her skirt riding dangerously low on her hips as curvy red lines appeared on her skin like magic. The camera followed the lines across her stomach and up her ribs as they flowed out. It was like there were tiny ice skaters, too small to see, leaving behind tiny, cutting trails of red with their bladed skates. It was a fanciful thought, especially for him, but he was so entranced by what he was watching, he didn't even wince at how stupid it was. The video ended just as his ink crept under her bra, leaving his cargo shorts feeling considerable tighter.

 **shit. that was...just...wow.**

 _You're telling me. That was one incredible drawing you did._ Readjusting the fabric covering his crotch in a futile effort to alleviate his discomfort a bit, Natsu took a gamble. If she took a video, maybe she...

 **do you have a picture of it all done?** He held his breath and waited. She seemed to take forever before he felt her finger finally stop moving on her phone screen. But a new message didn't arrive. Concentrating again, he could feel her frozen; muscles tenses, only her significantly increased heartbeat giving away that she was still alive as she held her breath too. Together, they released their breaths and her finger touched her phone again. Another message popped up a second later on his phone. With a picture.

He nearly swallowed his tongue. She was standing in front of a mirror, naked except for his artwork and a scrap of red lace he could barely call underwear, her hair curling slightly as it disappeared behind her shoulders. The room was lit by the soft, warm yellowy glow of a lamp, which seemed to light her up from the inside out. The dragon adorning her naked chest glared out at him, possessively clutching one breast in the spiral of a claw.

It was like a whole different drawing on her. Atlas Flame was definitely the angry dragon who lounged across Natsu's pictures of himself from that night. But this dragon? He was...possessive, cocky...proud? And, he found every new name he thought of didn't quite fit.

Because it felt like he was looking at some surrealist self-portrait. He tapped the picture to save it to his gallery. And several other places so he'd never lose it. He finally realized Lucy was probably still waiting on an answer. He went back to the message app and struggled to figure out what to say. How the hell was he supposed to respond to that?

 **thought you were worried about me seeing you changing…** Natsu winced right after he sent it. Why the fuck had he said that?! The last thing he wanted was for her to think he wasn't taking this seriously. Fuck, he didn't think he'd ever felt more serious about a picture in his life.

He was composing an apology when her reply came through.

 _I guess that is pretty silly of me, huh? But…_

He waited for the rest of her message to appear. After several moments of watching his phone inform him that 'Lucy is typing,' it finally came through.

 _in this case...your work is so beautiful, I kind of don't even care. It's like it's not even me. I'm just the canvas...it's really just a picture of Atlas Flame. Just don't show anyone else ok?_ He resisted the urge to laugh. Like Natsu was going to let anyone else see that picture. Ever.

 **on you...like that...hes a different dragon entirely. the lucky bastard. i dont think i can call him him atlas flame any more.**

 _Well, then what's his new name?_

Natsu thought for a second, scrolling back up to view the picture again. He just couldn't shake the feeling that he was staring into the eyes of his inner dragon. Such an odd threesome they made, him, Lucy and the possessive bastard that lived inside of him.

 **Salamander, the Fire Dragon.**

* * *

 ***whispers from behind a shrubbery***

 **Hope you're all having a glorious day! And now, some things from the wide world of Levy's head:  
**

 **Hunter S Thompson** : author who wrote _Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas_ and other novels known for their insane tales of drug use and hallucination based on Thompson's own life as a traveling reporter...and drug habit. "We can't stop here, this is bat country!" is a direct quote from Fear and Loathing. Johnny Depp plays him in the movie.

 **Sfigati** -Italian term used as an equivalent to losers...though also translated as a really derogatory reference to female reproductive bits according to my source...so I'm thinking Levy basically just called them cunts...in Italian...hehe

 **Three Musketeer it** -referring to the 'all for one, one for all' concept/motto in the book/ridiculous terrible movie franchises...pretty sure everyone already knew that...but just wanted to bash on the many MANY terrible movie interpretations...hehe

 **Mark Twain's famous works** -referring to The Adventures of Tom Sawyer.

 ***subtly carries bush for concealment while sneaking off***

 **Yeah, I don't know. I'm getting over a migraine and my brain is a little bit all over the place...just go with it.**


	22. Natsu's Plan

**Hello again all! You aren't dreaming, I am actually getting this out on Tuesday** ** _morning_** **! FUCKING MIRACLE.**

 **SPECIAL BULLETIN: I have told some of you about this, but I'm going to do the official A/N about it now. Sometime in the next week or so, I will be posting a companion one-shot collection to this story. I have a few written, but more will be coming as I go. These one-shots will include follow-up stuff on some of the side stories started in the Moon Drip arc, random musings and drabbles that I just** ** _have_** **to write, and random AUs of my AU where Lucy and Natsu meet...lots of different ways! Because I have so many ways it could happen, and choosing one is driving me crazy...so I'll just write them all. Just not in the actual story! I posted a sneak peek of one of the one-shots I have finished at the end of this chapter with a few of the upcoming one-shot titles I'm working on, just to whet your appetites…**

 **Oh, and I'm pretty sure I know what I want to name the companion collection, but if anyone thinks of something TOTALLY FUCKING AWESOME, let me know. Hell, tell me the half-baked ideas too. You know I'll read and respond to them all...lol**

* * *

"Ok, so let me get this straight. You're trying to find out who this girl is, because the blonde girl you were with at the party knows her somehow, but doesn't remember her, and saw her as a threat, so you're trying to find someone who knows who she is, so you can tell your friend who she is and then you'll both know if she is someone to be concerned about? Basically?"

Gray nodded, pretty sure she had gotten it right, but still untangling her sentence. Honestly, he had pretty much stopped paying attention after the twentieth word or so.

"Yeah, that's the gist of it, Mira. Do you know her? Someone thought they saw you talking to her early in the night…"

"Oh, yeah, of course I do, she was my sister at the sorority. But that's totally not the issue here. My question to you, is why didn't you just send the picture to your blonde friend and have _her_ identify Michelle?"

Gray started to respond.

Only to realize he had no answer.

Shit.

Had he really been that stupid?

Fuck. He had definitely been that stupid. Maybe Lucy had been better off before he joined the team to figure out what was going on. He quickly pulled up the picture on his phone, and sent it to Lucy, resisting the urge to facepalm as the buxom bartender laughed him out of her bar.

* * *

"So, just to make sure I got everything...you found out who your soulmate is, made out with his roommate, talked to him on the phone, punched some girl you know from your gilded cage days, almost went to meet him, but chickened out, and sent him a naked picture and video of yourself." Levy's eyes had gotten increasingly wider as she recapped what Lucy had just explained to her.

"I wasn't naked in the video, but yeah, pretty much." Lucy clarified as she sat slumped over the table, her head in her hands.

"Well, shit," said Levy, still processing the whole thing. "I just, probably, lost my virginity during the gap. But that's like practically normal compared to your life."

"Yeah," sighed Lucy. Then the rest of Levy's sentence registered and her head snapped up. "Wait, WHAT? You and Gajeel had SEX?!"

"Ssssshhh!" Levy shushed her, glancing around to make sure no one could hear them. Thankfully the picnic tables were as deserted as always inside their little grove of shrubbery. "Uh, maybe? Can't really remember, obviously...but pretty sure? We're avoiding the subject like bad potluck potato salad, so I have no idea if he knows or not. Which I can't ask him, because how embarrassing would it be if he does remember this amazing night and I don't!" Levy tugged at a curl in distress, meeting Lucy's eyes with a look of defeat. "I just wish I remembered it, _if_ we really did it. Just imagine that conversation with our child one day. 'Hey Mom, I'm thinking about having sex, what was your first time like?' 'Well, honey, I don't really remember because I was under the influence of a glowing amnesiac moonshine.' Yeah, not how I want that to go."

"Pfft, like any teenager is going to come to their parents for sex advice to begin with! I don't think that's a conversation you'll ever have to worry about."

"Hey! I'm gonna be a cool mom! You know, after I win the peace prize and actually have children. Thank the gods I started on birth control when I left for college. Big ol' thanks to Past Levy for that one."

"Well, hell. I just learned Natsu's freakin' name and you're already getting laid and talking about having kids! I feel so behind! I mean, I'm not really ready for all that, but still..."

"Then let's tell Gajeel! He can grab Natsu and we can all go out on a double date or something! They're already friends right?"

"Levy! You know I can't do that! What about the mystery girl? What if she tells my dad I'm here?! I should be on a train as far away from here as possible right now!" Lucy groaned and dropped her head back into her hands again. "And I'm more worried about a boy! What is _wrong_ with me?!"

"Lu-chan, chill. If you don't remember her, chances are she doesn't remember you either. Stop and think for minute." The blunette turned on the bench to look at the downtrodden blonde who had barely picked at her tuna sandwich. "Look, it could be really bad, if she does remember seeing you. But until we confirm that, there's no reason to run. You said Gray was working on finding the girl?"

"Yeah. He's-" Lucy's phone beeped at her and she checked the new photo message. "Well, that's almost unbelievably coincidental. He just sent me the picture of her. Which I can't believe I didn't think to ask for, now that I think about it...HOLY SHIT it's Michelle!"

"Oh my god, Michelle!?" Levy threw her hands up in an exaggerated gesture, sending fries flying in her immediate agitation. Then she froze. "Wait, who's Michelle?"

"Michelle Lobster. One of the girls he-who-will-not-be-satisfied made me befriend for trade secrets. Shit. It just _had_ to be her."

"Her last name is _Lobster?_ No wonder she's such a bitch. So, basically she hates your guts?"

"Pretty much."

"Bummer."

Lucy resumed her downtrodden pose, her fingers curled tightly in her hair. "Levy, what am I gonna do? I have to run, right? You know what this could mean! I can't go back there. I just, _can't._ And now it's just a matter of time before it gets back to him." Her voice losing tone variation as she went on, sitting up and losing any luster in her eyes. "Which means I only have one option." She was reverting to self-preservation mode. If she shut off her emotions then she didn't have to deal with her heart breaking as she thought about leaving everyone she had come to care about in Magnolia.

 _Smack!_

Lucy's eyes flew wide as she stared at her blunette best friend in shock. The bluenette's hand was still raised from where she had slapped Lucy across the face.

"What the FUCK, Levy?! That fucking hurt!"

"Good! At least now you sound like YOURSELF!" The sudden loud outburst caused a number of birds roosting in the surrounding trees to scurry into the air. "None of that bullshit. You have come too far to fall back into being an emotionless robot! And just because running was the right course of action before, doesn't mean it is now! You have people to rely on now! You have me, and Gray, and Gajeel, and Natsu! There has to be something we can do. There's always _something_ left to try. Honestly, Michelle or not, we both knew that hiding wasn't going to work as a permanent solution. So even if this girl doesn't remember, and even if it doesn't get back to your shitty excuse for a dad that she saw you, you can't just keep hiding and hope he doesn't find you anymore. We need a plan. What is Gray going to do?"

"I don't know." She glanced down at the picture on her phone as she rubbed her sore cheek. Lucy wasn't sure slapping her had been entirely necessary. "The original plan was for him to approach her and see if she remembers...so I guess that? I can check…" She opened a new text box to Gray.

 _Her name is Michelle Lobster. She's one of my father's ex-competitors' daughters. She hates my guts. Are you still planning to find her and talk to her?_

 ** _Yeah, that's the plan. Looks like she's in Mira's sorority, so it should be easy to track her down. Don't go making escape plans until I find out if she knows anything, ok?_**

 _Ok_

"Apparently she's in a sorority here. Gray's going to try and find her. She angled her phone so Levy could see the message, and the picture he had sent, just above it.

"Holy crap. I know her!" Lucy's eyes widened at the blunette's exclamation.

"What?! How?"

"She's in my biochem class! I sat next to her this morning! What are the chances? This is great!"

"How is that possibly great?!"

"Now I can keep an eye on her! And find out what she knows! Keep your enemies closer, right? It's perfect!"

Lucy stared blankly at the picture on her phone screen and thought about it for a minute. Levy had a point. _(An enemy with no secrets is half defeated, Lucy)_. Her father's words whispered in her head, eerily agreeing, for once, with her best friend. Just that particle of her father's presence gave her the urge to pack up and run...but Levy was right.

She couldn't hide forever. She would just be living in a new cage of her own making for the rest of her life. So, if they were going to do this, they needed a plan. Some way to keep the great Jude Heartfilia from ever bothering her again. There had to be a way. If there was one thing her father had taught her, it was that there was always a way to get what she wanted. She just had to be willing to do what was needed. Her resolve solidifying more by the second, Lucy lifted her head and met Levy's gaze again.

The blunette shivered and fought against the urge to look away. It was like there was a different person looking out of her friend's eyes. She had seen it - that determination and drive - only once before; when Lucy had stood in Ultear's front yard and pledged her loyalty and friendship. It was simultaneously awe-inspiring and kind of scary. And, after only a moment of intense eye contact, Levy and Lucy were both thrown into a flashback.

 _A Persian standard snapped in the sea air above her as Lucy stood at the bow of her flagship in studded leather armor. Her skilled eyes scoured the sea in front of her, a chaotic mess of ships and blood. She gritted her teeth. If only Xerxes had heeded her advice and kept their fleet close to shore. To take on the Greeks in the water was folly! They had been conquered by land, but none could match the Greeks in naval warfare. Xerxes' belief that all his troops needed to win was his presence was laughable. As powerful as a loyal battalion of soldiers could become under the right leadership, skill mattered. And on the water, their enemy's skill was unmatched. Her second in command stood at her side, studying her face, trying to determine what her liege would require of her._

 _Levy took in her surroundings in awe and horror, though she could feel nothing but anticipation from her past self. She was on a ship surrounded by carnage. Yet she felt no fear. The admiration and dedication swelling in her chest seemed to originate from the woman standing next to her. Lucy. But not Lucy. Levy's past incarnation remembered her by another name...Artemisia. Her queen and commander. Present Levy nearly swallowed her tongue. She had actually heard of her! She was one of the fiercest female warriors history had recognized. If Lucy was Artemisia in her past life, then the battle raging around her must be the famous Battle of Salamis...which meant Levy was witnessing events from 480 BCE! While present Levy was having a field day trying to take in as much as possible, past Levy stood quietly at attention, communicating silently with her queen through a look._

 _"_ _Πηνελόπη. Έχουμε ακόμα τα ελληνικά πρότυπα αποθηκευμένα κάτω από τα πλατάκια?"_

 _Lucy/Artemisia had spoken to her in what Levy recognized as a variation of Ancient Greek._

 _Roughly translated, she had said, "Penelope. Do we still have the Greek standards stored belowdecks?" Levy/Penelope nodded succinctly and replied in the same tongue, the words falling effortlessly from her lips._

 _"_ _What do you have in mind, Βασίλισσα μου?" Present Levy stumbled over translating the honorific. Something like, "my queen"._

 _"_ _We have an advantage our comrades do not. Take down the Persian banners and run up the Greek. Perhaps we can use the enemy's colors to get close enough to attack."_

 _"_ _Aye."_

 _Lucy looked on as her soldiers swiftly followed her commands, barely blinking as she watched them disguise her ship. It was an ironic twist, the Greek queen who fought for the Persians flying the colors of her homeland once again in order to foil them. The male captains of the ships surrounding her would consider such a move cowardly and deceitful. But while they would die honorably, surrounded by equally 'noble' men, she and her own might live on. To fight another day. And die another day. Men and their principles had killed many a person in the name of honor. She wasn't weighed down by such ideals. Survival was all that mattered in this life. Survival and results. Ideals did nothing to keep the deeps of the sea from swallowing you up and very little to kill the enemies who would do you harm._

 _"_ _It is done, my queen."_

 _"_ _Then make for the strait, and let us show these Greeks what the Persian Empire under the command of a true leader can do!"_

 _Her last words were raised in a triumphant cry that was echoed shortly by the many men under her command scurrying around her ship._

 _An arrow whizzed through the air past Lucy'Artemisia's head as Levy knocked her to the ground out of the way._

Lucy and Levy snapped out of their flashback to find themselves sitting once more at their secluded lunch spot at the picnic tables.

"Did you see what I…?"

"Did _we_ just…?"

"But I thought, only soulmates could…"

They both trailed off in thought. Levy was the first to snap back to herself.

"That was amazing! Did you _know_ you were _Queen Artemisia_ in a past life?!" Levy burst out. As she said 'Artemisia', Lucy felt a chill run down her spine. Some sort of lingering faint recognition.

"Um, no? Who is that? I've never heard of Queen Artemisia…"

"Only one of the most badass women who ever lived! She was an amazing naval captain and warrior who sat on Xerxes' war council while he conquered the Persian Empire. I'm pretty sure we just witnessed the Battle of Salamis! Herodotus and Polyaenus both wrote about her role in that battle. Apparently there was a bounty of ten thousand drachmas for the man that could take her alive. No one succeeded," Levy intoned with fire in her eyes. "I can't believe you got to be someone famous! And I was there too! That's the first time I've ever heard my name in a flashback though."

"It happened to me the other day actually. My name and Natsu's. It was so weird."

"Was she famous enough to find anything on her?"

"What do you mean?"

"You mean, you didn't Google her? That is you. I mean, yourself…whatever. That would have been the first thing I did! Or did you only get first names?"

"No, it was the day we met in that life, so I actually heard both of our full names. I just didn't have time to do research right then, and well...I kind of forgot about it after that...so much has been happening." Lucy's words seemed to remind them both simultaneously of what they had been doing before the flashback.

"Michelle!" they said simultaneously.

"If we're going to do this, we're going to need a plan," Lucy said, gaining back the spark of resolve that had been kindled moments before their vision. Levy just grinned back at her friend.

"And we'll have one. Operation True Freedom starts right now." The blunette held out a hand to Lucy and she took it, clasping it firmly.

"Operation True Freedom? Hmm...I like it."

In that moment, Lucy felt lighter, clearer, and braver. Perhaps it was the lingering psyche of her past incarnation urging her on. She could almost feel the sea-air on her face again as she remembered riding the rolling waves, commander of her own freedom, conquered by none. Artemisia would never let herself be held back. By anyone. So neither would Lucy.

* * *

Laxus wasn't sure what was going on at Fairy Tail these days.

On the surface, everything seemed normal. Natsu and Gray were arguing as they ate copious amounts of spaghetti, Jet and Droy watched over Max's shoulders while he showed them some new and crazy Overwatch run on Twitch, and Bacchus lounged on whatever random piece of furniture was available with a bottle of something powerful within arm's reach.

But looking closer, everything was just a little bit...off.

Sure, Natsu and Gray were arguing, but they were fucking _whisper_ fighting like pussies, and hadn't come close to throwing a punch yet. Which was practically unprecedented. Plus, there was an edge to their fight that wasn't there before. Like they actually had something real to fight about, for once.

Jet and Droy were talking to Max (who still had inexplicably blue hair), but not to each other, and Laxus could practically feel the animosity rolling off of the athletic ginger. Which meant, Tweedle Dee and Tweedle Dumbass were fighting? He couldn't remember a time when that had happened. They were both usually so sickeningly cheerful.

And Bacchus lounged, but he wasn't alone.

The brunette cuddling with Bacchus and stealing his booze (without Bacchus doing SHIT about it! What the fuck had happened to these guys?!) suddenly met his eye and jumped up from her seat like she hadn't just chugged a third of a handle of Jack. It took him a second to remember, but she was definitely the chick who he had played strip poker with (and apparently fucked). Which made her…

Laxus' generally displeased face deepen into a glower.

Gildarts' daughter. Just great. He was kind of hoping, for his dignity's sake, that she would be long gone by now.

"Hello again Sparky! How's it hangin'?" Cana accompanied her comment with a full once-over, lingering on his crotch. Well, she never claimed to be subtle. He couldn't help but let one corner of his mouth hitch up in a smirk. The girl had a way about her. He'd never had a less awkward one night stand...that he didn't remember. Fuckin' Moon Drip.

"So, what, you livin' here now?" Laxus quirked an eyebrow.

Cana matched his smirk with one of her own.

"Is that an option? Because that sounds like it could be _barrels_ of fun!" She turned to look at the half-asian bartender behind her and nudged him awake with her foot. "Hey, Captain Falcon, you cool with me moving in with you?"

Bacchus blinked his eyes lazily at her and frowned.

"Uh, wild thing? It's the Drunken Falcon! Not Captain Falcon…"

"Focus, Mr. Drunk Captain Falcon Punch. I can stay with you for a bit right?"

"Oh, yeah, sure thing. You're totally welcome to share my bed any day babe!"

Cana turned back to Laxus, who had watched the exchange with steadily growing amusement. Behind him he could hear whispering. Their conversation had caught the attention of the lingering dinner-goers.

"Is that even allowed?"

"Pretty sure there's a rule about having girls living in-house."

"Ever since the last house mom left…"

Cana caught that one, and she raised an eyebrow back to Laxus. He seemed to be the defacto guide to Fairy Tail all of a sudden. When the fuck had that happened?

"House mom? Is that what it sounds like?"

"Paid position to live in the house and generally keep the guys in line? Yeah." Laxus shrugged.

"Intriguing. But you don't have one? I would have thought there'd be all kinds of girls lining up to live with dozens of hot men in their prime."

"Last I knew there were rules in the bylaws about being over the age of 30 or something... to prevent inappropriate relationships. But, that being said, the bylaws are determined by the senior council of the house. Since we're privately funded and not run through the University, we can do pretty much whatever our alumni and senior council decide on. House mom is responsible for whatever shit Fairy Tail gets up to though. We went through a couple dozen before deciding it was just too big a job for some broad to take on. Why, you interested?"

"Maybe."

Bacchus sat up then and tried to focus on Cana with a lazy grin.

"Babe, don't you have your bar to worry about? I'd love for ya to stay, but running a brewery sounds like way wilder time to me!" He fell back with the last word onto the random couch someone had dragged into the dining hall and almost immediately fell asleep.

"You own a brewery? Huh." Laxus looked at the brunette in front of him with new respect. "Yeah, I wouldn't give that up for a job like being Fairy Tail's house mom."

Cana just waived his protests away with a hand and reached out to tug the mostly empty bottle of Jack Daniels from Bacchus' steely grasp. She tried wrenching it out by force a couple of times with no luck, before leaning down and whispering something in the perpetually drunk super-senior's ear. The next thing Laxus knew, she had downed the rest of the bottle and tossed it neatly into the nearest trash can, looking back at Laxus with satisfied sigh. His eyebrows furrowed in thought.

Behind Laxus, the brunette could see that Gray had finally managed to rile Natsu up enough to wind back his elbow with a punch. Cana just grinned and spoke out clearly to Natsu.

"Now Natsu, I'm sure _she_ wouldn't appreciate that. Right Gray?" Laxus had no idea what she was talking about, but turned around to witness what the other stunned frat boys in the room were viewing. Both boys had immediately backed down...and actually looked kind of ashamed. No one could stop them once they got started. Except Erza.

What the FUCK had happened while he was gone? Or was it all just this crazy drunk chick's doing? Laxus turned back to Cana with a new speculative gleam in his eye as he watched her work to get the new bottle of liquor the house bookie had pulled from between the cushions and was cuddling in his sleep.

"You know," Laxus began. "I think you might actually be just what we need. Are you really interested?"

Cana turned, straightening, to regard the blonde behemoth without the fear exhibited by so many of her sex in his presence. The facial scar he'd gotten from his abusive father as a kid usually spooked most women. His friends Mira and Evergreen being noted exceptions to the rule.

"To be your 'house mom'? What, I'd get paid to live here, keep you douches from fighting each other and party down when the occasion called for it?" She seemed to give it real thought for the first time. "How much would I get paid?"

"70,000 Jewel a month, plus room and board," Laxus stated, his eye wandering to the bottle now in her hands. He added as an afterthought, "And all the liquor you can steal from Bacchus."

"And if I _am_ interested? What then?" She stepped forward, going toe-to-toe with the much taller man. Cana stood so close, she had to turn her head to the side to take a swig from the bottle in her hand.

"Then, I speak on your behalf to the council and we see if the bylaws are...flexible enough to hire you. If you can prevent even half of the damages we normally cause you'll be well worth the trouble." A little part of Laxus actually thought about stepping back from her. He blinked, thankfully not showing his surprise at the thought. Yeah, this chick had _something_ about her...for starters, she was fucking fearless. But of course she was. She was Gildarts' daughter after all.

"Well, in that case, knock yourselves out. Free rent and booze, plus some spending cash just for keeping you boys purring like kittens sounds like a pretty good deal to me. My brewery's manager has things handled until Oktoberfest, and I can handle that shit over a week or so away…" she shrugged again. "Give it a shot and let me know how it goes…" The brunette started to walk away, then turned back to glance at Laxus. "Is there a particular room where the house mom stays?"

"Yeah..."

"Mind if I try out the shower?" she breathed out seductively, switching up her nonchalant act for her sex kitten one. Just to see if she could shake him up. Aside from a double blink, instead of his typical single one, he exhibited no change.

"Whatever, I don't fuckin' care. First door straight ahead at the top of the stairs. Nothing much in there though."

A slow smile crept up her lips. Manipulating these boys into behaving could be pretty fun. And, more to the point, interesting. With how easily she got bored, that was more valuable than Jewels. Though, that certainly didn't hurt. There was just one small problem.

"Blondie?"

Laxus raised an eyebrow.

"Any way we can change the name? I'm too young to be a mother…" Cana pouted prettily and rested a hand on her flat tummy. That finally got him. Laxus snorted and turned away shaking his head.

"If you can keep everyone in line, we'll call you the Master of Fairy Tail for all I care!"

"Hmmm, Master Cana of Fairy Tail...it's kinda got a nice ring to it..." Cana mused as she took off up the stairs to take a long, hot shower.

* * *

Gray checked his phone again as another message popped up on the shared texting conversation he had been added to, with Lucy and an unknown number he assumed was her blue-haired friend. Normally he would have been pissed off about having to put up with their messages going off every few minutes, all _fucking_ day, but Lucy's sudden willingness to pursue a plan that didn't involve disappearing was such a leap forward, he couldn't work up enough anger to care that his phone sounded like the Walmart checkout counter.

And to be fair, at least they had mostly stayed on topic. They had all agreed that a master plan was needed ASAP if they were going to make Operation True Freedom (Gray had, unfortunately, _not_ been consulted on the name) a reality. The group message had been created for the purposes of brainstorming. He scrolled through the last few messages to catch up on what he had missed while in class. Not much. He sighed. They just needed more information. They were running so blind right now. Levy had plans to talk up Michelle on Wednesday in class, so that was a start. And a hell of a lot less conspicuous than his original plan of stopping by the sorority to ask if Michelle remembered anything from Saturday. But they had a long way to go. Gray sighed as his phone pinged another three times. Natsu better be fucking grateful.

Gray sighed again.

He was saying that shit a lot lately.

* * *

Lucy dropped her bag on her kitchen table and collapsed into a chair. Her Monday afternoon schedule was fucking brutal. And she only had about half an hour until she was due over at the AV Room for her work study shift. At least she would be in one of her favorite places to work on campus. After that first day (and the crazy day when all the stolen equipment had been anonymously returned), it had turned out to be a nice, quiet place.

Apparently very few students on campus took advantage of renting cameras and laptops from the university, so Lucy had all kinds of time to study in between the odd rush of students in need of mics or video cameras for that-one-class-project assigned by that-one-professor who made it his personal mission to use campus resources. She was pretty sure he was the professor who had written the grants to get the equipment in the first place. With a groan she levered herself out of her chair. She only had a half-an-hour at home, she couldn't waste it sitting around.

Grabbing an apple and a couple slices of cheese from her rather barren looking fridge, Lucy made a mental note to go grocery shopping and opened up her laptop. She devoured the cheese first. A girl had to have priorities. _(A lady does not inhale her food.)_ Well, Miss Aquarius, she argued back to the voice in her head, she does when she's short on time between classes, so suck it!

Clicking into the Google search bar, she typed in "Artemisia" and willed Virgo to do her thing.

As she chewed and swallowed a bite of apple, she scrolled through the results, all seemed to pertain to a queen from the 400 BCE, or a plant genus. Good old Wikipedia had what she was looking for in the first post: Artemisia I of Caria. Wikipedia always seemed to be the first result though. She was starting to think Virgo and Wikipedia had a little thing going on the side…maybe a threesome with Google...

She whipped out a notebook from her bag and wrote down the interesting bits, noticing that all the things she read matched up with what Levy said and they had experienced. It was kind of thrilling to discover she was someone famous in a past life. There were always those people who claimed they were British royalty in their past lives, but she hadn't placed a lot of stock in those stories...after all, only one person could really have been Mary Queen of Scots, right? But the cool factor dropped a lot when she got to the 'Death and cultural depictions' section.

 ** _"_** ** _A legend, quoted by Photius, some 13 centuries later, claims that Artemisia fell in love with a man from Abydos (Ancient Greek: Ἄβῡδος), named Dardanus (Greek: Δάρδανος), and when he ignored her, she blinded him while he was sleeping, but her love for him increased. An oracle told her to jump from the top of the rock of Leucas, but she was killed after she jumped from the rock and buried near the spot. Those who leapt from this rock were said to be cured from the passion of love."_**

Her heart dropped. That didn't sound good. But was that even Natsu? It said that she had a husband who died too, so that could have been Natsu right? She took another bite of apple. Either way he had died.

It was hard to rely on such sketchy info. It was so long ago...and it did only say it was a legend...so maybe it hadn't even happened like that? She carefully copied the paragraph into her notebook and flipped to a fresh page.

Starting a new search, she typed in 'Ashley Tucker'.

Which yielded her nothing but Facebook profiles.

Screwing up her face, she deleted the name and started again with 'Sterling Moss.'

She was met almost instantly with, first, the fact that it was spelled 'Stirling', and second, articles about a race driver. Clicking eagerly over to images, she feasted her eyes on black and white snapshots of a cute young guy and various little silver race cars. Even one in a military uniform. He certainly was attractive, but he didn't really look like Natsu.

Lucy frowned. She had thought it was a little odd that they had looked the same in all her incarnation flashbacks, but she was having magical visions of the past...so, grain of salt there...but now? She was staring at proof that her visions didn't match the past. So what did that mean? She kept scrolling out of habit and froze when a wedding picture popped up. Lucy immediately double clicked and Google obligingly expanded the grainy sepia-toned photograph, bearing a handwritten label that said, Capt. Stirling Moss and wife, Ashley 1939. She stared at the woman in the picture. She was pretty enough, wearing a light-colored suit and holding a bouquet of flowers in one hand. But what really caught Lucy's attention was her eyes. They looked so familiar. They twinkled with mirth that matched her husband's.

And his eyes too. They looked so godsdamned familiar! On a hunch, she pulled her phone out and scrolled through her messages until she got to the picture he had sent of Atlas Flame. His eyes weren't looking at the camera, focused on the artwork he could see in the mirror, but holding them side-by-side, it was impossible to deny that the shape, the shade, but especially the sparkle, were exactly the same. So that meant…

She looked back to Ashley Moss and saw it right away this time. If she covered up the rest of her face, it could be a picture of herself. She shivered involuntarily. This was getting weird. She set the phone down to take some notes and noticed the time.

Which was ten minutes after her shift started.

Shit.

Lucy slammed her laptop shut, grabbed her bag - and forgotten, half-eaten apple - and took off in a full sprint out of her apartment.

Fucking Mondays.

* * *

Levy was trying her best to listen as Gajeel walked her through the basics of the front desk work she would be doing. She really was! But, it was so self-explanatory...and he'd repeated it about five times already...plus, he was standing so close to her she could feel the heat radiating off his arm...his sleeveless, muscular, gloriously tattooed arm. It took everything she had not to reach out and grab it...she compromised by leaning into it slightly.

"Shrimp? Are you listening?"

"Hmm? Yeah! Absolutely. Rinse, lather, repeat," she joked with a bright smile up at him. He chuckled.

"Fine, yeah, I'm saying the same shit over and over. Sorry. The last three guys I trained were so high out of their minds that I just got used to repeating myself. But you're sure you got it? Once I start on a client I can't keep getting up and running to the front to show you stuff." She raised an eyebrow and gently pushed him aside so she could stand behind the touch screen connected to the cash register.

"Test me," she said firmly, flipping her hair over her shoulders out of her way. She needed a haircut. Maybe the salon a few doors down would give her a discount since she worked at Black Steel now...FOCUS. Focus Levy. _You're good, but you'll have to listen to it all again if you mess anything up._

"Okay…" Gajeel made his way around the little free standing metal counter and planted himself in front of her. He narrowed his eyes and then crossed his arms, leaning them on the counter. Levy waited patiently with a slight smile. He cleared his throat and then adopted a tone a little lower pitched than his usual talking voice. "Hey hottie. I'm interested in getting a classic tattoo, you know with the heart and my name and stuff. How much would that cost?" Levy's smile turned into a smirk. He was a terrible actor, but she played along.

"Well," Levy began, running a finger over the binders under her counter until she found the one marked Classics. He really was making this too easy. He'd have to step up his game if he wanted to trip her up. She plopped the binder on the counter and spun it around to face him, flipping it open. "Well, cost depends on how long it takes the artist to complete your design. I'm not 100% sure what you want, but here are a lot of the classic designs that have been around for a while. Why don't you have a look and see if there is anything close to what you're thinking of." Gajeel's lips pulled involuntarily into a grin as she finished. She was pretty damn good, considering he only started training her an hour ago.

"What if I don't find anything I like?" he said, forgetting to adopt his deeper tone.

"I've got lots of other books you can look through, but if you want a tattoo you can be proud of for years to come, something individually _you,_ you can bring in your own artwork, or you could have one custom drawn for you by the owner. He's exceptionally talented. Here's a book of custom projects he's done for people." She leaned forward and adopted a hushed tone, as though she were divulging a secret. "Even if you aren't interested in getting into the slightly higher price point, it's definitely worth a closer look, if only to check out all the cool stuff he's done." Levy smiled winningly and flipped open the binder, going through a couple of pages before spinning it around to show him. "This is a personal favorite of mine." She had chosen a picture of the panther that sat across his own shoulders.

Gajeel grinned back at her.

"You sold me. I'd like something like that. Short stuff." Gajeel added the nickname a few beats later and watched as her eyebrows ticked down for just a second before she returned to her professionally smiling self.

"Ok, well, why don't we set up an appointment with the artist then, so he can sketch up some ideas with you in mind. _Sir._ " She smiled saucily at Gajeel and her eyes sparked in challenge.

They broke character long enough for him to see that she could use the calendar scheduling software and run a series of different transactions. When Gajeel was finally satisfied that she had, in fact, been listening, he leaned over the counter again and adopted the gruffer voice from his fake customer persona again.

"Well, now that we've got that settled, maybe you could give me your number, _babe._ "

"Would you care to reconsider that request? Seeing as my boyfriend is sitting right in the next room with a sharp, expensive piece of equipment that I would hate to see your arm impaled on..." she replied sweetly, her stance leaning over the counter in direct opposition to her words.

"That does present a challenge, but I get the feeling you'd be worth the trouble." Gajeel leaned over the counter over her.

"There's only one way to find out…" Just as Levy was leaning forward the few inches it would take to bring their lips together, the guitar riff recording that signalled a customer coming through the front door sounded. Dropping his forehead to Levy's and allowing himself a moment to grimace over the interruption, he made an effort to make his features a little more pleasant and turned to greet his six o'clock appointment.

Levy sighed and leaned down to grab the book on the Persian Empire she had picked up from the library as he led the man and his friend into the back room. At least she'd have time to get some reading in...even if she would rather have indulged in something a little more...intimate.

She cracked the binding and started on the title page. Mmmmm. There was nothing quite like a well-written table of contents to pull you into a book.

* * *

Natsu sat at Gray's desk, waiting for the internet browser to pull up his roommate's browser history. He was really going to have to bring up the internet issue at the next meeting. Someone in the house was pulling down a ridiculous amount of bandwidth all of a sudden, slowing everyone else down.

Natsu blamed Laxus. Now that his ridiculously expensive gaming computer was moved back in, the house had returned to the dark ages. He had almost forgotten what it was like before they kicked him out, but the hours of traumatic clicking and waiting were flooding back to him. Why had they invited that fucker back into the house again? With a growl, he went to impatiently click on the link again, but thankfully didn't have to, as the window finally opened, displaying Gray's search history.

The random porn sites were to be expected, easily ignored. He quickly scrolled down the page a little until he got to the previous day's searches. His eyes narrowed and his mouth set itself in a grim line as he found what he was looking for. He thought back to the previous morning.

Natsu had been mostly asleep in his room, listening to the indistinct rumblings of Gray talking to someone on the phone right outside their room (the insulation in the house wasn't as great as it should be, considering that wall had been rebuilt three or four times). Then, he heard the bastard yell something that shook him slightly more conscious.

"LUCY! STOP TALKING!"

Who was Lucy? Why did that name feel important? He lay in bed, catching phrases, but not really awake enough to focus on them. He heard his name a couple times though.

"... Natsu wrote to you, you took a shot of Moon Drip…because you pushed this girl...and refused to stay to meet Natsu... me promise not to tell him that I was the guy…" Natsu rolled over and concentrated on his roommate's voice, suddenly louder than he expected.

"...I'm not keeping this shit from Natsu anymore…" What the hell was the ice princess going on about?

"...hell is going on Lucy!?" There was that girl's name again. The next minute, Gray opened the door and grabbed his laptop, stepping back into the hall. The conversation got really quiet again soon after that, Natsu drifting in and out of sleep for several minutes as Gray's responses became fewer and farther apart. He found himself in a dream with his girl. His Weirdo. She was upset. He could feel her phone hot in her hand and the nails of her other clutched tight enough to leave little crescent marks in her palm. He concentrated on her breathing, feeling her heartbeat. Suddenly he could hear Gray's voice again, like he was right next to him, talking in his ear.

"Why the fuck not? He's your soulmate! Why the hell can he not know about that? How could that possibly hurt anything?! Lucy, you have got to quit keeping shit from him."

And then a woman's voice, _her voice_ , hummed pleasantly in his throat.

"Because he can't, ok? If my dad finds me, and locks me back up, and Natsu knows who I am, or where I am, and that I'm his soulmate, what do you think he'd do?" Wait, what? Why would her dad lock her up? Like he would ever let something like that happen to her…

"He'd fucking come get you. And he'd do it too. You don't know what he's capable of. You wouldn't be anywhere you didn't want to be for long." Damn straight, Natsu agreed with dream Gray as he kept talking. "Lucy, I'm still not getting it. It's literally the solution to your problems. Someone to protect you from your controlling psycho father, where's your issue?" Hmm, psycho father...Natsu wondered if that was true or just a dream plot his mind had conjured up. She was talking again before he could decide. Was he even still dreaming? Or was he awake?

"Were you not fucking _listening_? My dad basically hired mercenaries! They're like his own personal army! Natsu wouldn't be saving _me_ from anything. I'd be dooming _him_ to being stuck in the same goddamned prison! And when my father saw what we can do? He'd exploit it. I don't know how, but he'd figure out some way to make money with it. Or take advantage of it somehow. Natsu can't know. For his own good. He'd take them all on. I know he would. And I love that about him." She loved that he could win a fight? When had that happened?

"But he can't win this fight. No matter how good a fighter he is. He's not a soldier! He couldn't possibly take down a mini army of military trained fighters!" _Yeah, I can_ , thought Natsu grimly. _Been there, done that._ He had become distracted from the conversation for a moment, by what he now recognized was the smell of the breakfast Mira was making that morning. But he remembered the end of it.

"And one more thing." Gray's voice drifted back in. "You don't get to deal with all this shit on your own anymore. Natsu might not know what you really are to him, but I do." Wait, what was she to him? What was it Gray had said? "And I can't let you keep running away, and take that dumbass' chance at being happy with you. So, I'm going to figure out who that girl was. And find out if she remembers anything. If she does, then I'm going to help you deal with it. We're going to find a better way to deal with this shit. Because you have friends now. And this is what friends fuckin' do. So, yeah. That's my final condition. You let me help you, and I'll keep my mouth shut." Natsu had felt his hackles rise as Gray's tone started to piss him off. How dare he tell Natsu's Weirdo to do anything! He could fuckin go get his own Weirdo! But he was instantly distracted by the burning feeling behind his eyes and he lost track of what was going on, slipping deeper into sleep again for a few minutes, woken suddenly in the next couple of minutes to discover he was crying.

He hadn't remembered the weird stuff he had heard in that space between awake and dreaming until they were in the shower much later that day. He was concentrating on her so hard at that point that he could hear her whisper his name as a low moan. That feeling of her bright voice humming again in his throat sparked something in his memory and suddenly the whole conversation had come back to him. He hadn't thought it was real at the time...but it could have been. Gray had been home when Natsu got out of the shower and spent the rest of the night working on something with his laptop, so now was the first chance Natsu had had to do some investigating.

And he had just found what Gray was looking up that morning. Information on Lucy Heartfilia.

Which meant it was all true.

Her psycho father, her unwillingness to tell Natsu that she was his soulmate (how was that even a thing?!), her acceptance of Gray's help. His heart throbbed painfully for a couple of beats. He didn't know what hurt more. That she wouldn't come to him-her fucking soulmate!-for help, or that she had accepted Gray's so easily. He idly skimmed the articles Gray had looked at.

Lucky Lucy Heartfilia and her tragic past. He supposed he got why Lucy didn't want to tell him. She had said it to him just the day before: she thought it would put him in danger. She was really just protecting him in the end. But Gray? Why had Gray agreed with her? One minute he had been arguing with her, telling her to tell Natsu what was going on like a decent friend would, and the next minute he was just fine hiding it. What had he been thinking? Natsu didn't know. And it pissed him off. Like the whole situation pissed him off.

He hated drama. And secrets. The whole keeping Lucy a secret from everyone had pretty much been his limit. Really only made okay by the fact it kept the blonde all to himself. He didn't _want_ to share her with anyone, so not talking about her was easy. But that conversation he 'overheard' had changed things. He wanted to confront her about it. To get it all out into the open. But Gray's words came back to him.

 _'_ _I can't let you keep running away'_

If she wanted to run, and Gray had found a way to keep her nearby, then he couldn't spook her. He had to be sneaky. He had to bide his time and wait in the shadows.

Natsu's mouth curled up a little on one side with a humorless smile as he formulated a plan.

He had to be like a ninja.

Waiting in the dark to save his soul mate from herself.

Nin-nin motherfuckers.

* * *

 **Hurray ninja Natsu! hehe...I mean, nin-nin! As I mentioned to a few of you, Natsu is not nearly as ignorant as they think he is…**

 **Ok, so that sneak peek I promised…from a little story entitled,** ** _The BSBU_** **:**

Mirajane Strauss clinked her twisty metal bar spoon against the shot glass in front of her to call the meeting to order. The busty and well-tanned assembly of Magnolia's college co-eds ceased their high pitched conversations and turned to face the owner of Satan's Soul, the bar they had chosen for their home base.

The Body Shot Bitches Union (or the BSBU) had grown exponentially over the last couple of months. Who knew that the spunky group of women who had volunteered to help out Fairy Tail for their Gildarts bash would end up forming one of the largest all female unions in the country (after forgetting it all and reforming the group again post Moon Drip, of course)?

They held monthly meetings at Mira (their founder)'s bar. Every patent leather-covered seat under the red lights of Satan's Soul was occupied and the walls were lined with even more shot enthusiasts. While it had started as a simple club for body shot volunteers on college campuses in Magnolia, it had quickly expanded to include female bartenders from all over central and east Fiore and a few from even farther away. So far they had accomplished a lot: negotiated equal starting wages with their fellow male bartenders, started a business providing attractive and well-trained body-shot volunteers for events, and ordered matching customized uniform bikinis and t-shirts (with OMG just the cutest little bunny logo ever!).

Mira cleared her throat delicately and started the proceedings.

"I call to order the 5th official meeting of the Body Shot Bitches Union, formed to keep body shots flowing, fun, and flirty, while protecting our right as women to walk around half-naked without getting groped. Welcome to all continuing and new members. We will now take the traditional shot of tequila now, before I hand over the reigns to Secretary Milliana to read the minutes from our last meeting."

The women sitting down picked up the full shot glasses in front of them while those standing raised those they already held. As one they recited:

"We drink to those who love us,

we drink to those who don't.

We drink to those who fuck us,

and fuck those who don't!"

 **Aaaaaand many more to come...some of the titles (and brief summaries) I'm playing with now…**

 **When the Cuffs Come Off** (Loke's got issues. And only Gray can save him…)

 **Fairy Tail House Rule #1** (how the Fairy Tail House Rules were conceived)

 **Wendy the Fairy Girl** (Lucy writes about a girl she calls Wendy)

 **That Strawberry Summer** (Erza's first time...yeah, it's about to get awkward in a way only Erza can acheive)

 **Happy's Day Out** (in which Lucy meets an annoying white cat)

 **Don't Stop Believin!** (Gajeel and Orga are karaoke masters...sort of)

 **The Phoenix** (AU in which Natsu and Lucy (FINALLY) meet for the first time at a Halloween party and citrusy things happen…)

 **And so much more! (seriously, I have about thirty of these planned already…) If you guys think of anything you'd like to see, give me a shout out, per usual! Have a kickass Tuesday.  
**

 **Riot out.**


	23. Darkness

**Quick note on a change I made: Way WAY back when Levy had her first flashback, I set it in London. But, since I'm using real people for the flashbacks as much as I can, I'm actually moving that previous life for her and Gajeel's story to Chicago. Literally changed one word, but just in case someone actually remembers, it IS different. You aren't crazy! (well, actually you kind of are, if you noticed that...but awesome too. Super awesome crazy…)**

* * *

 _Natsu was just praying he wouldn't get shot. Bullets whizzed into the sand around him, as he ducked behind an abandoned tank on his way to the shoreline. Men dropped like flies around him. Good men. They were like sitting ducks on this beach, but all they could do was await more boats to come to take them across the Channel - and eliminate as many of the enemy as they could in the process._

 _It felt like all he had done the past few years was travel across that damn stretch of water. From Britain to France to race in the Grand Prix, from France to Britain, when Poland was taken, to train for the army, and back again to force the German invasion to retreat. Which clearly hadn't worked out so well._

 _And here he was, waiting on this damn beach for any boat that had room to take him back to his homeland once again. He and the rest of the British Expeditionary Force waded into the water with their tails between their legs like petulant dogs. He was one of the last to go, preferring the dry sand shifting beneath him to the lapping waves. He got queasy just thinking about it. A shot pinged off of the hot metal next to his head and he threw himself into the sand, landing face first on the abrasive ground._

 _Then he blinked and the beach was gone, replaced by miles and miles of nothing but sand._

 _The all too familiar dunes of Pergrande._

 _Suddenly there was a hand on his neck and a knee to his shoulder, pressing him further into the granulated ground of the camp. No matter how much the sand moved away, there was always more sand under it. Nothing but sand all the way to hell. He spit out the gritty sand that fell into his mouth furiously, and winced as the knee dislocated his arm. He cursed himself for actually falling asleep. His guard had been down._

 _No one had attempted to take him out after that last disastrous attack. For them. Now the whole camp knew what he was capable of. Even half asleep. Years in the orphanage had taught him to sleep lightly and often, but it had only taken two years with the Black Army to give him the paranoia to awaken instantly, already attacking. Already killing before he was the one experiencing his own gritty death._

 _Even the few adults in the camp knew to let Salamander wake up naturally if they wanted to remain...unbroken. Natsu may have only been eight years old, but he had worked hard to become formidable. So he was furious with himself, and the guy on his back had it coming. Using his unrestrained arm to push himself off the ground quickly, pushing through the stabbing pain, he dislodged the unbalanced attacker with a roll, twisting with almost inhuman speed to gain an offensive position, going in for the kill. He unsheathed the knife he kept strapped to the small of his back in a swift motion that had his dislocated shoulder screaming and went for the kill, weighing down his attacker with his own body._

 _Only to finally notice who his assailant was. He halted the knife a hair's breadth from her throat._

 _"_ _Lucy?" His voice came out in a raspy, disbelieving whisper._

 _Suddenly he wasn't a kid anymore, his muscular knee pressed between her breasts as he held her body down. His would-be murderer had a look of horror and fear etched into the perfect skin of her face. She was the woman he was beginning to believe might stay. Might_ _ **want**_ _to stay! And she was terrified of him. His heart stopped._

 _"_ _Natsu? What_ _ **are**_ _you?" she gasped, scrambling away from him as his grip loosened and he fell back. His limbs felt numb. The knife fell to the sand, buried to the hilt in the shifting bosom mother earth._

 _He had almost killed her. He was_ _ **that**_ _close to slicing her throat open and spilling her blood to clot the sand. As he had done to dozens before her, for less than she had done._

 _She was right to fear him._

 _But that wasn't him anymore! He had changed! He stumbled forward, reaching out a hand to her._

 _"_ _Lucy! Please, I-" his words choked off as a whip flicked out and wrapped around his neck, the zaps of electricity zapping down it causing his muscles to seize until he could smell the skin on his neck burning._

 _Now that was too familiar. A sensation he could never forget - no matter how he tried._

 _Lucy pulled on the whip and smiled sadistically down at him._

 _His eyes blew wide, confused at what he was seeing. Because it hadn't been her! It had been…_

 _As he stared up at her, oxygen deprived eyes shedding dirty, stinging tears, her image shimmered like heat on the sand. The blonde hair was replaced by black, the curvy chest with a broad muscular one, the warm chocolate eyes with cold onyx. And then the man of his nightmares stood above him, the whole experience falling with an almost audible click into how it really happened._

 _Zeref, leader of the Black Army and the bringer of death, smiled benevolently down at the pinkette, exactly as he had that day. He pulled on the whip, tightening its hold around his throat. Any minute now, Igneel would barge in with his team and take out Zeref. Any minute._

 _But he didn't come. And Natsu's vision filled with black spots, his fingers grasping at the electrified whip, becoming number by the second. Cold. He had never felt that cold. This...wasn't...how….it…had….happened…._

Natsu awoke gasping. For a moment he couldn't see the cracked plaster of his ceiling right above him; only the spots floating in his eyes as he felt the whip wrapped around his throat. He struggled against his blankets, flailing his way out of bed. Twisting in the air like a cat, he hit the floor on all fours like he was taught, rolling over with a thud. Gray peeked over his bed, irritated at being woken up, but with well hidden concern. His hair stood straight up on one side, making him look like the lead keytarist in an 80's pop band.

The pinkette just lay on the floor gasping in deep breaths and staring at the ceiling above him. The pain of the fall had shaken him completely awake. But he still felt like he couldn't move. It had been a dream. All a dream. Well, mostly a dream. The beginning bit had felt more like a flashback...the bonded kind, not the PTSD kind. When did his mind get this complicated?

Whatever, it didn't matter. It had been a fucking dream. In real life, Igneel had come. He had saved him. Natsu had not died at the hands of Big Brother Zeref.

On his loft bed six feet above him, his phone abruptly started playing the song he had set as Lucy's personal ringtone just the night before:

" _And I don't want the world to see me, cause I don't think that they'd understand…"_

Gray gave him a look, instantly guessing who was calling him at such an opportune moment.

"A bit on the nose there, don't you think?"

"Shut up, ice dick. It's ironic."

The phone played the sound clip over again. And again.

"Pushi kuratz, asshole. Like you even know what irony is... You gonna answer that or just leave her hanging?"

Natsu lay in silence, ignoring his roommate. She'd message him on their skin in a minute anyway. He didn't think his muscles would be able to handle standing yet. They still spasmed like there was an electrical current running through him.

And sure enough, less than a minute later, he felt that familiar tingle.

 _ARE YOU OK? What just HAPPENED?_

Natsu glanced around for a pen, unfortunately not noticing one on the floor around him. Groaning, he got up in excruciating increments, testing his limits as he went, and grabbed a pen from his desk. Turning back around, to lay on the floor again, he saw that he had, in fact, been laying right on top of one the whole time. This was a terrible fucking start to a Friday.

He pulled the cap off the pen with his teeth and went to write back, but didn't really know what to say.

She probably felt more than just his fall. His body had been in full on panic/flashback mode and his heart was working overtime. His blood pressure was so high he could hear the blood whooshing in his ears. Honestly, he probably shouldn't even be standing up. And it wasn't like he was ready to drop the whole, 'I have major issues and PTSD' bomb on her yet. That was usually when people decided he wasn't worth the trouble. He needed more time to work on her. To show her he was worth sticking around with before he let her in on his not so pleasant secrets.

Apparently Natsu waited too long though, trying to figure it out, because as he sat there with the pen hovering above his arm, Gray's phone started ringing.

Natsu's head snapped up and he leveled a glare at his roommate as the first chords of Coldplay rang out. It was the same ringer Gray had for everyone, but Natsu could guess who was calling the bastard right now. It irked him a little that she hadn't waited for him to respond.

But Natsu wasn't supposed to know they apparently talked on the phone now. So…

"Who's that?" he queried a little too innocently. Gray hit the ignore button on the call and answered his roommate.

"Just some girl I met last week. I'll call her back when I'm actually awake."

"I see." Natsu's brow furrowed. He didn't like the idea that Gray was lying to him. He really wished he could call him on it. Though, he guessed, Lucy was technically a girl he met last week. Lucky bastard.

"You gonna call Lucy back? You're kind of leavin' her hanging here."

"None of your fucking business." Natsu stalked over to his loft and grabbed his phone, walking straight out of their room. He had gone to sleep in his jeans anyway, so he was decent enough for breakfast. Just as he closed the door, her ringtone went off again, which he answered immediately.

"Hey, Lucy. I'm fine. Sorry for not answering."

"What the HELL happened Natsu!? Don't you EVER go radio silence like that on me again! I was really worried about you!"

"You were?" Natsu didn't know why it was such a big deal that she had been worried. Any of his other friends would have said the same, just with more insults. It was just, coming from her, it made him happy. She had so much else to worry about, if what he had turned up with his investigation so far was an indication. But somehow, he still made the list.

"Of course I was! I woke up and I thought you were dying or having a heart attack or something! That's not a normal way to wake up! That, and I haven't even really met you yet, I can't have you dying on me right now. Total letdown." His heart did a weird little flutter that he just knew she could feel. He pounded his chest a couple of times and coughed, hoping she didn't notice. He tried for nonchalance, then devolved into his original factory settings: blunt as fuck.

"You know...we can meet any time you want. Hell, what are you doin' now? I'll take you out for breakfast!" He grinned, feeling her face get hot as she got tongue-tied and ended up squeaking into the phone. He chuckled as she sorted herself out.

"Natsu...you _know_ I can't right now…" she whined faintly. His grin widened when he heard her say his name and his stomach flipped again. He could hear her take a sharp intake of breath. He hated that he had so many godsdamned tells associated with her, but at least she got more flustered every time she noticed one. Making her flustered was so fucking amusing.

"Ok, ok, fair enough," he hedged. Then he had an epiphany. "But what about a phone date? We could just talk all day? What d'ya say?"

"A...date? Like a date-date?"

"Uh, yeah? Kind of, obviously, since it'd be over the phone…?" Natsu held his breath. But he had unwittingly asked her out, sort of, so he decided he'd play it out.

"Um, well...that sounds really great, actually."

Natsu released his breath and sagged in relief. Asking out a girl was never easy. Ever. Especially when he already cared about her.

"But I have classes today...don't you?"

Natsu swore silently to himself. Friday was actually a pretty important day for him, classwise, so he couldn't skip. But if she was finally saying yes to some small step forward in whatever the fuck he would call their relationship, he wasn't about to let this opportunity pass him by.

"Ok, well, yeah, I do have classes. But I'm done early and they're mostly lectures...why don't we text for a bit or AIM until we're done and _then_ have our phone date?"

"AIM? As in AOL Instant Messenger? Is that even still a thing?" she giggled, clearly confused, but game.

"No! I mean, Arm Instant Messaging! It's a hell of a lot less conspicuous to use an outdated acronym than talking about talking to you on our arms surrounded by people who think I'm nuts." Without realizing it, Natsu had walked right through the dining hall - without eating anything! - and into the backyard, abandoned that early on a Friday. Except for the leaves of the trees rustling in the wind, and occasionally floating down to land on the pool cover, it was quiet and still. And conveniently private.

"That's perfect! I've been trying to figure out what the hell to call this since it started. So, AIM it is. Definitely better to sound totally out of touch, than totally nuts!"

Natsu laughed at her enthusiasm. He leaned against the wall a few feet down from the door and pulled his lighter out of his pocket, flipping it open a couple of times, but not lighting it. The cool brick on the hot skin of his bare back startled him for a second.

"AH! What the FUCK was that?!" There was the sound of a brief scuffle on Lucy's side of the call and his abdomen suddenly felt hot and damn. "Sorry! Oh gods, sir I'm so-" Natsu could hear Lucy's voice, muffled, continue to apologize to whomever she had accidentally assaulted for a few minutes. And he lost it, just laughing his ass off at her. Eventually, her apologies got louder and then ceased, as he heard her breathing hard and bringing the phone back to her ear.

"What the hell?! Did you lay down on a freezer of something? I nearly jumped out of my skin and managed to spill this creepy guy's coffee all over him because he was passing me so close, and then I had to help him and now I'm running late to class!" Natsu's laughter just increased, unable to believe her ridiculous luck. "Hey, it's not that funny! You suck! And now my favorite top has coffee all over it!"

"Sorry, really," he gasped out between his guffaws. "But all I did was lean against the house without a shirt on! I swear! You just WAY overreacted. It's not _that_ cold!"

"Why the hell are you standing outside without a shirt on to begin with!? Do you want all the little old ladies living your neighborhood to look out their windows and have a fucking heart attack? Not everyone can handle a body like yours!" Her breathing got even more erratic as she broke into a run. His laughter stuttered a little from what she had said. Well she definitely liked his body. That was a start.

Natsu pulled his phone away from his ear to check the time. Damn, she was pretty late. Luckily, he didn't have class for another hour. He rubbed his fingers over his coffee stained abdomen like it was a fuckin guiro, and grinned when she shivered.

"Oh come on Lucy. Any little elderly women in _our_ neighborhood are only still living here in order to check out bodies like mine. I see nothing wrong with hanging out shirtless in my own backyard."

"Hmm, that is a good point. I don't live that far from you, maybe I'll just stop wearing shirts. I'm sure the creepy old men are used to seeing college co-eds running around in their sports bras right? No need to spend more on shirts that are totally unnecessary. You may be onto something here."

Natsu's pants got tighter pretty much instantly. Shit. That girl could conjure up an erotic image out of anything, even being totally sarcastic. But then the implications of what she had said reached him past his hard on. The idea of creepy old men watching her jog around the neighborhood in her underwear pissed him off. But before he could inquire further into her last statement, and probably put his foot in it, she made it to class.

"I'm here! Got to go, bye! AIM me ok? My phone's low on battery!"

And she hung up.

It wasn't until later that Lucy realized he had completely avoided her question.

* * *

Levy kept her eyes trained on the book in front of her, but all of her attention was on the door to her biochem class in her peripheral vision. If Michelle bailed again today, she was going to fucking lose it.

Didn't that girl understand how difficult she was making it for Levy to interrogate her? Casually of course. But interrogate nonetheless! Lucy was slowly losing it, and she was not going to go along with this plan much longer unless Levy found out what Michelle knew. But Michelle had not shown up for class on Wednesday. It was like she _knew_ someone was waiting for her. Levy narrowed her eyes in thought.

Maybe she did. Maybe she had been pulling a Polonius behind a curtain somewhere and figured out that they knew she knew Lucy and might know that Lucy was in Magnolia and didn't want her father to know that she was here!

No...Polonius wasn't an apt comparison...he would never be adept enough to pull off something like that. Plus he got stabbed; not nearly clever enough a comparison for the (possibly) cunning Michelle! Perhaps she was more of a Hamlet: acting the part to trick Levy and her friends into revealing themselves!

But no, she was an evil bitch. She couldn't be the hero! Levy tapped her chin and her gaze wandered from the thin paperback in front of her, staring at the white board taking up the whole front wall of the classroom instead, as students filed in around her to take their seats a few at a time. Then, suddenly she had it.

Gertrude. If Michelle was anyone in Hamlet it was the evil queen. She and Claudius (AKA Jude Heartfilia) sending Rosencrantz and Gildenstern to spy on Lucy!

Ok, so it wasn't the perfect metaphorical fit, she was actually more of a Rosencrantz and Levy assumed Michelle had never goded anyone into murder...yet, but on the ranking scale of which-women-you'd-love-to-punch-the-lights-out-of-for-being-fucking-awful-human-beings-and-ruining-people's-lives, they were dead even.

But if Michelle was indeed such a mastermind, and had discovered what she needed to know and was reporting back to her Claudius (oh gods, Levy seriously had to stop this metaphorical nonsense that had somehow married Michelle to Lucy's dad…), then Levy had to do something! This could mean the end of Lucy's college life! The end of the adventures of Levy and Lucy! Conquering the libraries of the world, ten books at a time! The end of-

Levy's train of thought was interrupted by the girl in question dropping her overpriced handbag on the table next to her and sighing the world-weary sigh of the bored and over-privileged upper class, who has just failed the 63rd level of Bejeweled for the third time. What? It was a very specific sigh!

Anyway, Levy turned to Michelle with a smile and started to introduce herself.

Only to realize the brunette had already moved onto cruising Facebook and was completely ignoring her. Normally, Levy wouldn't mind interrupting a girl's Facebook stalking time to strike up a conversation...but when this was the second time they had sat next to each other, and she was trying to behave on the down-low, Levy needed to be more...empathetic.

Ok, Levy, think cool, think rich, think dumb as a box of rocks.

She sighed heavily, like a frustrated bimbo being forced to read something several grade levels above her emotional maturity, and noisily shut the copy of Hamlet in front of her. Levy internally cringed and channelled her inner Viola. The only way to beat a sneaky Shakespeare villian was with an inventive Shakespeare heroine! Now, if only Shakespeare's ghost would forgive her for what she was about to do.

"Ug, this book is such a drag! Nobody fucking talks like this. I'd so much rather be watching Jersey Shore!"

Michelle's head popped up immediately, her eyes glancing at the book in the blunette's hands before darting to her pouting face in speculation. Levy carefully held her pout, not looking at the true subject of her attention, but praying silently that her bait would yield results. She also may have thrown in about a dozen silent _I'm sorry Shakespeare!_ s, just to keep her conscious clear. Luckily, Michelle bit.

"Oh my god, that awful thing? That totally sucks. Have you gotten to the part where she drowns herself? What a drag! I'd take the epic break-up of Ronnie and Sweatheart over that trash any day!" Levy swallowed down the bile and general depression with the state of the world that Michelle's brief addition had incited and carefully led the conversation somewhere more useful. She turned to her table partner and grimaced.

"Tch, I know! Hamlet did NOT, like, know how to party, you know?"

"Exactly! So _boring._ If Hamlet had been born now instead of, like, back in the Dark Ages, he would have had so much more fun!" Oh gods, just kill her now. This idiot actually thought Hamlet was a real person?! No, wait, just kill Michelle. That would solve soooo many problems. So many. She swallowed down her disgust and brightened her smile, like she was excited not to have to think about Hamlet anymore.

"I know right? Like this party I went to last weekend at Fairy Tail? I totally blacked out for most of it, but my friend says it was amazing! Now that's a party."

"OhmygodsIknow! I was totally at that party! And the last thing I remember was punching out this girl for stealing my drink. Because I would never let that shit stand. I'm way too fucking awesome to let some nobody steal my drink, am I right? I just did what my inner Snookie told me to." Levy outwardly smirked and flipped her hair, while internally she gawked at the lying Wanna-Be Barbie in front of her. She couldn't see any signs of the bruising Lucy or Gray's friend had apparently left on her, but it was amazing what concealer could cover up. This chick was either delusional or ridiculously insecure...or both. Definitely both. Levy sneered and pulled out her phone, pretending to check her Facebook, which had tons of notifications thanks to her NEVER getting on anymore.

"Tch, who the hell does something like that? She better hope she never pulls that shit with me. I'm too dainty to go around punching people. But my boyfriend would be furious, so that bitch would get what's coming to her."

Michelle's eyes darted to the number of notifications on Levy's home page and her smile grew just the slightest bit before she delivered the paydirt.

"Oh, I'd pay to see that. Cause I actually used to know her. The rich bitch helped put my dad out of business. Why she decided to crash a party here, I'll never know, but I'm just hoping she's back home under her father's thumb again where I never have to see her again."

"Well, it sounds like you showed her what's what. I'm sure she won't be back any time soon."

"No doubt."

Levy was saved from having to come up with a way to end the horrifyingly ignorant conversation by Professor Azuma entering the class and the students breaking into lab partners again. Michelle just rolled her eyes and conspiratorially whispered at Levy as her poor schmuck of a lab partner gathered the stuff they needed and made his way over.

"If Prof. Azuma weren't so fucking hot, I'd drop this stupid class. Such a waste of time."

Levy just gave a little giggle and a twiddle of her fingers as she backed toward Droy.

"Like, totally." Then she turned around, only to be faced by Droy, Jet, and even fucking Sawyer staring at her open-mouthed. She scoffed at the latter two and took her place next to the former.

"What? I've got layers you've never fuckin' seen. Step off!" the blunette said defensively still ensconced in her smoke screen ala rich bitch. Jet rolled his eyes and ignored her the rest of the class. Droy just raised an eyebrow at Levy, clearly sensing something afoot. He loved nothing better than playing a part in his best friend's crazy plans.

Noticing the growing twinkle in Droy's eye, Levy flipped her hair with a smirk and gave him a wink. Her hidden satisfaction over Michelle's answer couldn't help but trickle out of her a bit. It wasn't the best answer, but Lucy was safe. For now. It gave them more time to plan. She was counted it as a definite win.

Droy grinned back. She'd tell him what was going on eventually. In the meantime, it was just fun to know she was cooking up something and she didn't mind if he knew. IT was finally starting to feel like they were getting back to normal.

* * *

Professor Bob was particularly difficult to pay attention to that day. Normally Lucy had no problem listening to the effeminate man speak in her back to back classes with him (first gender studies, then philosophy) every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday morning, finding his personality - and crossdressing - fascinating. But after trying to inconspicuously conceal Natsu's constant stream of messages in her first class of the day, she had washed her arm in between classes and made sure to go for the back row in philosophy. Safe behind a rather large student who mostly blocked her from view, the blonde was free to write back in between jotting down the jist of the information on each slide of Professor Bob's powerpoint.

While the dialogue during the first class had consisted of stunted small talk and joking on Natsu's part while Lucy struggled to make sure no one in her gender studies class could see the ink magically appearing on her arm, he had different plans for the next hour of the day.

 **favorite color!**

 _Mine? Pink. And no, it's not because of your hair._

 **sure it isn't. favorite food.** Lucy was sensing a trend. She had to think on that one. Wait, no she didn't.

 _Chocolate. Hands down. You?_

 **pizza. with everything on it. the spicier the better!**

 _Favorite movie!_

 **hey! I'm asking the questions! and the wizard of oz. followed by die hard. You?**

 _I'll ask if I want to! P The Wizard of Oz was my mom's favorite movie. I've never seen Die Hard actually. I guess my favorite movie would have to be_

 **WAIT WHAT? you've never seen DIE HARD?! why the hell not?**

 _Idk. Just never really had an interest._ Lucy shrugged, knowing he'd feel it.

 **ok, well, as soon as we meet I'm making you watch it. it can be our first real date.** Lucy's heartbeat raced for a few beats before settling back down. She tried to play it cool.

 _I don't think so. I've got standards mister. First dates should be more than just Die Hard._ She bit her lip and reread what she wrote. So did this not count as a date then? Maybe it was common knowledge that phone dates were different or something. It wasn't obvious that she had never been on a real date before, right?! Plus, had she just unintentionally insulted one of his favorite movies? Did it come off that way?! She hastily added, _I wouldn't turn that down as a second or third date though._

She could feel her face heating up...wait, no, that was him! And he was smiling. Was it what she had written?

 **ok. third date. I can live with that.** She bit her lip. So, wait, did that mean she had already agreed to go out with him three times? She couldn't control the grin that took over her face. But he wasn't done. **Favorite restaurant?**

 _We had a private chef growing up. We didn't eat out a lot._ That odd detail from her childhood unfurled from the business end of her pen before she thought about what she was writing. She winced and prepared to be interrogated. Sometimes, he was a little too easy to talk to. But, for some reason, he didn't question her about it.

 **well, we'll just have to figure it out together then. unless dinner out doesn't live up to your first date standards…** Lucy fought to keep her cool.

 _It is a classic choice._

 **hmm, classic? that sounds boring to me. I think we can do better than that.**

 _Is that so?_

 **Definitely.** Her cheeks flared up with heat again. She didn't know what else to say. She needed to change the subject before she got anymore flustered. Then she remembered what he had done in their phone call this morning.

 _So…_ Lucy worked up the courage to ask what she had been ruminating over all morning.

 _What happened to you this morning?_

 **Gtg. Gotta pay attention in this class.**

 _Coward._

 **Yep.**

* * *

Erza's phone rang once before she promptly picked it up and answered the unknown number crisply and concisely.

"Erza Scarlet." She highlighted another line in the book she was reading for class. She was expecting a telemarketer. She'd been getting tons of these calls lately. But she stubbornly answered every one of them. It was only the polite thing to do.

"Hello Erza, it's Mystogan Fernandes."

Her highlighter veered off from its straight course and made an unsightly diagonal across half the page. It had been days since she had given him her number. And aside from a smile and a nod in passing (multiple times) again on Wednesday, she hadn't heard from him at all. A little part of her did a happy dance that he had finally called, while the other part of her, that insisted she didn't care if a man called her or not, knocked out the girly part with a right hook and brushed off her hands. Because she was a strong, independent woman, damnit.

"Oh, hi," she managed, finally replying. Then cringed. She could have sounded a _little_ more enthusiastic. So she squeaked out an overly peppy, "What's up?"

Erza dropped her head to the table and fought the urge to groan. When had she forgotten how to have a simple phone conversation?! They hadn't had any trouble talking the first night they met. Granted, they had also been drinking. And then, they had just been two colleagues hunting a down a pervert for a citizen's arrest. That was so much less stressful than possibly getting asked out.

"Well, I was sort of wondering if you had plans tonight, actually." Unbeknownst to Erza, Mystogan adopted a similar position, falling forward to bang his forehead on the wall of his room. Could he sound more noncommittal? That was not the way to sway a decisive woman like Erza. He was supposed to be direct. No nonsense. Erza would appreciate that. He tried again.

"That is, there is a group of us going out to celebrate our first dissertation deadline being over after a week of no sleep. We're going to Satan's Soul, and I would love it if you would go with me, if you're available." There, that was better. And polite. Mystogan waited with his head still against the wall, holding his breath and scrunching his eyes closed.

Erza sat up quickly and squared her shoulders, the girly side of her waking up and doing little cheerleader high kicks. She cleared her throat to buy herself another minute to compose herself and finally answered.

"I would like that. What time?" There. Sophisticated, simple, classy.

Mystogan's eyes popped open and a small smile pulled at his lips as he released the breath he had been holding.

"We're all meeting there at nine, but I'll meet you at your place at 8:30 and we could walk over together, if that works for you."

"Sure. See you at 8:30 then." Erza could feel something fluttering in her stomach. So she securely stomped on it. She could squeal and dance around _after_ she got off the phone with the hot graduate student (WHO HAD JUST ASKED HER OUT!).

"Ok. Yeah, see you then." Mystogan's smile was growing by the second.

"Bye."

"Bye." Mystogan hung up the phone and fist pumped the air in his empty bedroom. Hell yes. He had a fucking date tonight.

Erza hung up the phone and threw it in the air as she squealed and did a little happy dance that had a lot of hip action and may or may not have been synchronized with an idiotic pop song that was just too damn catchy.

She had a date! With someone she really liked. Now, she just had to figure out what to wear.

Sauntering towards the second bedroom of her apartment (turned epic walk-in closet) with the beat in her head as she sang softly to herself.

"I'm sexy and I know it…"

* * *

Natsu watched the hands of the clock on the wall inch towards three o'clock. It was a lecture hour for his Chemical Reaction Engineering class. He hadn't been able take notes and carry on a conversation with Lucy at the same time during the two hour course, so he had doodled in between notes on his arm instead.

Lucy had gotten out of her last class an hour ago and he was itching to call her. He would have thought after talking to her all day, he would have nothing left to say, but instead he was bursting with new questions he had thought up while drawing her a tiny cartoon picture of himself sitting on an unconscious Gajeel, eating pizza. The cartoon had steadily expanded to her and Gajeel's little blue-haired girlfriend, he remembered from the video at the house, off to the side, Lucy holding the other girl back as she tried to attack Natsu. He could feel her laughter whenever he added something new, so he had spent more time drawing in the second hour than actually taking notes. He'd been listening though, and they weren't covering anything crazy hard that day anyway. The hours had passed fairly quickly.

Except for these last ten minutes.

Which were taking FUCKING FOREVER. His drawing was done, the professor was finished with the actual content of the class, and now he was just talking about his latest paper for the journal of Whatever published in Who-the-fuck-cares.

Dr. Totomaru was ok and everything, but he wasn't half the hot-shot he thought he was. And he refused to admit he was wrong. Ever. Natsu had tried to correct him on a mistake the first week of classes and he had turned the tables on him so quickly and effectively that it had taken Natsu the remainder of the class to untangle his faulty logic and realize that the asshole was just really good at making people look like they had no clue what they were talking about. After that, Natsu picked his battles. But he still dreamt about the day where he could catch the Japanese bastard in a mistake he couldn't send back his way. Or punch him in the face. Or make him punch himself. Literally. He'd had that dream a couple of times actually. It was one of his favorites...

The clock finally struck three and Natsu was out of his seat with phone in hand and calling hers before anyone could say 'Stop hitting yourself'. Lucy answered almost immediately.

"Hey! Finally out of class?" Her voice was a little echoy, like she was standing in a hallway or a bathroom or something.

"Yeah! Got your phone all charged up?"

"Yep! I'm making hdsaovnoireahgie" Natsu pulled his phone away from his ear to make sure it hadn't dropped the call after her apparent seizure.

"Sorry, what? Are you suffering from a debilitating nerve disorder or something? Blink twice for yes."

"No! Sorry! Hold on!" Lucy yelled from far away before her voice became clear and close again. "Ug, sorry. I'm making cookies and I had to put you on speaker while I took them out of the oven." Natsu immediately closed his eyes and breathed in deep, inhaling the heavenly scent of cinnamon and sugar.

"Oh maaaaan, Luce, you're killing me! Snickerdoodles? What, are you torturing me on purpose?!" Natsu took in another deep breath, his mouth beginning to water. He had just told her they were his favorite cookies a few hours ago! That shit was just cruel. He could feel her suppressing giggles as her hand covered her mouth and her abdomen clenched. "Hey! It's not funny, I'm DYING over here. I haven't eaten in hours and you're fucking making my favorite cookies! And here I've been thinking you're this sweet, nice person and it turns out you're just playing with my heart and stomach for your own amusement. You're secretly evil. Twisty, creative-type evil. Steal all the bacon evil." Despite his words, Natsu was grinning his face off. Gods he loved to tease her. She finally let out the laughter she was holding in.

"Oh really. I'm evil now huh?" she said in between giggling spurts.

"Yep, you can't fool me anymore. I see you. I know what you are." He playfully narrowed his eyes, but ruined the effect with the grin he couldn't seem to get rid of.

"Oh really, have you figured out the trick to see through my eyes then? What, no, you haven't? Well that's just toooo bad isn't it?" she taunted through the giggles.

"See, evil! Bringing up my shortcomings!" To be honest, he had actually totally forgotten about that. He blinked his eyes a few times concentrating hard on what she must be seeing. But still nothing.

"HA! You're trying it again, aren't you?!"

"Evil…" he grumbled again.

"Well, I might as well embrace it!" her laughter turned intentionally manic in a convincing parody of evil mad scientist laughter. Natsu laughed at the ridiculousness of it. He couldn't help it, it was such a Lucy thing to do.

"Well, that clinches it. Anyone who can laugh like that must be pure, unadulterated evil." He could feel her lips drop into an exaggerated pout.

"Aw, come on, I'm not really evil! I'm actually super nice."

"Nope, you can't fool me. I told you, I know what you're really like now." He was still fucking grinning. Natsu tried doing something else with his mouth, just to see if he could. He couldn't. That was slightly concerning. Or would be, if he didn't feel Lucy's mouth curling up again too.

"Well, I'll just have to prove it to you. I am not evil. And you'll be agreeing with me before the night is over," she said with a hint of competitive sauciness in her tone.

"Is that a challenge I hear?" he replied, his own competitive side kicking in. "Very well. It's up to you to prove your niceness while I will be determined to show you that you are already set in your evil ways." He turned off campus and started down the walk back to the house. He was already trying to remember if Gray had plans tonight. If he didn't, he'd get them real soon because Natsu was planning on vegging out in their room talking to Lucy for the rest of the night. And he wasn't willing to share Lucy with anyone. Least of all the stripper.

"Ok. But, fair warning, you're going to lose. And when you lose, you're going to tell me what happened this morning."

"What are you talking about? Nothing odd happened this morning…" he bluffed.

"Ok, seriously?! No. If I win and you admit that I'm the nicest of the nice, you have to tell me what the FUCK actually happened when you woke up this morning. You bruised up my knees and made me think I was having a freakin' panic attack! Or this 'phone date' is over." Lucy bit her lip. She didn't want to pull that card, but his avoidance was really starting to worry her. She needed to know. He was silent for a few beats before he sighed in defeat.

"Fine, you win, and I'll tell you." Natsu figured he had to tell her eventually. At least this option gave him a chance of getting out of it. A pretty good chance, actually. He rarely lost. At anything.

"That's all I ask. Now, prepare to lose. To begin my crusade of kindness, I'm going to suggest we order some dinner and eat while we talk. And I'll pay."

"Hey, I'm the guy, if you don't let me pay it will just prove you're being mean and trying to deprive me of my masculine pride." Natsu rolled his eyes at himself. Like he gave a shit who paid for dinner. Free food was free food. But a challenge had been issued. And he intended to win.

"Nope, because this isn't a _real_ date. If this were a real date it would be our first date. And I seem to recall you saying we would _definitely_ do better than dinner out. So, therefore, it's not a date, and concordantly, I'm not doing anything to your masculinity by paying. And, it is, in fact, just a NICE gesture on my part. Plus, you can't pay, because you don't know where I live. Where would you have it delivered?" she finished triumphantly. Natsu raised his eyebrows. He sort of wanted to sic her on Totomaru. He suspected the blonde could give him a run for his money.

"Touche salesman. What are we having for dinner then?"

"Is there a good Chinese take-out place around here? I haven't had the cash to eat out much since I moved here."

"You mean, you haven't tried Vanish Brothers in the Southern District?! Their Heaven and Earth platter is to fucking die for."

"Vanish Brothers? That doesn't sound like a Chinese place…"

"Oh, it totally is. It's run by these two guys who used to be members of this traveling circus. Weird dudes, but no one makes better fried rice. They've got this absolutely enormous wok they make it in!"

"Ok, so Vanishing Brothers it is. And it sounds like you're getting the Heaven and Earth platter?"

"Yeah, that and some crab rangoon. And a couple egg rolls. And chicken wings. You know what, you can just tell them the Natsu special. They'll know what you mean."

"How much money do you think I have?!"

"Ah, I see. Money is widely known to be the root of all evil you know. That must be where you went wrong…"

"You're just lucky I'm so damn nice," Lucy ground out through her clenched teeth. "I'm gonna hang up for a sec and call in our food now. You at home?"

"Almost. I'll definitely beat the food there. Isn't it a little early for dinner though?"

"You said you were starving. I'm just being really _considerate_ of your needs. Because I'm so fuckiing nice. I'll call you right back."

"If you insist. You are depriving me of your company for this super dangerous walk back to the house where all manner of things could happen to me. But I forgot, you're probably enjoying that. Because you're cruel like that."

"I just know you're strongest and most talented fighter around and can take care of yourself. Or are you saying you aren't?"

Natsu opened up his mouth to reply and then closed it.

"Damnit."

Lucy grinned. Between one competition and another, he was stuck.

"I'll call you right back. Bye!"

"Bye," he grumbled. Natsu hated losing.

And saying goodbye to Lucy.

* * *

Levy flipped the sign on Gajeel's door to 'Closed' after his last customer so they could get some dinner and turned to face him. He was counting the cash in the drawer, taking out the big bills to put in the safe. A walk-in had paid for a fairly time-consuming piece of work in cash and it made him itchy thinking about that much money sitting around. He pulled the wad from the drawer and took a second to enjoy the feeling of that many Jewel notes stacked high in his palm. The feeling was heady. He grinned and ran a thumb over them, rifling the bills. And then he was smashed back into a flashback.

 _He ran a thumb down the bills in the register in front of him and grinned, shoving the stack into his pocket. With the other hand he kept his beloved Desert Eagle trained on the cashier, who was practically pissing his pants. Closing the register, he focused his attention back on teh pansy who ran the place. Not breaking eye contact, he grabbed an apple from the basket on the counter, took a bite, and tossed it suddenly at the cashier, who jumped with a little yell. Gajeel grinned and uncocked his gun, slipping it into the back of his waistband as he left the store, casually walking out and heading for the corner of the building, to the alley where three of his fellow gang members waited in a black Escalade. He hopped into the passenger seat and slammed the door behind him as the car took off down a dilapidated side street on the South Side of Chicago._

 _As they drove past a bus stop, one guy called out from the back seat._

 _"_ _Hey Steel, isn't that the kid that fucked up your car last week?"_

 _Gajeel narrowed in on the teenager standing at the bus stop, wearing a pair of headphones connected to the portable cd player in his hand. It was the same fucking punk that had taken a bat to his car on behalf of one of their rival gangs not even a week before. Removing his gun from his waistband he growled, "Circle the block. This fucker is getting what he fuckin' deserves."_

 _As they pulled around again, Black Steel and his fellow gang members opened fire on the bus stop. As though time slowed down, he locked eyes with the beautiful woman standing with the teenage they were ventilating, and he fired two more bullets that went astray, as the car moved them forward, and struck her squarely in the chest, the look of fear and shock vanishing as the life left her eyes and she collapsed to the ground_

Gajeel came back to the real world with a gasp, swallowing back the vomit and bile that his body fought to reject from his stomach. He sat down on one of the chairs in the front room for waiting clients and put his head between his knees.

He _had_ killed someone in his past life as Black Steel. What the fuck? Why did he have to see that shit?!

Levy ran to him and put her hands on his face, making him look at her. Her brows were furrowed with worry.

"What did you see?" she asked gently. She already knew his past life hadn't been pretty, so she thought she was ready for what he had to say.

"I killed her. In my past life."

"Who? Who did you kill?" Levy prayed it wasn't one of the women hacked to pieces by the Ripper in her own flashback, but didn't hold out much hope.

"Lucy. I killed Lucy."

Levy was not ready for that.

"What?! How? How is that possible? I don't understand!"

"Shrimp...I don't even fucking know. All I know, was she was there clear as day, the way you are in the flashbacks. I didn't think they were supposed to happen with anyone but you, right?"

"I guess that's not the case," Levy mumbled as she tried to figure it out. "She and I shared one the other day, and saw each other the way we are now too. I wonder what that means…"

"I just wish I could pick what I got to see. This whole seeing one scene of the movie is just getting fucking annoying. Maybe then wouldn't have had to see her...die."

She let go of his face and took a step back. She was starting to get fed up with the random flashbacks. It was time one of them got them under control and maybe got some answers.

So Levy came up with a plan.

* * *

"Ok, so our food will be there, and here, in about forty-five minutes, what shall we talk about until then?" Lucy chirped out.

"Oh, I've still got a million questions for you. Just say the word!"

"Ok, shoot!"

"Alright, dog or cat person?"

"Well, I had a cat back home named Leo who totally loved me, slept in my bed and pretty much never left me alone, but I've always sort of liked dogs more. You?"

"Definitely a cat person, though dogs are cool in my book. They're always so happy. I have a weird thing for rabbits too. Can't resist a cute bunny." Lucy felt her face warm up and had to remind herself that he had no idea what her nickname was in some of her classes.

Natsu paused as he felt her blush, confused. What had he said? Before he could ask, Lucy charged ahead.

"What's your dream vacation?"

"Hmmm, probably Hawaii. I know it's cliche and all, but anywhere you can surf, walk around on a volcano, and eat a whole roast pig for dinner sounds like a helluva good time to me! What about you?"

"Kyoto. All the pictures make it look like the most beautiful place. We had a layover there once when I was traveling with my father, but just seeing the airport was kind of a letdown, so I promised I'd go back someday. Plus, it doesn't hurt that they have an animation studio there. I would love to go see where the magic happens!"

"Japan does seem like it would be beautiful. Crowded though. I've always wanted to see China. I thought about doing a semester there to study traditional firework techniques when I started my major, but it didn't seem worth it to learn the language. I always figured I'd just go after I had my degree. And learn what I wanted to without worrying about being in class."

"I forgot that's what you're going to school for. How did you get into that anyway? It's not like every little kid grows up wanting to make fireworks for a living."

"I did. My dad got me hooked early. It was sort of a...necessary thing in my life so we set off fireworks a lot. After we did all the little ones we could find, we moved onto shells and went to as many professional shows as we could. When he was home anyway. It sort of became our thing."

"What does he think about you getting a degree in firework-making? I can't imagine a lot of parents would think that was a practical choice."

"Igneel wouldn't have a problem like that. He always used to say I was made to rain down fire and destruction, so he might as well teach me how to do it properly." Lucy smiled. She was a little jealous that Natsu got to grow up with someone who let him do whatever he wanted. And even helped. He didn't know how good he had it. "Anyway, it doesn't really matter now what he would have thought. He died my sophomore year of high school." Natsu stopped then, not sure what else to share with her yet. It was just...how much was too much for her the handle? They had been keeping the conversation light and fun, he didn't want to bring down the mood. IT was better if he didn't say any more. At least that's what he told himself.

"How did he die?" Her question surprised him. Usually people just said they were sorry and changed the subject. Natsu tried to figure out if she was just being polite or really wanted to know. She sounded pretty earnest though. So he shrugged and told her.

"Peacekeeping mission in the middle east. He was a Squad Commander for the 77th Legion of the Fiorian Army." He said the last bit with pride. No one had served their country more dutifully than Igneel.

"That had to be really hard on you and your mom."

"Nah, never had one. At least, not one that ever mattered. Igneel adopted me and he was all I ever needed."

"Oh, gods, I'm sorry. I just can't seem to get out of this hole I'm digging for myself can I?" Natsu could feel the little wrinkle between her brows make an appearance. He rubbed his corresponding bit of forehead absentmindedly. It was such a weird feeling.

"Don't worry about it. You didn't know," he said not unkindly. Then his grin grew. "But it is pretty _evil_ of you to bring up all these terrible memories for me," he joked lightly. Lucy groaned.

"If I'm such a terrible person, that means you must be the worst! What kind of person intentionally makes another feel bad about an innocent mistake!?"

"Hey, hey now, this challenge isn't about me. It's about you. And how you're totally not as nice as you seem. Cookie torturer. I bet you're eating them right now, aren't you?" He could actually tell she wasn't, but he had to get on her case somehow.

"I maintain that you will eat your words Natsu Dragneel." For some reason that idea really amused her, and she broke out into laughter again.

"Lies." He grinned. Lucy really was the only one who could take him from zero to laughing in sixty seconds. Even talking about Igneel wasn't so bad. Maybe he really could tell her everything and it would be ok. They were bonded after all...that had to mean something, right?

* * *

Erza and Mystogan walked in companionable silence, content to let the humid evening air settle around them like cotton, muffling the normal sounds of the neighborhood as they made their way down the rows of houses and apartments to the canal where Mira's bar was.

Erza was spending the silence wondering what the blunette beside her thought of the outfit she was wearing. It had taken her hours to decide on the top and skirt and he hadn't said anything about it. Not a word. It wasn't really that big a deal. It was just clothes. But wasn't he supposed to say something? Weren't they on a date? Kind of? Or maybe they weren't? Maybe he didn't see it that way!

Mystogan spent the silence thinking about the tiny little amount of distance between their hands. He wanted to just reach out and take hers, but he kept chickening out. Fuck, when had hand holding gotten so complicated.

He glanced down at her hand for the sixteenth time, trailing his gaze up her arm and admiring the way her hair, down and loose for once, swayed across her bare upper back as she walked. She wore a halter top that did amazingly mouth watering things to her cleavage, which he tried, once again, to not stare at, and a denim skirt. That should have been the most boring part of her ensemble, but instead tormented him endlessly as it rode up her thigh and back down again with each step she took. Add the subtle darkening around her eyes that he assumed was brought on by the miracles of makeup, and the chain belt hanging low around her hips, and he pretty much couldn't think of anything else.

"You look really great, by the way." It was out of Mystogan's mouth before he realized what he was saying. Well, hell, she was the one who saw him as a potential lover. The fact he thought she looked smoking hot in just about anything should be a plus, right?

Erza turned her head and beamed at him.

"Thank you. I just threw this together quick after dinner." Erza gestured to herself, letting her hand fall back to her side. When she did, her knuckles brushed up against his for a moment.

So Mystogan reached out and grabbed her hand lightly, leaving her room to let go.

Instead, she laced their fingers together and smiled at him.

He smiled back the whole rest of the way to the bar.

* * *

"Ok, how about you? Do you have-" Natsu was cut off by the sound of knocking at his door. He sprang to his feet and headed toward the door. "I think the food's here! Hold on, I'm gonna put you down for a sec," he said to Lucy as he carefully set his phone down on the bookshelf under his scarf hook. Opening the door, he was met by the Vanishing Bros delivery guy. He knew exactly where Natsu's room was. He'd delivered there tons of times. But this time, he wore a grin and held an extra item that was definitely not part of the Heaven and Earth platter.

"I was told you would know what's going on with the cookies by the hot chick who ordered your food. You got yourself a girl now dude? Cause if that girl is your girlfriend, you are lucky as shit!" the delivery guy said with a whistle.

Natsu just grinned and grabbed the takeout and a giant basket of snickerdoodle cookies from the guy and turned back to his room, closing the door with a smirk and a nod. It was the most beautiful thing he'd ever seen. There had to be more than four dozen cookies in there. It was like she had already seen him eat or something.

Setting the armful of glorious food on the couch, he picked up his phone where he had left it. Shoving two cookies in his mouth, he moaned.

"You win. You're the nicest person ever. I stand corrected."

"Told you you'd eat your words. Now spill. I really want to know what happened. And why you won't tell me. I've supplied you with enough comfort food to get you through about three hours of story telling, so tuck in and start talking!" Then she added, as an afterthought, "Please."

Natsu sighed, his earlier reluctance rearing its head one more time before he ignored it and manned up. He had nothing to worry about, right? She had just proven that she was nicer than anyone else he'd ever met. She baked him fucking cookies and had them messengered over. If there was one person in this world who wouldn't reject his past, it was her...right? So, he began.

"Are you sure you want to know? It's pretty dark. Definitely not a happy story."

"Yes, I do," she replied without hesitation. He sighed again and ate another three cookies, swallowing before he decided where to start.

"What do you know about Pergrande?

* * *

 **YEP, you guessed it, next week's chapter we get the full story of Natsu's past! I CAN'T WAIT to write it. And a massive barrage of one-shots should be heading your way starting on Saturday of next week. Three a day if I can swing it! Stay Tuned!**

 **And now, some things you might not have recognized or known:**

 **"** ** _And I don't want the world to see me, cause I don't think that they'd understand…"-_** lyrics courtesy of The Goo-Goo Dolls from their song _Iris_

 **Pushi kuratz-** "suck a dick" in Croatian... I just love this version of Gray so much...

 **Guiro-** that fish shaped instrument that you run a stick down to make a rattling noise

 **Polonius, Gertrude, Claudius, Rosencrantz and Gildenstern-** characters for William Shakespeare's _Hamlet_ , I could explain their relationship and significance, but that would take freakin FOREVER. Go read it instead.

 **Viola-** clever character in Shakespeare's _Twelfth Night_ who disguised herself as a boy to protect her virtue in a foreign land.

 **"** **I'm sexy and I know it"** -I HATE THIS SONG. BUT IT'S SO DAMN CATCHY! By LMFAO. No, I'm not actually laughing my ass off, they just have a really stupid band name.


	24. Demon Exorcist

**Hey guys! Sorry for posting a day late, but as I said in the note with my one-shot yesterday, this chapter was a bitch to get out and just wouldn't sit right with me. I'm still not 100% happy with it, but exposition must occur somehow, so here it is. I'm thinking the next chapter needs a little bit of funny to break up the crying...but, you know, enjoy! Oh, and keep an eye out for the other two one-shots I'm posting today.**

 **Plus, I added a one-shot on it's own, outside the collection, because it is set in actual canon, not the PAPI universe, so if you haven't read it yet, and you're caught up on the manga, check out A Writer's Greatest Love and let me know what you think! Otherwise, definite spoilers...**

* * *

"What do I know about Pergrande?" Lucy questioned, thrown off-guard by the question. "Like the country?"

"Yeah, the country. And what happened there about 12 years ago…"

"Well," Lucy began, feeling like she was back in the pressure room with Miss Aquarius being quizzed orally on geography and the significant business leaders of the world. (She had only recently discovered that being tested in a steam room, with oxygen being sucked slowly from the room with every answer she got wrong was _not_ a normal way for a teenager to have their knowledge examined. Though it did make her impending midterms at MU seem like a walk in the park.)

"It's a desert country, that had a pretty brutal civil war tearing it apart until only a few years ago. The dispute was started over oil rights, because there are lots of regions there that are rich with it, but it became a war of ideals that spark intervention from American, Fiorian and British forces, through a UN peacekeeping force because of the mass casualties...and there was a huge scandal about something covered in Time Magazine, that I saw a cover for once, but never got a chance to read...something about child labor or something? Oh! And the aboriginal people of Pergrande are easily identifiable by their vivid hair, which is…" Lucy trailed off as she realized what she was about to say. She swallowed hard and finished her thought. "Pink." She sat in silence for a moment, before adding, in a low voice, almost to herself, "So, you're from Pergrande."

"Yeah." Natsu took a deep breath and steeled himself to talk about the shittiest part of his life. It's not like this was the first time he'd been through all of this. Hell, he'd literally been talking about this shit for years, in therapy, but it hadn't ever mattered this much what the outcome of this conversation would be. Plus, in his experience, talking to girls about it had been a-whole-nother story. They always reacted one of two ways, pity or horror. He wanted neither from Lucy. A cold sweat broke out over his skin, as he thought about what he was about to do. He wasn't sure he could bear it if she was horrified by what he had done. Or, worse, was afraid of him. And how could she not be?

"Hey, Natsu, calm down. It's ok. Whatever you tell me...we'll figure it out...ok?"

Natsu felt her dabbing her skin with a wet paper towel, removing the fear sweat his system had triggered in hers. Shit, he'd faced down things that would make Gildarts shit himself, but talking to a girl was freaking him the fuck out. When had that happened? He grabbed a hand towel from the bathroom and did the same, using the moment to stall. Then, he finally responded.

"Look, Lucy, talking about that part of my life...it's fucked me over more than once. Like pretty much screwed up every romantic relationship I've ever given half a shit about. It's not something that a lot of people can get over. So...are you _sure_ this is something you want to know? You won't see me the same anymore. No one does." The last bit was spoken under his breath, but she heard the bitterness in it anyway.

"Well...Natsu, I'm not just anyone. I've done bad things too. I've ruined people's lives. And not thought about it twice. But the real clincher here is, that no matter what, even if whatever you say is horrible, and it changes how I see you, which I doubt, considering I literally know what it feels like to _be_ you, I'm not going anywhere. We're stuck with each other. Maybe forever. So we _will_ figure it out, no matter how long it takes. And, considering I'm not even sure if I have a moral compass, thanks to the way I was raised, I might just be the _perfect_ person for you to tell. My version of right is a lot closer to wrong than I realize sometimes. Until, you know, after." Lucy cut herself off there. She realized she was rambling, and this was supposed to be about him. She should just shut the fuck up and let him talk. Then, she realized she hadn't actually answered him. "Oh, so, yeah, I'm sure. And…" she hesitated, but decided she didn't have a choice either way. " I _promise_ not to shut you out. No matter what you did in the past." Natsu laughed at that with little humor.

"You're going to regret promising that."

"Maybe, but I'll keep it just the same. Now...lay it on me."

"Well… where should I start?"

"What happened this morning?"

"I had a dream. It started out as a past life flashback thing, like we get, and then...it morphed into a nightmare about something that happened to me in Pergrande. And I fell out of my loft, which is when you tried calling me."

"That makes sense. What was the dream about? Or, wait, maybe you should start further back? We've got lots of time. At least, I do. And plenty of food. Let's start at the beginning. I want to know everything, if you'll tell it to me...and maybe it will be easier?"

Natsu had to smile, albeit wryly. Even when she was being pushy, she was still trying to be nice. He scoffed internally at her earlier statement. What could she have possibly done in her past that could compare to his atrocities?

"Um, alright then. The beginning. I don't remember by birth parents. The first home I remember having was the orphanage in Pergrande. It was hot, and dirty, and crowded. And I was pretty much always hungry. But the other kids were ok. Most of the time. As you've probably already guessed, my parents must have been _altinayuna._ That's what the people of Pergrande call the indigenous people. There aren't a lot of us left, it turns out. The pink hair is a recessive gene too, so I was the only one in the orphanage with the damn stuff. Which I got teased for.

But at least _none_ of us had parents. I didn't realize at the time how nice that was, never having to answer the awkward questions about my birth mom and dad."

"I get that," Lucy said around a bite of shrimp fried rice. "So how long were you at the orphanage?" Listening to her and feeling her munching, Natsu took a couple large bites of his Heaven and Earth platter (orange duck and pork chow mein, with sides of fried rice and steamed veggies) before continuing.

"I'm not really sure how old I was when the orphanage got me, but I was there until I was about...four maybe? That's when they came and recruited us all. Well all the boys."

"Recruited?" Lucy asked, biting into a crab rangoon. Shit, that _was_ damn good Chinese food.

"Yeah, that thing that you sort of remember from Time? I've read it. It wasn't about child labor, it was about child soldiers. And it was actually pretty accurate."

The flavor explosion in Lucy's mouth suddenly tasted like ash. Oh gods. Her mind immediately leapt from conclusion to conclusion. Natsu was a child soldier. Natsu had probably killed people. She could feel the panic rising in her throat. He was right. She shouldn't have promised that. How was she supposed to handle this?

But just as her panic was reaching volcanic proportions, threatening to take over her body and hang up on him while shivering curled into a ball in the corner, a wave of calm descended over her. She could think clearer. And she wasn't afraid anymore. What the hell had just happened?

Natsu continued hesitantly, when she didn't say anything.

"They came and shot the women who ran the orphanage, the girls, and the baby someone had dropped off a few days before. And then the rest of us were part of their army, just like that. I didn't know who we were really fighting for until I learned about it in high school, a long time later, but, at the time, we were told it was for Big Brother Zeref; that bad people wanted to kill us, and he had come to teach us how to be strong and to kill them, before they got to us. He wasn't even out of his teens, but he seemed like an adult to us. We were so little then. And he had actual adults that listened to and worked for him, so we believed him."

Lucy swallowed, expecting the panic to rear it's head again as she listened in horrified silence to what Natsu's childhood had been like. How had she even dared to compare them? But the calm lay underneath the horror, steadily reminding her of all the little things she had felt him do. All the mannerisms that made him who he was. It was when she started having little flashes of their conversations flickering in her eyes that she considered it might be the bond, helping her to deal with what he was telling her.

"We lived in a camp, in tents, and learned pretty quickly that we either did what Zeref told us, or we died. We moved around every few weeks, but it was always the same. Hot and dry. The sand got everywhere. It's one of my vividest memories from then, the gritty feeling of sand in every crack it could find. Eventually, when we were so far from home we'd never find our way back, they started us out learning basic hand to hand combat, and made us fight each other. The littler ones...they didn't last very long. I don't know why they bothered to take them in the first place. Only an idiot would think a toddler could be useful in an army, but like I said...they didn't last long. The ones that showed promise got training on how to use a knife. I was one of them."

Lucy could picture him too well with a knife, his muscles flexing. Even as a child, he had to have been strong. Everything about his story screamed it. She would have buckled under that kind of pressure right away. A small sliver of respect slipped into the horror.

"Everyone was given a gun and showed how to pull the trigger. Some kind of automatic weapon; sloppy but easy to use. They never left our sides. We ate with them. We slept with them. When we slept."

"I was used to people messing with me at the orphanage, cause of my hair, so I was already a light sleeper. Zeref would take away our guns while we were sleeping, to test us, and if we failed the test, we were forced to fight each other for who got to keep his gun. You never wanted that weapon taken away from you. The ones without guns didn't get food. And it was hard to earn it back. So we learned pretty quick not to let them go. Zeref told us it was all for our own good. That the enemy wouldn't wait for us to wake up and prime our weapons before slaughtering us in our sleep."

"I adjusted a little better than most. I think I function better with a lot of structure, so I took what Zeref said to heart and worked hard to become the ultimate soldier for him. He was...well, he called me his...little brother and I…" Natsu clenched his fist and scrunched his eyes closed for a second.

"Natsu… I…" Lucy wasn't sure what to say for a moment as she trailed off. Then she bolstered her own shock and fear with determination, holding onto the calm beneath the storm in her chest for dear life. She didn't fully understand what he had been through. At least not yet, but she was dealing with it. Somehow. And she did want to help, at least a little bit. This had to be harder for him than for her. By a lot. "Eat something. Your food has got to be getting cold." There, it wasn't the most comforting thing to say, but she had said _something._ And it hadn't sounded like she was contemplating the best train route out of Magnolia. Levy had told her she had to stop running. This seemed like a good time to start.

Natsu opened his eyes and unclenched his fists. She was still talking to him? Hadn't she figured out what came next? What he had obviously done? He looked down at the food in front of him and his stomach rumbled. So he did what she said. He ate until the food was gone. They sat in silence, and ate together, finishing the Chinese food.

"Sorry, I'm kind of ruining the date mood a bit aren't I?" Natsu joked, trying to lighten up the oppressive atmosphere a little.

"I asked, didn't I? What could be more romantic than learning each other's darkest secrets?" Lucy replied, chuckling at how ironic it all was. How had the two of them, with their shitty pasts ended up linked irrevocably together? It was like a sick cosmic joke.

"Hey, I have yet to hear your deep dark secrets coming out…"

"Well, you're kind of on a roll. I didn't want to hog all the attention." Lucy gave him a wry smile, knowing he'd feel it. And that smile worked wonders to help Natsu relax, even if he could feel how forced it was. She was still talking to him. She was still smiling. Or at least trying to. That was something. Maybe...it would be ok. So when she asked, he was ready to keep going.

"So, Zeref. You guys were close then?"

"Yeah. I loved him. Like a brother. I realize now that he was probably just excited that I progressed so quickly and did everything he told me to, but at the time, it was my lifeline. Because if he said that everything I was doing was right, then it was right, and I didn't have to think about it. No one had ever shown me that kind of attention before, so it heavily influenced my psyche, specifically my imperative moral code. At least, that's what my therapist says."

"Therapist?" Lucy felt stupid the minute the word left her mouth. Of course he had been to therapy. He had to have someone that cared about him enough to get him help, since he was as well adjusted as he was now. She repeated that to herself again, because it seemed to help. He was so well adjusted. She would be a fucking mess. Hell, she was a fucking mess most of the time.

"Yeah. Igneel got me into therapy as soon as he could. I didn't like talking to someone alone, so I went to a group when I was little. That's where I met Gray and Erza."

"You met Gray in therapy? Was he from Pergrande too? And who's Erza?" Lucy cringed, as she realized she had interrupted him again. "Sorry, nevermind, just go on with your story." Natsu chuckled dryly at her words.

"Hey, ask all the questions you want. I don't talk about this stuff much, so you might as well get all your curiosity out on the table right away." He ventured a smile. She was asking questions. Which was further than anyone else had gotten. Even Lisanna. "Yeah, I met Gray in therapy. He's not from Pergrande, but his parents were killed in a different war. I wouldn't tell you this and all, but he actually prefers that people talk about it without him there. He'd rather people know without him having to face it. Which, I've never gotten, but then he's Gray," Natsu said with a shrug, like that explained everything. "Anyway, he saw his parents murdered in front of him in the war in Bosnia. He had to live in his family's car for a while, in the winter, and was nearly frozen when he was finally found and sent to Fiore as a refugee orphan. He thought all his family was killed, but shortly after he got here, he discovered his cousin had survived the massacre too and they got put in the same foster home. Leon goes to MU too, actually. He came to our group a few times, but never came back. I think he did better one-on-one in therapy. Plus, he and Gray fought even more than Gray and I did in group."

"And Erza? Do you mean Erza Scarlet?!" Lucy exclaimed. There weren't a lot of people floating around with the name Erza, so she figured it was a safe bet to guess it was the well known protector of Fairy Hills. Lucy had never met her, but the stories made her sounds ridiculously scary.

"Yeah, that's Erza. She was kidnapped by a cult when she was little, and came to the group a year or so after Gray and I. She was the only girl who could keep up with our fist-fights. Though usually she stopped us instead. If it wasn't for her, we'd have been kicked out of group a long time ago. She boxes with us now too." Lucy's mind flashed to the gym Levy and she had staked out and she wondered if that was where he boxed. That would be too big of a coincidence though, wouldn't it? She almost asked, but then realized they had gotten a little sidetracked. Even though she kind of didn't want to hear anymore, she still, weirdly, wanted to know what had happened. If she was going to be the magnificent bitch of the conversation and force him to talk about it, then the least she could do was hear it all. And hope she didn't have a psychotic break as a result.

"Ok, so...Zeref was like a brother to you?"

Natsu sighed. They were getting to the bad bits soon. He steeled himself, but kept talking, surprised that he was a lot more relaxed than he thought he should be. Was it Lucy? Did she even realize she was putting him at ease? Or was it something else?

"Yeah. He was pretty much all I had. He made me feel loved. And special. Or what I thought love was then. I got private lessons, and extra meals. Pretty soon the other kids resented me and spent half their time trying to take me down or steal my food. Zeref just told me it was good practice, so I fought them off at all hours of the day and night. They finally got the message and quit trying around the time we got assigned our first mission." Natsu fell silent after that. Lost in remembering. After a few minutes, Lucy prompted him gently.

"What was your first mission?" Natsu blinked himself out of his thoughts and his lips pressed together into a taut line.

"There was a village nearby. Zeref had heard that the village was harboring enemy soldiers, who were looking for us, so he sent us in to...eliminate them." He said the last two words carefully, pausing to try and ascertain Lucy's reaction. Lucy swallowed hard, and her eyebrows came down in concern, but otherwise she didn't make a peep. She had asked. Why, she had no idea. "So, we did. We came in while they were sleeping, and we shot everyone in their beds, starting with the soldiers. The ones that woke up couldn't bring themselves to shoot kids, so it was a slaughter. We took their guns, and whatever kids we could find and went back to Zeref. He gave us double rations that night and no one that night got their gun taken away. For us, that made it a pretty great night."

"There were a lot more missions after that. For years. I lost count of…" Natsu hesitated. He didn't want Lucy to know about this side of him. Not just in case she ran away in fear...but because he was ashamed of it. She was so...good. And something about her made him want to prove that he was good too.

"Lost count of what?" she whispered, unable to stop herself. "That's not who you are anymore, right?" Her voice shook a little, but she had said it all the same. He felt a tear coursing down his cheek and realized she was crying for him. For who he used to be.

"I lost count of how many people I killed." The confession came out in a whisper, a tear of his own joining hers on his cheeks. No matter how many years went by, he could never forget what he had done. All so that a madman would care about him. Love him. "Turned out Zeref didn't care about me. He didn't care about any of us. At some point, during that time, I learned later, the world got wind of what Zeref and men like him were doing, and decided it needed to stop. So they sent in soldiers to stop it." Natsu wiped the tears streaming down his cheeks carefully and tried to put on a smile for Lucy. They were almost to the good part. The part where Igneel came in. The part where he started to become who he was now.

"Igneel was leading a unit to do just that when he found us. Zeref had heard of their existence in the area and was executing the other kids. He had taken away all the guns, and told me to help, but I wouldn't do it. I didn't understand why the kids who had fought so long beside me against the enemy had to die. So I resisted. That's what I was dreaming about. What he did, when I resisted."

"W-what did he do?" Lucy whispered through her tears. She was trying to be as quiet as she could with her tears. She could barely feel the numb horror at his confession through the intense sadness for him. For the little boy who had only wanted to be loved. She understood that feeling. Too well maybe. He hadn't known what he was doing was wrong. Zeref had built what was right and wrong for him.

Lucy's father had done that too. She understood all too well the horror of having your whole world turned upside down. Learning you were actually the bad guy, or at least helping the bad guy. Getting your moral compass to point north wasn't as easy as some people made it sound, when you were raised with it pointed south.

"Zeref always had guns on him, but when it came to problems at the camp, he didn't use them. Said they weren't personal enough. So he carried a whip he had rigged up with an electrical current. He only used it when he was making a point. Putting on a show of strength to keep his men, or us, in line. That day, when I refused to shoot the other kids, he got me around the neck with it. If it weren't for Igneel and his unit showing up just then, he would have killed me. Without a second thought. It left a pretty gnarly scar behind on my throat. It's why I wear a scarf everywhere. Keeps people from being uncomfortable around me."

"So what happened after Igneel got there?" Lucy vaguely remembered him mentioning Igneel before, as his father. Now she wondered how that had happened.

"Igneel shot him and saved everyone. In a way, I sometimes am thankful that Zeref turned on us. If he hadn't, we probably would have killed Igneel and his men. Thankfully, though we fought back, no one else got hurt that day. I was one of the worst. I fought Igneel myself, at eight years old with nothing but my knife and my bare hands. He beat me easily, but saw something in me. So he hog-tied me, and the others, took us back to their camp and fed us. Igneel talked to me for a long time, eventually coaxing me to talk back. After a few months spent in their camp, we were happier than we had been in a long time. We spent our days helping out with chores, and eating, and talking to the guys who had rescued us." Natsu smiled at the memory, feeling peace settle over him. He would never forget what real happiness felt like for the first time. "Eventually, it was time for them to go home. Which scared the shit out of me. So I tried to stow away in Igneel's bag. He caught me, obviously, and just laughed at me. He asked me where I thought I was going, and I told him I was going with him. Because I wasn't letting him go without me." Natsu grinned at that. Even then he had been a cheeky little bastard.

"And he took you with him?" Lucy said in awe. It was like when she had dreamed that Stier would come back and take her away from her father. But Natsu's fairy tale had actually come true.

"Yeah. He asked if I wanted to come back and live with him in Fiore and be his son. I said as long as I got to go with him, I didn't care where we went or what he called me, so he spoke to the social services people and flew home with me. He was granted a special dispensation from field service for a few years to take care of me, and was stationed in Magnolia as a training commander until I was in high school. So, while we were here, he got me into therapy, and put my ignorant ass in school. But I fought with the other kids a lot. At the time, I didn't understand what I was doing wrong, since that was always the way I dealt with stuff. It's still my first reaction, you know. Hit the problem to make it go away. Gray had come to the same conclusion, though with him I think it was just the easiest way to make people shut up. He really hates talking about what happened to him. Anyway, that's when Igneel dragged us both to his friend's gym and we started boxing. Which was the first thing about Fiore I really got."

"And you eventually made it to college. Igneel must be so proud of you," Lucy said in awe. She couldn't believe how far Natsu had come. She could sense, somewhere, in the back of her brain that a part of her was still in shock, afraid of what he had done. He had killed people. Lots of people.

But the little part niggling at her brain argued back that it hadn't been his fault. He was just a kid. Trying to be loved. There weren't a lot of people who could understand what that drive to feel loved could make you do. But Lucy did. She wondered for a second if she would have killed someone if her father asked her to. She felt a little cold as she realized she might have. Thank the gods, he'd never asked.

"Well, he would be. When I got to high school, he accepted active duty again and got shipped out to fight. I wanted to quit school and join the army with him, so we could fight together. But he didn't want me to. We fought about it a lot before he left on his last tour. He wanted me to go to college and I thought that was a stupid waste of his money. It's actually the last conversation we had in person. He went missing in action my sophomore year. He left me all his stuff. His house, his Harley, and a letter they made him write before he shipped out again. Said I'd be an idiot not to go to college. So I petitioned to be emancipated as an adult, got it, and sold the house, moving in with Gray and his cousin until I graduated. Then I enrolled in MU with them and joined Fairy Tail. Seemed poetic somehow, a messed up fucker like me in a place called Fairy Tail."

Lucy sat in the silence for a moment, taking the last part of his story in. He had had everyone he cared about taken from him. How was he so happy all the time? How did he keep smiling?

Then something she had been curious about resurfaced.

"So...your name...did your birth parents name you Natsu Dragneel? Or was Igneel's name actually Igneel Dragneel?" Her abrupt, random question surprised a laugh from Natsu. He certainly had not expected to laugh at the end of that story.

"Neither actually. It's a custom with the _altinayuna_ to take your father's name as your last name. Kind of like the vikings did? So, Dragneel actually means 'son of Igneel'. It was Igneel's idea. He wanted me to remember something good about where I came from. Honestly, I just liked the idea of being called Igneel's son," Natsu said with pride. He hesitated before asking what he really wanted to know: what was going on in Lucy's head.

"So...what are you thinking? Ready to run yet?" he joked dryly, shoving some more snickerdoodles in his mouth. He needed the comfort of sugar and cinnamon before he heard what she had to say. Some things were just better to hear with cookies in your mouth.

"Natsu, I'm not going to run from your past. I told you that. But...I'm not going to lie and say it hasn't changed the way I see you." Natsu's heart dropped and he stopped chewing. "I was naive to think it wouldn't. How could it not? But, for reasons I can't explain, I'm not going to run away. It wasn't your fault that all that happened to you. And it was a long time ago. And I'm so happy you had someone to help you find yourself again. I envy that a bit, I think. But, for whatever reason, I'm not afraid of you. I probably should be, but I'm not. You're different now. You didn't realize the ramifications of what you were doing. I get that. I really, really get that." She tried a small smile at that. "I wish you didn't have to go through all that. But you did, and it's made you who you are now. You don't hurt anyone now, right? So why should I make a big deal about it?" Her voice quivered. He could tell she was on the brink of losing it. But she was fucking trying. Which was more than he had expected, honestly.

Then Natsu realized he'd left one very important part of the story out.

"Lucy…" Gods he hated to tell her this. She was barely holding it together as it was. Why hadn't he mentioned it sooner?! "I'm not...completely better. I should have mentioned it before…" He took a deep breath. Now or never. "I have PTSD. I get flashbacks to when I was a kid, and I lash out at the people around me. It's like I'm back there again. And, without realizing it, I hurt people. Even if they're trying to help." Natsu hung his head and stared at his hands. "I've put people in the hospital and not even remembered it. And that was last year. Lucy, I don't want you to be afraid of me. But you should be. I'm not safe to be around."

A small shiver of fear went down Lucy's back at his words. She couldn't help it.

 _A sudden flashback flickered through her body as she remembered sitting on the floor of her apartment. She felt him punch someone multiple times and an arm close around his throat. Through their connections, she felt his heart rate rocket, his muscles tense and his adrenaline spike out of control. The taste of her recent vomiting was still on her tongue, and the haze of the booze she had drunk made her dizzy. She felt him fighting someone and then his tense, scared awareness as he backed himself against a wall._

And then it was over. Lucy sat in silence, breathing hard for a second. Holy shit. Had she just flashed back to the 'gap'? To the time she had lost during the Moon Drip party? Was that even possible?

"Did you have a PTSD thing the night of the party?" Lucy asked quickly, needing to confirm her suspicions.

Natsu was stunned silent for a moment. How the fuck…?

"Uh, yeah. I was told later that I had an episode. I was pissed at Gray for...well, you, so I sort of let him have it, and someone tried to restrain me around my neck, which is one of my triggers, and I freaked out. But how did you know that? Did you remember something?! Why didn't you tell me?"

"It was just now. Like one of the past life flashbacks, except it was to the night of the party instead! I didn't even know that was possible…" she trailed off, still trying to figure it out.

"Well shit…" Natsue replied, musing over what a weird night this had been. Fucked up, oddly relieving, and necessary, but weird.

"No kidding…what other triggers do you have?" Lucy whispered. She didn't want to know. But at the same time, she needed to.

"Yeah, I guess it would be a good idea to let you know, huh? So you can avoid them. Pretty much anything squeezing my neck. Touching my neck is fine, especially if I can see you doing it. Surprises around my neck from behind are the worst. Fireworks used to be a pretty bad trigger too."

"But aren't you majoring in-"

"Yep, but that's all because of Igneel. The first time I heard fireworks I had to be sedated. The sound triggered some seriously awful flashbacks, but Igneel showed me what was making the noises. He used to say that fireworks were the pretty side of gunpowder. The true form fire wanted to take. So we set off fireworks together until I had more good memories with the sound than bad. It still happens sometimes, but if I'm the one firing them off, I'm usually fine. I guess it's called exposure therapy, if you want to get technical."

Natsu went off then on a story about something else Igneel had done to help him and Lucy found herself entranced by the warmth of Natsu's tone as he talked about his foster father. His Dad. Even through the tight ball of envy in her stomach, she couldn't help but smile as she listened to him, amazed beyond belief that Natsu could still have so much capacity to love after everything he had been through. And she felt an answering spark in her heart, drifting out and longing to touch him, and hold him, the warmth of an unexpected candle in a life that had been trapped in the dark for a really long time.

Eventually, Natsu trailed off, embarrassed he had rambled for so long. But Lucy just sat in comfortable silence with him, smiling, to his relief and utter confusion.

"So…" he eventually said, breaking the ice again. "Got any deep dark secrets to even the score?" He tried to laugh it off, achieving something closer to nervous giggling. Nice Natsu. Real nice. Now her smile was drooping. He shouldn't have asked...but he was so curious.

"Well...I've got stories to tell. Stuff that would probably shock you." she said, trailing off into a whisper. Natsu raised his eyebrows.

"There is no way you've done worse stuff than what I just told you. No fucking way."

"Ok, yeah, I haven't killed anyone or anything...but what I did, I did knowing that it would hurt people. I was older, and should have known better. Between the two of us, I think I have more to answer for. You were just a kid. And you were doing what you did out of your love for someone who was family to you."

"That doesn't mean anything in the end. And I can't see you doing anything with real malicious intent. Didn't you just prove how nice you are?" Lucy laughed at his reference to the cookies, as he shoved more of them in his mouth to illustrate his point.

"Well, I'm really trying to be. I have a lot to make up for. And, you deserve to hear about it. But can we not do it tonight? I would kind of rather end this whole phone date thing on a high note. You know, instead of me sobbing over the phone. I'm not half as adjusted to talking about my demons as you are."

"Lucy, I'm not going to push you to tell me right now. I think we've gone pretty far past fulfilling the heavy and depressing conversation quota for a first _non_ -date. But, before you tell me what your favorite song of all time is, to get us back on the right track, I need you to promise me you'll let me in. Someday. Hopefully soon. I had Igneel to help me exorcise my demons. Plus years of practice dealing with crap and learning to do it right...so I can help you. I can help you start to kick your demons' asses too. You just have to let me."

"I promise. I'll tell you. I will! Just not tonight...Ok?"

"Alright. I can deal with that." Natsu took a deep breath and let it out, working hard to set a lighter mood with his tone of voice. "Now, favorite all time song. And it better be good."

"Well, I love a ton of music, so my favorite changes all the time. But lately, I'm kind of loving _Iris_ , by the Goo Goo Dolls. I've had it stuck in my head for days!"

Natsu grinned to himself as he grabbed a pen and doodled on his leg as the conversation picked up in a more positive direction again.

Nailed it.

* * *

 **So...I'm still not sure I'm completely happy with how this chapter turned out. It was a bit of a struggle for me to balance Lucy's feelings and keep them realistic. But Shedauwz was a great help and it's loads better than it was, so I stand by my decision to post a day late. Thanks for bearing with me!**

 _ **Altinayuna-**_ a made-up term, obviously, but if anyone's curious where I got it, it's what Google gave me phonetically when I popped 'dragon people' into the translator into Arabic. Gotta love Google.


	25. Wave Rider Lucy

**I know, I know! I'm sorry this is a day late again. I've had to deal with some medical issues lately that have sort of bummed me out, so I barely got the rough done on Tuesday. And it needed a round or two of editing. Forgive me! I should be back on track for next Tuesday, but for now, I'm chalking up only a day late as a win.**

 **And, I realized it's been a while since I've mentioned it, but thanks to everyone who reads and reviews! The story hit 800 recently and I may have annoyed the crap out of my husband by chanting and doing happy dances...possibly. YOU HAVE NO PROOF!**

 **Anyway, I just want to say thanks for brightening my day with your amazing reviews, and I'm hoping you enjoy this chapter! When we hit 1000 reviews, I might just have to reward you guys again...like...maybe they'll actually meet in person...hehe.**

 **Enjoy! And don't forget to review! I'm hopelessly addicted and I need enablers...**

* * *

Lucy knew it was inevitable.

She could never escape for long. If she actually managed to swing two months in a row of light symptoms and minimal emotional upheaval, then the third was bound to be the bringer of doom. And when she woke up at one in the morning with a searing pain in her abdomen, she knew her fate was sealed.

The dreaded Crimson Wave had come at last to fuck her body up and screw with her decision making paradigm. And to top it all off, apparently it was homecoming week at MU. The campus was a flurry of activity and joviality. Everywhere you looked, the bold purple and white of the university was embellishing something. Normally Lucy would have been fucking psyched to be a part of the action. It was like every stereotypical high school movie she'd ever seen. There would be a dance (that apparently nobody ever bothered to go to) and a parade with floats (made by the Greek houses on campus), and of course, The Big Game. _That_ had become the answer to every damn question on campus anymore, spoken in a way that Lucy could only interpret as important enough to make it a proper noun. She could see how it would be hard not to get caught up in the excitement of it all.

Unless the gods were cursing you with a tiny man who lived inside of you, dancing on your kidneys and dedicating every waking moment to shanking you repeatedly in the ovaries with tiny rusted daggers. And then twisting them. Counter-clockwise. Because it hurt more in that direction or something.

Whatever. Just shut the fuck up, it made total sense in Lucy's head.

And when Hurricane Ruby hit the Lucy Canal (yeah, she went there, and she was just getting started), then whatever made sense for Lucy, was the way it fucking was.

Because she was on her fucking Period, alright! Yeah, that's right it had also reached proper noun proportions.

And everything else about her week was just going to be a reflection of her pain.

She wore sweatpants and her sports bra under a zip-up hoodie to class. With sparkly flats. Because fuck ugly shoes. And fucking underwires.

She made her morning beverage with more Bailey's than coffee (a bottle that Levy had convinced Gajeel to buy for them a couple weekends ago, just to try) and took it to class with her. Because fuck listening to a lecture on sine, cosine, and tangent sober. For the third fucking time.

She spent her entire first two classes reading a book instead of taking notes. Because fuck trig. And modern poetry. She was probably never going to use them anyway.

She downed ibuprofen like it was candy. Washing it down with her Bailey's (w/ a little coffee for flavoring). Because fuck having a usable stomach lining in her thirties. Totally fucking worth it if it beat Aunt Flow into submission and drop-kicked the cunt's body off the highest cliff in Fiore. That bitch had it coming.

She tossed the soggy sandwich she had packed for lunch the night before and bought overpriced pizza at the union, because fuck jelly that seeped into poor unsuspecting bread and wasted all that glorious peanut butter. Fuckin' Red Menaces. Ruining everything. They were fucking everywhere.

She spent her free afternoon period crying to old Phil Collins songs. Because fuck having Periods in the afternoon. Or the morning. Or at all.

Oh, and because fuck hormones!

And most importantly, she fucking refused to respond to any of Natsu's increasingly whiny messages, on their AIM or her phone. Because fuck boys not having to go through all this fucking shit every fucking month.

And because fuck pink-haired boys who had had shit to do, like fucking sleep, when she called them at three am to complain about her pain and sleep deprivation. Because he could suck if up and listen to her godsdamn it.

The fucking asshole.

* * *

"Ok, so you want me to teach you how to do what, exactly?" Ultear said with a quirk of her brow.

"I want you to teach me how to traverse the visions I get of my past lives," Levy repeated firmly, setting the cup of tea the Wiccan past-life regressionist had made for her. "I want to be able to not just observe the world in them, but control what I get to see." She sat back, content that she had delivered the words she had been preparing in her head the entire way over to the old Victorian house.

Millianna the cat wandered into the room, hopefully, yet nonchalantly, scanning the room to see who Ultear's visitor was. Seeing that it was not, in fact, the non-cat who smelled like a cat who had come to visit her recently, the orange tabby's tail drooped and she padded softly out of the room again. Maybe more fishy flavored pâté had been added to her bowl since she was last in the kitchen. Her tail perked up and she scampered the rest of the way down the hall.

Ultear sat back, cradling her own cup of tea with a hum.

"And what makes you think it's even possible to interact with your visions that way?" she queried, scrutinizing the blunette in front of her with speculative eyes. This petite woman had been on her mind since she had last seen that horrifying, yet fascinating aura; the shadowy darkness all but smothering her inner glow. She'd never seen anything like it. And she wondered if it was still trying to smother her. The chance to find out had been enough to get the blunette through her door. Plus, there was something about the fire in Levy McGarden's eyes that made it hard to say no.

"Because I'm aware in my flashbacks," Levy replied, still earnestly staring down the Wiccan. Both of Ultear's eyebrows flew up at that. Having a lucid past life flashback was fairly rare, but controlling one was practically unheard of. She'd only heard of one person who could successfully do so 100% of the time, and that had taken decades of study. Ultear herself could only actively summon and navigate _one_ of her past lives...on a good day. And that was only because her soul had been particularly tuned-in to the Goddess in that life as well.

She set her own cup down and leaned forward, tendrils of steam from her home blend of lemon verbena, sage, and green tea working their way into her lungs and opening her chakras. She held up one finger to halt any further explanation of the blunette across from her, and closed her eyes, falling immediately into the pattern of breathing she used when she meditated.

When the raven-haired beauty felt her body enter the state of relaxation required for her to access what she thought of as her second sight, she opened her eyes again, keeping them slightly unfocused. Now she could see Levy's aura, bursting in rays from under her skin.

While each aura had its own particular _look_ , the average person's typical aura was erratic; for instance, a barely visible glow that pulsed sporadically, or an out of control flux of unpredictable spikes, disappearing as quickly as they came. Levy's was something else altogether.

For one, it was constant; a warm golden light that pulsed steadily and compactly. But underlying that light, a shadow gave her entire aura a dark edge, making her light seem to shine all the brighter. Ultear was relieved to see that the darkness, which had been all but consuming the young woman the last time she had seen her, was contained...mostly.

Just as she had breathed out a sigh of relief, Levy's brows had furrowed and sharp spikes of black shot out in several places. Ultear watched in fascination as they slowly retracted, rotating around Levy until they slipped back beneath her skin.

Levy was starting to become frustrated, waiting for the woman across from her to respond. But at the same time, she could tell she was doing...something. Levy hated waiting, almost as much as she hated not knowing what was going on. Finally, still staring blankly at the air between them, Ultear began speaking again.

"How many times have you been able to participate in a lucid vision?" she murmured, observing Levy's reaction closely.

"Um...a few times now? Actually, I guess, except for the very first one I had on your front porch, and the onslaught of flashes during the second origin opening thing you did, _all_ of my flashbacks have been... _lucid_. I obviously have no control over my past actions, seeing as time cannot be rewritten, but I'm very much aware that I am me as I take in a vision. The _now_ me. I feel what my various past selves felt, and am aware of what their thoughts were, but I can also learn, think, and observe as the _now_ version of me while in the vision. Like I said though, that's not really why I'm here. I want to learn to control _what_ I see. I want to follow a past life chronologically through to its conclusion and get the whole story. Is that something you can help me with, or not?" Levy's impatience was showing through. Both in her voice and in the increasing frequency of needle-sharp thin black spikes popping out in her aura everywhere and staying put like the spines of a sea urchin. Or iron filings exposed to a magnet.

Though her face kept its usual calm mask, internally Ultear was gaping at both what the blunette was describing and what she was seeing. She was fascinated. She had never seen an untrained layman with an aura that _controlled_. Add in the fact that just as the black spikes seemed to almost overcome the light, Levy just took a calming breath and banished them away...and she was speechless. Then, there was the possibility that she had already mastered lucid past life visions...Ultear was clearly in way over her head. Closing her eyes and letting her second sight slip away from her, she locked gazes with the blunette and leveled with her.

"Levy, I'm gonna be straight with you. If what you say is true - and I'm not saying it isn't, I'm just trying to be objective - you're beyond anything I've ever seen before, in terms of past life manipulation. Particularly in a layman. Even among the trained, lucid visions are very rare. It normally takes years of training and practice to get to the point you are describing. Furthermore, your aura is behaving...oddly. How often do you practice meditation?" Levy's brow wrinkled.

"I do yoga a couple times a week, and the basic relaxation exercises with that. But I don't meditate exactly..." she hedged. Ultear frowned.

"I guess the yoga could explain, at least partly, what I'm seeing. But from the amount of discipline I'm seeing, I would expect daily intentional and focused practice. And years of it. Though your incredible self-discipline alone wouldn't be terribly suspicious - some people naturally just have a greater inner discipline than others - except I've only met one other person who can _consistently_ participate in lucid flashbacks." Taking a moment to think, Ultear got up from her couch and made her way to Levy's. "Before we go any further, I want to see if you can summon a flashback. There are things I can do to trigger one in you, but if you're participating in them the way you say you are, then you shouldn't need it."

Levy took the hands that were offered to her, and hesitantly closed her eyes.

"So...how do I do this?"

"To be honest, I'm not entirely sure what triggers your flashbacks. You and Lucy have a different link with the past than I've seen before...but, we do know that it must have something to do with the bond you experience with another. All of the flashbacks have been about him, right?"

"Well, actually, no. Not too long ago, I had one about Lucy and I in a past life together. Gajeel didn't even make an appearance. I suppose he could exist somewhere else in that flashback, but it definitely wasn't about him." Ultear's eyebrows went up again.

"Perhaps your bond has acted as a catalyst to open your perception further. In any case, is there any similarity between the visions or the circumstances in which you have a vision? Do you get them while you are sleeping? Or are they brought on by physical pain? It could be anything, really."

Levy thought it through. The first vision she had been thinking about...how she needed more information. And then she had been interrogating Black Steel. She shivered, remembering it, but moved on quickly. Then she had gotten a flash of what Gajeel had seen in the 1960s when they were making out...and the flashback was an even steamier moment. Then, the time with Lucy, she'd been awed by Lucy's sudden determination, and BAM there she was as Lucy's first mate on her naval ship.

"It has to do with my emotions! I think…" Levy suddenly exclaimed, trailing off as she considered the possibilities. "But it isn't every emotion, or I'd be going nuts with visions all the time."

"So strong emotions maybe?" Ultear chimed in, intrigued.

"That's definitely part of it...but there has to be something else. I've gotten really mad, and upset, really recently, and yet didn't trigger anything."

"So, maybe you have to be focusing on something or someone at the same time. That could be one factor of a larger pattern of events that need to line up. Like getting all the tumblers of a lock aligned so it can open. You probably need a certain emotion, and it needs to be strong, but maybe you also need to be focusing on, or thinking about, someone in this life that you knew in that life. And there could be other environmental factors too: alignment of the celestial bodies, your immediate environment, whether you feel safe, or threatened. Any number of things could factor in."

"But, I can't control those things! How am I supposed to summon a flashback now if I don't know what factors matter? Especially if it does require a person I knew from before to be present. What are the chances that we knew each other in another life?"

"Well, I didn't say they necessarily needed to be in the same room...just that you might need to be focusing on them. Honestly, the hardest part of trying to get a vision on purpose is probably going to be summoning a genuine, strong emotion pinpointed on what you want to see. And trying to guess what emotion you need to invoke to learn what you are searching for based on what you know about yourself in that prior existence."

"Ok. So, for the purposes of this experiment, we know I've had visions centering around Gajeel and Lucy, therefore I should focus on one of them and try to feel something strong about them?"

"Sure. For a first attempt, it's worth a try. But before you start, I think you will probably have the greatest chance of success if you start out with a clear and calm mind. In order to do that, I'm going to teach you a little meditation. While you already seem to have incredible self-discipline, clearing your mind is a different matter. And any vision your soul deigns to show you will come with less resistance if it is not fighting several other thoughts to break through. So, get comfortable, close your eyes and breathe with my counts. It will be seven counts of breathing in, seven holding that breath, and seven to release it."

"Ok," Levy replied, already pulling her legs automatically into padmasana, kicking off her sandals and pulling her ankles up onto her opposing thighs. Completing the lotus position, one of her favorite yoga poses, she rested her arms straight out just outside her knees, palms displayed outward. When Ultear saw that she was settled into her chosen position, she began counting softly.

"Breathe in, one...two...three...four...five...six...seven. Hold, one...two...three...four...five...six...seven. And release, one...two...three...four...five...six...seven. And again, breathe in the peace around you...five...six...seven. Hold as you let that peace settle into your soul...five...six...seven. And out again, breathing out any turbulence of the mind, quieting your thoughts...six...seven…"

As she listened to the woman beside her soothingly count out her breaths, Levy was finding it difficult to keep her mind from jumping around; there were so many possibilities and theories to explore that keeping her mind blank just felt like a waste of time. So, instead she picked a single thought and focused on that. Like a mantra, but more useful.

 _I'm searching for the truth. I quest for knowledge._

 _I'm searching for the truth. I quest for knowledge._

She focused on the feeling that lead her to read, to research, to explore. There was no stronger driving force in her life than that yearning. So she grabbed onto the emotion and expanded it, letting it fill her skin from her the tip of her nose to her fingertips. It made her warm, her certainty in what she was meant to do with her life. To find, and discover and explain. She wished Lucy could find such certainty...

Ultear watched with wide eyes as Levy's aura brightened by the second. She had ceased counting aloud when she noticed Levy had fallen easily into the pattern. But, whatever was happening in front of her, it wasn't meditating. Successful meditation tended to calm down an aura, giving the person a soft, even glow. Sort of how Levy had started out. This was something else. Whatever the blunette was thinking, it had significance for her. Something was inciting a much stronger reaction than a blank mind should.

And then, suddenly, her aura burst all at once into a white hot flash of light that blinded Ultear for several seconds, and when she could once again see without spots, she stared at the chaos surrounding the woman in front of her. It was like she was a whole different person. Her aura was rose-colored, but harsh. It clung to her skin like heat lightning, flashing and shifting. The shadow was completely gone, not even a hint of a dark edge to offset the storm brewing across her body. Ultear's eyes eventually noticed the rapid darting movements of Levy's eyes beneath her eyelids. She was in REM. But that meant...was she having a flashback?

 _Levy opened her eyes to see Lucy sitting across from her at a table inside a military tent, draped in a Greek himation with a golden broach holding the cloth together at her shoulder. Atop her head sat a golden diadem, embedded with emeralds. As her past self recognized the woman across from her as Queen Artemisia again, she couldn't help but think smugly, "I have a feeling we're not in Kansas anymore."_

* * *

Erza was having strange dreams.

The first one had seemed like a random occurrence. Perhaps something from her day had triggered a memory of her past and sparked her nocturnal imagination. Perhaps she had eaten a bad piece of fruit. Whatever the cause, she wrote it off as a spontaneous fluke and moved on with her life.

And then she had dreamed about him again.

And again.

And again, until she was beginning to worry about her mental health again. She hadn't felt the need to go to group in years, her mind rarely forcing her to relive the horrors she had experienced so long ago, after years of sussing out her nightmares and ripping out their fangs, one by one. But these new dreams...while they weren't directly related to her kidnapping as a child, they clearly had some connection to that time in her childhood.

Or at least to an important person in that time.

Maybe spending time with someone who looked identical to him had pulled him from the grief-laden box, hidden at the back of her mind, in which she had put him.

Maybe finding out he had been alive all this time, and hadn't thought her important enough to tell, had riddled her carefully assembled life's philosophy with holes.

Whatever the reason, by the eighth time she woke up screaming his name into the darkness of her empty bedroom, she knew what she had to do.

It was time to visit Jellal.

* * *

Natsu was tired, frustrated, angry, sad, and in the worst pain of his life.

What the hell was Lucy doing?! Eating pointy magnets? Or broken glass? The muscles of his abdomen - put through every torturous muscle toning exercise known to man at some point or another - were screaming at him to just kill them and put them out of their misery. And it didn't even seem weird to him that he had anthropomorphized them and named each of his eight pack (after the seven dwarves and Dobby, the poor little guys). Because he was delirious with lack of sleep and food.

That's right. Whatever Lucy was doing to herself was making him queasy enough to skip breakfast! His favorite first meal of the day! Lunch made a terrible first meal of the day. Just ask anyone!

Except Lucy, apparently, since she had been getting tipsy with no food to speak of since 6 am. And then she had decided to ignore his inquiries as to why he simultaneously felt like burning his shirt to ash, every time it brushed against his suddenly oversensitized nipples, and jumping into a pool of ice water.

He may have hung up on her when she had called him at three in the fucking morning, ranting about something he could barely remember, but was that any reason not to answer his fucking texts? That was when the stupid pain in his belly had started too. Just a mild burn at first that had worked its way into a twisty lead knot the size of a bowling ball. He had spent an hour just trying to rid himself of the gas he thought was cramping him up, only to realize there wasn't any.

But honestly, if it were just the pain in his abdomen, he'd have been able to tough it out. No sweat, like pulling a muscle. Or getting food poisoning. Fucking terrible, but survivable.

No, what really made him want to both cry for his Daddy and punch everything that moved was the unbearable pain in his balls.

It was like being constantly kicked, halfheartedly, in the balls every five minutes.

Forever.

With no end in sight.

It was like having them constantly squeezed in a vice grip that he could neither escape nor loosen. The ultimate punishment for a crime he couldn't even remember committing. It was torture. Sheer, fucking sadistic torture with no sadist to beat the shit out of and burn alive.

The whole experience was apparently bringing out his disturbingly violent side.

He had given up on class. Because FUCK that. How was he supposed to fucking walk anywhere?! He had never before in his life fantasized about cutting off his own godsdamned nuts, but that day...it had flashed through his mind. A man could only take so many hours of meaningless torture before he suffered a psychotic break. That was common knowledge. And Natsu had been mighty close to losing his fucking mind. It was when he had actually begun crying, and whining to his roommate about how he was pretty sure he was dying from the ball-sack out that Gray had yelled at him to knock off his PMS bullshit and man up.

And then it had clicked.

He'd experienced a mild case of cramps and an uncomfortable amount of chocolate cravings (resulting in many chocolate croissant runs) with Lucy last month when she had been "surfing the crimson wave", as she put it. He had shaken it off and went on with his week, smug in the proof that men everywhere had been right for generations and getting kicked in the balls _was_ actually way worse than getting a measly period. He and Gray had had a laugh over it (safely tucked in their fraternity where a particular redhead would never hear them) and forgotten all about it.

So, he hadn't even considered that this rampant collection of near-death symptoms could possibly be related to her woman problems. But carefully counting off the weeks since his mild encounter with womanhood's greatest bane, he couldn't deny the facts. This was what women everywhere complained about in ice cream stores and blogs across the world. _This_ was the true face of the enemy of horny husbands and live-in boyfriends. It was by far the most uncomfortable thing he'd ever experienced.

And his stone cold bastard of a roommate had once left him naked and unconscious in a beach bathing shed with nothing but a wet, frozen pair of swimming trunks to wear home. On a Sunday. In January.

And that memory led to the best idea he'd ever fucking had. Because nothing else he had ever succeeded at even registered on his list of greatest accomplishments by the time he was finally able to feel the pain ebbing away.

The bag of frozen peas he had stolen from the house kitchen was icing Collateral and Damage numb (yeah, he had named his balls in a fit of boredom one lonely night in junior high, what of it?). But at least he couldn't feel them screaming at him anymore.

How the fuck did women DO this every month?! All the while apparently bleeding all over the place!

That seemed to be the one symptom that didn't fucking transfer. Thank the gods for small mercies.

And bulk bags of frozen vegetables.

* * *

Levy came out of the flashback ten minutes later, gasping. Ultear grabbed her hands and forced the new cup of tea she had made her between her trembling fingers.

"So, how'd it go? What did you see?"

Levy took a few deep breaths and eventually responded.

"I was back with Lucy when she was Artemisia. We were in a military camp. I think it was prior to my previous vision with her. She had just come from arguing with Xerxes about attacking the Greeks by sea. She was frustrated with his decision and how he disregarded her advice. She was second guessing herself, and I...reassured her."

"Ok...so, what were you thinking about before you flashed?" Levy raised an amused brow at the woman's new lingo. She kinda liked it. It made her feel like a superhero. The Majestic Bookworm, _flashing_ through time to discover the secrets of the universe for the benefit of all humankind!

"I was trying out a mantra. I have trouble clearing my head, generally, so I used a similar technique instead." She shrugged with her words, unapologetic for disregarding Ultear's instructions. Why struggle through baby steps when she could leap right to the solution? "I was focusing on my thirst for knowledge, which is basically what guides me in life, and then I had a stray thought about how Lucy doesn't have a clear path and how I wish I could help her figure it out. And then I was there in the tent."

"What ended the vision?"

"The camp was attacked. I was startled by an arrow ripping through the fabric and embedding itself in the table between us. It sort of...shocked me out of it, I guess."

"And were you aware during the flashback, like you were before?" Ultear questioned, sharpening her gaze.

"Yeah, it was the same. I could tell what Penelope - that's what my name was then - was thinking about, but I was also aware of my own thoughts, and I spent the better part of the conversation figuring out what could have triggered the flashback in the first place."

"Well...that certainly sounds like a lucid flashback to me...but what I don't understand at all is what your aura was doing while you were flashing."

"What do you mean? What did you see?"

"Well, your aura completely changed. There are always fluctuations in everyone's auras as they emote. But for the most part, once someone has settled into adulthood, their aura keeps to a pattern. Whether it's shape, or color, or style, it maintains its...identity, for lack of a better word. But when you flashed, your aura actually _flashed_ brightly for a moment and then changed completely. Style, color, shape. It was like you actually were a completely different person. And the darkness left it entirely; a very unique trait that has clearly become a part of you was suddenly missing. It was...I don't know. I wish I could describe it better…"

"No, don't worry, I get what you're saying. Do you think you were seeing the aura of my previous self?" Ultear thought it over and shrugged.

"I've never seen it happen before, but it's certainly a possibility. With you, it seems there is a wide range of possibilities. All a mystery."

"So what now?"

"Now, we try again. But this time, try to go back to a flashback you've seen before. Maybe try to recapture an emotional link near the end, so you can see what happens next."

"Ok," Levy chirped, and took a sip of her new tea before setting it down again and settling back into her yoga pose.

Take two, she thought. Then a line from one of her favorite animes struck her and she smiled to herself.

 _Link, start!_

* * *

Mystogan was just walking out of a meeting with his advisor when his phone vibrated with a text. Normally he wouldn't bother to check it until he was settled somewhere out of the way, instead of the middle of the hallway, but on the rare chance that it was from a certain striking redhead…

He stepped out of the way of the foot traffic between classes as the labs let out streams of undergraduate students and pulled the device out of his pocket. It was from her. He couldn't help but smile as he swiped into his phone.

 _Hello._

 **Hi.** He smiled to himself after responding. She was a woman of few words, but she always got right to the point.

 _I have a favor to ask of you._

 **Okay. What's the favor?**

 _You're not going to like it._ Mystogan frowned. She was stalling.

 **That may be, but that doesn't mean I won't do it.**

 _You know what? Nevermind. Forget I said anything._

 **Erza. Spit it out. I'm happy to help.**

 _Ok. Well._ He waited, patiently, leaning against the hallway as it cleared of people. Whatever she was about to ask was either going to be really important or really weird. That was just how Erza operated. Her image and reputation meant more to her than most things. So anything in her world she considered odd, but wanted to pursue anyway, tended to make her squirrely.

He smiled to himself. She had done something similar when she invited him to go to the giant adult bouncy house thing the university had set up for homecoming week. But that had been in person, so he had gotten to see the stuttering mess Erza apparently became with stuff like that.

His phone buzzed again, signalling that she had finally spit it out. He looked at their message feed and his smile fell, a small headache already starting between his eyes.

 _Will you come with me to visit Jellal?_

He hesitated for a moment. The last thing he wanted was for Jellal to fuck Erza up more than he already had. Shit, he had seen what happened to her when she got drunk. She clearly had some unresolved issues when it came to his brother.

But, that being said, she would probably go with or without him. There was no point in arguing about it or trying to change her mind. And he wasn't going to make her face that bastard on her own. So there was really no question as to what his answer would be.

 **Yes.**

* * *

As the afternoon dragged on, Lucy slowly but surely lost her will to live. All she wanted to do was curl up in a ball and pretend she was never born.

Her ibuprofen had worn off (the bottle was in the kitchen, which was sooooo far away...), she was dead sober (her booze was also in her kitchen, which was SO FAR AWAY!), and she was down to her last three tampons. So she was going to have to drag her ass to the store at some point soon or she'd have even bigger problems. Plus, in addition to the terrible spasms wracking her abdomen, she now had a deep chill coming from the same area. And on her thighs. Which any woman could tell Natsu (it was obvious he was behind the cold sensation somehow) wouldn't help the problem. Heat. Heat was the answer dammit. But the idiot was clearly the culprit. So, she uncurled from her tight ball of self-preservation just enough to reach down from her bed and grab a pen.

 _Will you cut it out with the ice already?!_ She wrote on their favorite message board. He replied almost immediately.

 **OH, so now you can fucking respond to me. the ice isn't going anywhere. its the only thing keeping me from blowing my brains out right now.**

 _For the love of all the fucking gods, it's not actually helping! Ask any girl ANYWHERE! Heat will do so much more! And not make me feel like I'm a human popsicle! You asshole!_

 **HEY! no calling me fucking names! I'm not the one who woke YOU up at three o'clock in the FUCKING MORNING! and its not like its my body doing this to you, is it? you're the one to blame for all this shit.**

Oh no, he fuckin' didn't.

 _Excuse me?! Did you really just fucking write that? Oh wait, yeah YOU DID! You are the biggest fucking ASSHOLE I've ever met! You think I'm doing this on PURPOSE?! You think I'm just sitting over here having a great laugh over it all? I've had to deal with this shit since I was 12! So you've had to deal with your first period. Big fucking whoop. And I bet you don't even get the OH SO FUN bleeding part. Must be nice not having a motherfucking WOMB. I expected fucking better from you._

 **why?! because I don't understand what the fuck is happening? because I feel like my balls are fucking trying to kill me? why? WHY the fuck would I be handling this any better than you?!**

 _BECAUSE I THOUGHT YOU WERE FUCKING NICE! I guess I was wrong. Don't talk to me. I'm fucking done with you today._

Lucy threw her pen across the room and stayed curled into a ball for another ten minutes before getting up to take more pain meds and get her electric heating pad. If she had to get to the store to buy more tampons before it closed, she was going to need to start prepping now. Then she could just come home and roll up into a ball again until morning. Thankfully she didn't have to work, and she was skipping her evening class today.

Because fuck Lifetime Fitness. And boys who were fucking assholes.

* * *

Natsu just sat there, with vegetables growing steadily squishier in their bag on his lap, and stared numbly at his arm. It was his third time re-reading it, and he still couldn't figure out what the fuck he'd been thinking. It had seemed like a perfectly reasonable reaction when he'd done it. And he was still pretty pissed at her. But even he could see he had crossed the line. In the clusterfuck of awfulness that had been his day, he had kind of forgotten that she was going through the same shit he was.

And he had fucking blamed her for it. That was a dick move. Even for him.

But she still shouldn't have fucking lost it. Or ignored him all day. That was totally worse.

And he was immediately angry again.

What the fuck was going on?! Why couldn't he figure out how to feel?! How did girls DO this?

He took the bag of soggy broccoli off his lap and threw it across the room into the trash, preparing to get up and pilfer something else from the house freezer, when a blanket of soothing warmth spread over his abdomen. After the biting cold on his crotch for the last several hours, it felt like heaven.

And then, after a few minutes of it, his nuts fucking thawed out too. But the excruciating pain didn't come back. It was soothed away by the heat to a dull ache. Annoying, but completely bearable. He sighed in relief, laying back down on his couch and curling up under the comforter he had dragged down from his bed.

He was moments away from blessed sleep when the tears started rolling slowly out of his eyes. He blinked slowly and rolled onto his back, immediately wide awake. A knot that had nothing to do with Lucy's monthly visitor found its way under his ribs and ached.

He stared down at his arm.

She thought he was nice.

And he had made her cry.

He _was_ an asshole.

* * *

Levy had been at it for more than three hours, and she hadn't made any significant progress.

Following her first triumphant vision, she had managed to summon visions of herself and Gajeel or Lucy in every time period from the stone age to the 1930s, but she hadn't been able to summon the same image twice to save her life. And for some reason, she hadn't been able to summon any visions from her time with Black Steel at all. It was like her brain was determined to keep her away from what she desperately wanted to see.

Levy dropped her head into her hands, frustrated at her failure. She wasn't used to failing. Everything else was so easy, so why couldn't this be?!

"Why can't I make it work?" she huffed at her knees. It was Ultear who answered.

"Levy, I told you. The ability to control visions is rare. You're doing really well. Hell, the fact you were able to remain lucid through every single vision you summoned today is insanely impressive! It's not your fault that I don't know how to guide you." Levy immediately shook her head.

"No, don't say that. You've been really helpful. Really. The meditation stuff has really been helping. And your ability to see auras has added so much to the research. I know so much more than I did when I got here!" she exclaimed with more energy than she felt and a tired smile.

"Well, I'm glad I could help as much as I did then. And it's really been a privilege getting to work with you at all. You natural talent is truly astounding. But I'm not too proud to admit you need better guidance. And there is only one person I know who has the skill to work with your abilities." Ultear picked up her tea, now gone cold, and held up a hand to stymie Levy's attempt to argue. "I just don't have the skills you're looking for. Luckily for you, the woman who can help you lives right here in Magnolia. I've never heard of anyone being able to completely control the visions they receive, like you want to, but if anyone can achieve such a result, even partially so, it will be Porlyusica."

Levy nodded. "Alright. When can I meet her?"

"Well, I'll give her a call now and we'll see," Ultear said with a wry smile.

While Ultear made the call where he phone was plugged-in in the kitchen, Levy scanned her surroundings, a little unnerved to discover the cat had returned and was sitting on the end table next to her, staring blankly at her. It made her jump in her seat. Millianna, having finally caught her attention, meowed and rubbed her face on Levy's shoulder, pausing halfway through the action to sniff at her curiously.

"You're smelling Panther on me, I bet," Levy said conversationally to the cat. "Somehow he always gets fur all over everything I own. Even if I barely touch him. I think it's his way of marking me. Thank god Gajeel doesn't let him in the-SHIT!" Levy leapt up, grabbing her bag and pulling out her phone to check the time. Well fuck. She was supposed to be at Black Steel half an hour ago. Gajeel was not going to be happy. Why hadn't he called her? Or texted?! She checked her messages. Oh. Because he had. Dammit.

She scuttled to the door, almost running into Ultear as she made her way back from the kitchen.

"Leaving?" she asked rhetorically. Anyone could see Levy was getting the hell out of dodge.

"I'm late for work! I wasn't watching the time. Did you find out when she's available?" Levy gasped as Ultear opened the door for her.

"She'll be back in town next week and she's expecting you on Tuesday at two if that works for you." Levy stepped out onto the porch, walking backward to hear Ultear's response.

"Perfect! Text me the address! Thank you so much for everything! I'll let you know how it goes!" she yelled behind her taking off in a sprint.

"You better!" Ultear yelled back, though the blunette was already far enough away that all she could do was wave. "You poor thing. You have no idea what you're in for," she said in a softer tone, turning to look at the cat that had come out onto the porch with her. "Alright Milli, let's get you some food, huh?"

"Nyah!" Millianna meowed back at her. It was about freaking time.

* * *

Lucy trudged through the aisles of her local drug store with her eyes half closed. If only her heating pad was portable. She had felt so much better after a good cry and an hour or so with her precious appliance. But suddenly her heart rate was spiking and she felt almost too warm. Maybe she was getting sick on top of everything. Or getting hot flashes now. Just fucking great.

She looked down at her arm for the forty-seventh time since he had last written to her. She wasn't sure if he was respecting her wishes, or still pissed at her. He hadn't said anything when she cried. She had been grateful at the time, happy to pretend that she had real privacy again to cry without anyone knowing. But it was a far cry from the hug he had arranged with Gray that one time. A hug would have been kind of nice.

She made her way to the feminine hygiene aisle and grabbed her usual brand. Staring dumbly at it, without really seeing it, she tried not to think about Natsu. And failed.

Finally breaking down, she tucked the package under her arm and pulled her phone out of her hoodie pocket. She jotted off a quick message to Gray.

 _Hey, how's Natsu doing? He sounded pretty bad earlier._

Lucy browsed the candy aisle while she waited for him to reply. And then finally:

 **Don't worry about that big baby. He's fine. Especially after this last hour or so. He finally got some sleep. Jumped right up and ran out to buy a heating pad of all things.**

 _That's good. Thanks._

Lucy smiled down at her phone. Well, at least she had helped him feel better too. Maybe it had made up for the way she yelled at him. That hadn't been very nice of her either.

Finally making the decision to not decide, she grabbed every king sized candy bar she had been considering and went to check out, paying for her goods and walking with a little more of her usual bounce as she bit into a Snickers and headed out of the store.

* * *

Natsu froze with the boxed heating pad clutched in his hands as a familiar blonde slumped past his aisle, only ten or so feet from him. His heartbeat sped up as he stood there, staring at the place she had been only moments before, and he felt his skin flush.

Holy shit. She was there. Right. There.

Tucking his soon-to-be new appliance under his arm, he headed the opposite direction from where he'd seen her and peeked around the corner. She was nowhere in sight.

On a hunch, he pinpointed the lady stuff and condom aisle and circled around to the far end of it, stealthily grabbing a beanie and sunglasses from a display along the way. Properly attired in his disguise, he looked around the corner and saw her staring at a package in her hand for way longer than it should take to read. He tilted his head in confusion. What the fuck was she doing?

Suddenly, she reached for her pocket, the gesture scaring him back a few inches to hide at the end of the aisle. He crept out again though in a few seconds, seeing her on her phone. Who was she texting? She looked so...sad, in her baggy sweatpants and fancy shoes. Was that a thing now? Natsu tried for a second to remember if he had seen any other girls wearing anything similar.

Huh. It had been a while since he'd really paid attention to what girls were wearing…

Natsu looked up and was startled to discover Lucy was gone. He crept slowly across the aisles until he found her again in the candy aisle. She spent a good minute and a half picking up different chocolate bars and putting them back. The blonde looked so tired and _sad_ as she stared at the various candies. She checked her phone every few seconds, obviously waiting for a response. Natsu double checked his own phone, on the vain hope that maybe she was trying to get ahold of him, but had no waiting messages, so he went back to watching her. He stood staring blatantly now, realizing she was dead to the world, and trying to work up the courage to just go up and hug her. She really looked like she needed a hug.

The only problem was, she probably wouldn't welcome one from him right now. And she'd freak out that they were even in the same room. Natsu sighed as his eyes roamed her figure.

Even unattainable, grungy, and sad, she was still the most beautiful woman he'd ever seen. He absentmindedly took off the sunglasses he'd picked up, eager to see her without the dark filter and tags hanging in his line of sight. He set them on a shelf nearby just as her phone went off and she eagerly checked it.

Whoever she was texting must have said what she wanted to hear, because like the sun bursting out from behind stormclouds, a small smile lit up her face, taking her from beautiful to breathtakingly gorgeous. Her shoulders straightened and she stood at her full height. Seeming to finally make a snack decision, she took a handful of candy and walked away from him to the registers, her step lighter than it had been coming in.

It hurt his heart to watch her walk out of the store as he pulled the beanie off and followed her path, stepping out of the aisle into plain view as she walked out of the store. Because while he felt better knowing she was smiling, it should have been him making her smile.

Hell, it should have been him running to the store for her, buying embarrassing things so that she could stay home in bed with her heating pad and keep the sheets warm for him so they could take a nap together when he got back. If it weren't for her douche of a dad, he might at least be drinking coffee and griping about their cramps together with her.

The most mystifying question, though, was when that had become all he wanted to do?

Trudging up to the counter, he set his heating pad on the counter for the checkout guy without even looking, his eyes locked on the blonde ponytail swinging across her back as she walked across the parking lot.

"That is one hot piece of ass, right? But dude, trust me, now is not the time to try to hit that. She is packing some serious hormones right now," the checkout guy commented as he shoved the box unnecessarily into a plastic bag. "Girls are such bitches during their time of the month. It's not even that bad and they act like they're fucking dying, am I right?"

Natsu glared at the guy he would probably have agreed with a day ago and handed him a twenty.

"They're in pain, you douche. How about a little fucking empathy?"

The checkout guy clammed up. Natsu grabbed his change and his bag off the counter and stalked out the doors without another word.

What a fucking asshole.

* * *

 **Padmasana-yoga pose also known as the lotus position**

 **Himation- the actual name for a Greek draped garment, often mistaken for a toga (not gonna lie, HUGE pet peeve of mine). The Greeks wore a large rectangular piece of fabric draped over one shoulder and held on with a pin, called a fibula. The Romans wore a large oval shaped piece of fabric called a toga draped over one shoulder and held on with gravity...which didn't work well. Chalk one up to the Greeks and stop the ignorance! The more you know, right?**

" **I have a feeling we're not in Kansas anymore."-the original quote from the novel** _ **The Wizard of Oz**_ **by L. Frank Baum. I know you ALL knew what it was from, but that little grammatical Nazi inside of me just had to cite the direct quotation from it's primary source. Yeah, I'm a nerd. *scoffs* like you hadn't already figured that out.**

 **Anthropomorphized-just in case someone out there doesn't know this one, it's when you assign human traits to that which is not human, usually animals, gods, or objects. The Lion King is an example of anthropomorphized animals.**

 **Link, start!- SAO reference in case you didn't get it. Levy is sort of treating her flashbacks like virtual reality**


	26. Welcome Home-Tuesday

**Alright, I'm calling it. This chapter hasn't been beta'd, but I'll come back and fix stuff later!**

 **This chapter is dedicated to Sherlollylover17 (who reviews religiously, to my everlasting joy), and got accepted into college and enrolled in classes last week! I love talking with you guys when you review and hearing about your lives. It's always a joy to hear that reading my little ol' story gets to be the icing on cake-news like that! Congratulations again Sherlollylover17!**

* * *

Natsu left the drugstore and turned towards Fairy Tail, stopping in his tracks as he noticed Lucy heading the same direction up ahead of him. He swallowed the urge to call out to her and lagged behind a few more steps, putting distance between them, but still monitoring her path. As shitty as he still felt, he didn't feel like he could pass up this opportunity.

She was probably headed home, and he might not get another chance for a while to find out where she lived. She already knew everything about him...so it was only fair! How was he supposed to return the favor of the nice little things she did for him if he didn't know where to send her flowers, or Chinese takeout (an infinitely better gift, in his opinion). At least that was what he was telling himself.

Which was how Natsu ended up justifying stalking Lucy all the way to Fairy Hills apartments.

But halfway there, he noticed something. Or rather, someone.

And that someone was also not so discreetly following Lucy.

At first, he thought it was just a coincidence, that the long blonde-haired wanna-be Fabio kept apace down the same sidewalk in between him and Lucy. He had actually been relieved for a block or two to have someone to make his stalking a little less obvious. But then the man had turned with Lucy. And then turned again, his ponytail waving behind him. So Natsu went into ninja mode, following the follower as he blatantly paced behind Lucy. He hid behind trees and parked cars, staying just close enough to see both him and Lucy and where they were going.

He behavior was suspicious, but it _could_ all still be a coincidence. The guy wasn't even trying to hide the fact he was there. Maybe he lived in the same apartment building or something.

But they had all gotten to Fairy Hills (holy shit, he wondered if she knew Erza!), and only Lucy had entered. Leaning casually against the building next door, Natsu observed the blonde dude assume a similar pose and pull out a cell phone. He wished he had some kind of superhuman hearing for a second, trying to figure out from the shape of the guy's lips what he was saying. But he had always been shit at lip reading. He huffed in frustration and looked away, keeping the man in his peripheral vision as he settled in to wait.

Because no matter how awful he felt, he wasn't going to leave Lucy alone with that guy around. She could come back out at any moment. He pulled his lighter from his pocket and started playing with it, dropping his purchase on the ground beside him.

Everything about that guy had Natsu's hackles rising. He resisted the urge to confront him. His usual way of handling shit probably wouldn't help all that much, and the dull ache in his abdomen was returning. The last thing he needed was for all the pain in his poor balls to return the minute he threw the first punch. He resisted the urge to cup himself as he rememberd it and looked longingly at the heating pad for a moment.

Plus, if he got into a fight, Lucy would get suspicious. He ran a hand through his hair in frustration. But the apprehension he felt kept telling him that something was definitely not right with the situation.

Who the fuck was following Lucy?

And why?

He couldn't stand here leaning on a building forever. The guy would eventually notice him. He dug around in his pocket again, grabbing his phone. Just as he went to text Lucy, heat blanketed over him and he sighed in relief. Thank the gods for Lucy and her magical heating pad.

He typed in his message with apprehension. She hadn't wanted to talk to him...but this was important right? Wavering for only a second more, he hit send.

* * *

Levy gasped for breath as she burst through the front door of Black Steel, luckily entering an empty front room. Hopefully Gajeel hadn't had to take care of too many customers in her absence.

A minute later, Gajeel peeked his head out of the doorway, setting the curtain of steel ball bearings swinging.

"Everything alright, Shrimp?" he questioned, eyebrows dropping in concern. "You don't do late. Unless you're researching something."

"I'm...so...sorry...Gajeel!" she huffed out as she dropped her book-laden bag behind the counter and stood panting with her hands on her knees. When she was finally able to breathe again she stood up and explained, "I was with Ultear, learning about the flashbacks. I made a lot of progress, but I lost track of time. I didn't think I'd be there for more than three hours!" She gave him a little guilty smile, but he waved away her late arrival, his focus on something else she said.

"Levy, I _told_ you I didn't like you meddling in this stuff too deep. That's what got us into this whole thing to begin with! We don't need to know anything about my past life, or whatever. That's over and done with. Whatever bastard I was then, isn't who I am now, so there's no reason to put yourself through more shit for my shitty soul." Levy wasn't sure who he was trying to convince more: her or himself.

"Gajeel, we're going to keep having these flashbacks, whether we want them or not! Me, you, Lucy, N-her soulmate. Wouldn't it be better if one of us could control them? Then at least we would know the full story, and stop jumping to conclusions!" Gajeel stepped closer and glared down at her, thankfully not noticing her near slip up. Lucy didn't want him to know that his good friend was her soulmate. Levy thought it was just another way to avoid accepting her fate, but that was Lucy's business. She didn't have the right to spill that to Gajeel.

"I wasn't the one jumping to conclusions! I killed Lucy in that life.. She was right fucking there, and I shot her. Like she meant fucking nothing. There was no mystery to it. I know what I did it, and I know the fucking stupid reason that I did it. How will knowing what happened next make any difference?" Gajeel's words ignited fury in Levy.

"Because your soul is in danger Gajeel! That has to be what the black in my aura is showing! Ultear said it was doing all kinds of weird things today, but it isn't gone! It's still there, popping out all over the place when I least expect it! And I want to know _why_! You were suspected of multiple homicides Gajeel! I want to know the truth!" she screeched, lifting herself onto her tiptoes as he glowered over her. It made very little difference.

"WHY?! It won't change anything. What if I did those things? Killed those people? What then? Isn't it better not to know? To have the chance that I wasn't a complete monster, instead of just the heartless bastard I _know_ I was? Dammit Levy. What if you find out and can't stand to look at me? WHAT THEN?" Levy shrank away from her boyfriend as he got louder and louder, ending his tirade with a fist punched into the stainless steel countertop. For the first time, she thought he may have chosen that particular material for more than aesthetic value. The whole counter shook with the force behind his blow. But she didn't back down from her position. More knowledge was always better. Always. She tried adopting a less belligerent tone.

"Gajeel...I can't just let this go. It's important. We still don't know why this is happening to us in the first place. What if seeing our past lives is vital for some reason? What if it's like that movie we saw last week, and this is all happening to warn us that there is something coming? Like the meteor in the movie? And we just let it happen, because none of us bothered to investigate what was happening! I don't care what we find out. Because I'm with _you_. The _now_ you, not the _then_ you, and you aren't responsible for what _then_ you did. But if your soul really is tainted somehow, and there's a way to redeem it, I want to know that too. We're destined to find each other time and time again. That much is clear. I've saw moments from almost every period in history you can imagine this afternoon, and every time we show up, we're together, with the exception of our last life, which I can't seem to see again! If this darkness means something for our future lives, because of what happened in that past, then I want to know what it is!"

Gajeel opened his mouth to respond, but the guitar riff signalled the door opening, and he clenched his jaw shut again instead. Levy knew their conversation wasn't over, but she turned to the man who had entered the shop and smiled brightly. Gajeel followed suit. They had a lot more to discuss later, but right then, they both knew they had work to do. But they both knew the conversation wasn't over.

* * *

Gray set down his phone, finishing up his texting conversation with Lucy, and turned back to the massive float he was working on touching up. Half the house was working on the hulking thing at the moment. Which, in Gray's opinion, was a huge mistake. If Jet and Droy fighting over a wet paint brush or Simon trying to punch Mystogan in the face again didn't fuck up the float, then surely Bacchus drunkenly falling off the tower would. There wasn't much even Reedus could do to fix a broken tower. Who had decided it was a good idea to let him up there in the first place?

Thankfully, a Fairy Tail house class of yesteryear had built the base for the float years prior, when they had members who actually knew what they were fucking doing. It was your basic medieval castle with a turret, built on a trailer, stable enough to hold people, and painted in layer upon layer of paint over the years. Though a beautiful flowering vine spiraling up the turret had survived many a repaint. (It was like an unspoken house rule: No one painted over the pretty float flowers.)

Every year they did the same basic thing, changing it up in little ways to keep it fresh, because...honestly, they had backed themselves into a corner with that when they named the frat.

So they dressed up a bunch of members as the Disney princes and even borrowed horses to ride next to the float. You would think that it would be hard to get a group of guys who hated wearing formal wear to force a chosen few into playing cartoon douches for the day, but the competition to be one of the chosen princes was actually fierce.

Which could have had something to do with the fact that each of those 'chosen few' were guaranteed to get laid. Pretty much as many times as they wanted. Say whatever about Disney's productions and their thinly veiled misogyny, chicks fucking ate that shit up. And all of them had secret fantasies about being swept away by their favorite prince.

Prince Eric was a particular favorite. One that Gray had played the last two years running. It paid to have naturally black hair. If Loke didn't already have the corner on playing Prince Adam (AKA The Beast) the ginger would have dyed his hair and tried to kick Gray out of the position since year one. As it was, he was pretty happy with the other favorite of the group. Prince Charming, and Prince Florian (Snow White's guy) switched up every year, but Bacchus had proudly held the role of Mulan's Li Shang for more years than anyone remembered. Sometimes, they sort of forgot that Bacchus was supposed to be a student, he'd been there so long…Gray tried for a minute to remember what he was supposed to be studying...nope. No clue.

Also, since Laxus was back in the house again, he'd be claiming his usual spot as Hercules. Sure, he wasn't technically a prince, but if they had a guy who drew that much attention shirtless...why the fuck not? This was all just a huge advertisement to find them all on Tinder later anyway.

Pretty much every upperclassman in the house, except one, had donned the cape and boots at some point: Natsu Dragneel. There were no pink-haired princes in Disney, and he refused to dye it or wear a wig. (Despite the fact that a small but vocal underground fan club of the pinkette's had sent politely fanatical requests for him every year after his wild freshman days.) Partly because dye combined really oddly with pink hair, always making it not quite the right color, and partly because he'd been trying to get them to include a dragon as part of the float for years, unsuccessfully. If he hadn't accidentally burned down the shed his freshman year showing them the Fire Dragon Roar, it probably would have happened. But when he tried as a sophomore it had been turned down flat. No one wanted to build a new castle.

"Alright boys, how's this?"

Gray looked up to see their new master (she insisted on the change in title from house mother) practicing her wave from the top of the turret. With a female at their disposal this year, they had welcomed Cana with open arms to the float. Plus, dressed as a princess at the top of a tower, maybe they could keep her from wandering off during the parade.

"It's fine Cana, now wanna get your fine ass down here and help us touch up the scuffs maybe?" Gray replied with annoyance in his voice. Cana just smirked down at him.

"No, but don't you want to come up and say hi?" she purred at him. Gray just rolled his eyes, gave her a reluctant smile and got back to work.

"Hey, Gray, where's Natsu? Doesn't he usually help with this part?" Romeo was sponging green paint onto a few stones of the castle to make them look mossy. Gray grinned.

"Flame brain is PMSing. He gets a pass."

The guys just laughed at the insults, assuming it was all a joke. Gray laughed particularly loudly.

Oh, if only they knew the truth.

* * *

Lucy settled into her bed again with a satisfied sigh. The pain had been steadily returning as she walked home from the store, and the heating pad on her belly was already soothing away the worst of it. They really needed to make them battery powered and sew them into a hoodie or something.

She should get on that, she could make millions…

Lucy drifted into a hazy half-sleep of blessed oblivion. Maybe if she just fell asleep now, she could sleep it all away and the Bloody Horror of '17 would be over...until next month at least...

She was jerked out of her almost-sleep by her phone alerting her she had a text message. Thinking that it was probably Gray, which she could respond to later, she ignored it and settled back in.

It went off again a few minutes later. Aggravated, Lucy grabbed her phone and swiped it open.

He heartbeats doubled when she saw she had two messages from Natsu. Was he just going to be mean again, though? She also had a message from Levy, that she must have missed. She clicked on that one first.

 _ **Hey Lu! I've found out some crazy things about the flashbacks! You free tomorrow to talk?**_

Lucy quickly jotted off an affirmative and got to the messages she really wanted to read. She flipped over to Natsu and devoured the few words he'd written.

 **hey Luce. I'm sorry that I said those things. it wasn't fair to you. think you can forgive me? not talking to you totally sucks.**

 **r u there?**

As she was reading the second one, a third one popped up.

 **ok I get it. I'll stop bugging you. I hope you feel better soon. for both our sakes.** Lucy quickly scrambled to reply.

 _I'm here! Sorry, I was falling asleep._ She paused mid-message, trying to figure out what to say from there. Eventually, she just gave up and sent the message.

 **oh, well, hi there... r u feeling any better?**

Natsu cringed to himself. Gods that was dumb. Like she didn't know that he could tell how she was feeling already.

 _Yeah, the heat helps. Thank you for the apology, btw. I really appreciate it. Trust me, if I could help it, I would not be inflicting this on you. I shouldn't have called you an asshole._ He had deserved it, but she had been raised better than that. Ladies did not call people names.

 **naw, I was totally being an asshole.**

Lucy smiled a little. It felt better that he at least admitted it. It made her generous.

 _Me too. Lol_

Natsu responded with an appropriate emoji and ruminated on how to ask her what he really wanted to know. He glanced up again at the blonde dude standing in front of her building. He was doing something on his phone too, but otherwise hadn't moved.

 **hey Luce? do you know a guy with long blonde hair, in good shape, sorta creepy? I think I overheard him asking someone about you…** Natsu internally patted himself on the back for finding a way to bring him up without giving away the fact he had seen and followed her. This ninja thing really wasn't that hard. Nin-nin asshole.

 _Huh, weird. It sounds like the guy in all my classes. Total creep. Always staring at me. Did the other person tell him anything?_ Natsu's blood ran cold for a second. He was in all of her classes? What the hell! Who was this guy?

 **naw, they didn't say anything. but he sounded like the creepy stalker type that would follow you home or something, so I thought I'd let you know...** Natsu cringed at his lie. Like he was any better at the moment.

 _Well,_ that's _not creepy or anything...yuck. thanks for the heads up though, I'll keep an eye out._ Lucy shivered despite the heat spreading steadily through her. Curious, she rolled out of bed, careful not to trip over the extension cord attached to her sanity's salvation and sidled up to the window to look out.

All she could see were the tops of trees, completely obscuring her view of the ground below. But for reason she had this terrible feeling like she was being watched. Feeling a tingle of fear crawl up her spine, she leapt back into bed and curled up under the blankets, making herself as small as possible. The adrenaline of her sudden unexplained panic spiked her heart rate into overtime. Natsu's response was immediate. Her phone rang loudly, breaking up her cycle of panic slightly. She grabbed at the phone, almost dropping it before getting it under the blankets now pulled over her head.

"Hello?" she whispered.

"Lucy, what's wrong? Why are you freaking out?!" he said immediately, his voice hushed a bit as he fervently questioned her.

"I'm fine. Really, Natsu. I'm just being silly," Lucy replied, feeling the irrational panic dissipate a bit as she admitted it to herself.

"Well, something set you off. Your heart feels like you're racing Erza to a Heart Kreuz sale."

Lucy laughed a bit at that.

"And I'd probably be losing, if the rumors about her are true. No, Natsu, it's really fine. Just a stupid irrational thing….like when you're going up stairs alone in the dark and you suddenly feel like it will swallow you up if you don't run for all you're worth? That. I just got the creepiest feeling like someone was watching me."

"I hate that feeling. Used to happen to me all the time when Igneel was on tour," Natsu said wearily, his lack of sleep finally getting to him. He glared tiredly at the blonde man, sure that he was responsible for Lucy's sudden panic. "Hey, Luce, you going anywhere else tonight? Or are you home for the night?"

"Definitely home. If I ever have to move again it will be too soon."

Natsu chuckled wryly with her. Gods did he understand that sentiment now. That morning, he was pretty sure he would just be living on their couch for the rest of his life. He scrubbed the back of his head with his hand roughly, trying to shake off the memory of his aching balls. That shit was no fucking joke.

Picking up his heating pad box, he started to move away from Fairy Hills. If Lucy was staying in, she'd be ok tonight. Plus, if the guy had been in all her classes, then this wasn't anything new. It could wait another day. Until Natsu could get some decent sleep and think over what the fuck it all meant. He started off away from the apartment complex, with a last piercing look at the mysterious stalker dude.

"Good." His heartfelt response resonated with Lucy somehow, blanketing her in calm. Like now she felt like she was safe. "Do me a favor and be careful, ok? If the creepy stalker gets to spend time with you before I do, I will be fucking pissed." He finished the sentence with a grin, but the edge of possessiveness below his words sent a thrill through Lucy.

Why was that suddenly a turn-on?! She was all about _not_ being possessed by men, right?

 _Fucking hormones_ , Lucy thought.

"Ok Natsu. I'll stay in my nice warm bed and hermitted away from the world for the night. Fine by me. You should join me," she sighed, not really paying attention to what she was saying as she consciously worked to relax her rigid muscles little by little so she could actually get to sleep.

"Really?! Say the word and I am there! What's your-" Thankfully Lucy cut him off before he could ask for her apartment number. Fuck. It would have been a bit hard to explain how he already knew she lived at Fairy Hills.

"HEY! That's not what I meant! Go home and cuddle up in your own bed! YOUR bed! That's all I meant. Geez, you never quit do you?"

In a full warm baritone, Natsu laughed at her sudden ire, getting used to the shifting mood swings of the day. By the end of the week he'd have this whole period thing down pat. It was getting to the point where he could almost sense when she was about to flip emotions again.

"I was kidding Luce. I know, I know. You want to wait. I get it." He paused for a second, before continuing on a little softer and warmer, the weariness of his tone melting away a little as he paused to hold the phone a little closer to his mouth. "But I am totally serious. The minute you're ready, I'm there." He felt her lips curve into a smile. Which triggered one of his own.

"Fair enough," she replied lightly and a little breathlessly, desperately trying to inject some levity into the oddly heated moment before her heart, racing for a whole new reason, gave her away. "I'll keep you updated, you perv." He laughed at her again.

"You better. I call first perving rights as of this moment! No one shall perv-out on Lucy before I do!" he declared to the sky, gaining odd looks from a couple walking down the sidewalk on the other side of the street. He just grinned and waved at them. Totally worth it for Lucy's reaction.

"THAT WASN'T WHAT I MEANT! Aaaaahhhh! You are so frustrating. It's like trying to reason with a child. You're just a big kid aren't you?!"

"In that I bring joy and humor into your life? Why yes, that does describe me pretty well doesn't it? Although I can think of a few parts of me that are definitely not child-sized." Natsu bit his lip after that one. He really should stop. She was still simmering on the edge of their fight from before. And he only knew some of the buttons not to push so far. But listening to her growl at him in frustration was almost worth it. It was so fucking cute.

"Gggggggrrrrrrrr, Natsu! What the hell?! That was not a compliment! And that is not an appropriate thing to say to a lady!" Lucy cringed as she realized she sounded just like Miss Aquarius. Great, now she was saying them out loud again.

Lucy's voice was angry as she screeched at him, but her pounding heart couldn't lie, Natsu decided. He was definitely getting to her. In a good way.

"Not appropriate for who to say to a lady? But I'm just a big kid, remember? Kids get away with saying all kinds of inappropriate things! Maybe we should schedule a playdate?" He cut off her sputtering protests. "Long distance obviously, since you're still insisting on keeping this glorified restraining order on me. Or maybe it's more of a leash. That's it! I'm not a kid, I'm just a big 'ol puppy in disguise! Won't you pet me, Lady Lucy?" Natsu almost slapped a hand over his mouth. What the fuck did he just say? It was like he had no control over himself anymore. With an internal groan he turned the corner to round on Fairy Tail and tried not to die of mortification. Maybe he didn't have this whole hormones thing figured out so well. It was like his mouth had a mind of its own, and it completely bypassed his own.

But he was instantly distracted by a hot flush crawling up her cheeks and across her chest. And he felt her getting slightly...aroused. He quirked an eyebrow. He knew that feeling well from her. They did shower together everyday...hehe. Maybe silly innuendos were weirdly her thing. Or calling her Lady Lucy. Maybe it was the combo. He contemplated this new bit of information as she sputtered and tried to form a sentence.

"Well, I….just...never in my life…I just...um...GODSDAMMIT Natsu! You can't _say_ things like that…"

He grinned at her flustered response.

"Like what? Like...Can I stoke your fire with my red hot poker, Lady Lucy? Or won't you prep my rocket for take off, Lady Lucy?" Natsu busted out the silliest innuendos he could think of, gleeful at her body's obvious response. "Well isn't that an interesting little tidbit, _Lady Lucy_. You are a bit of a freak aren't ya?" he finished, his voice dropping lower as he teased her.

Lucy was simultaneously mortified and weirdly excited. What the hell? She didn't know if it was what he was saying, or the way his voice got sultry as he teased her, but it was majorly turning her on. Was that even normal?! Maybe it wasn't! Maybe that was why he called her a freak! Hesitantly, she tried to answer.

"Gods...I don't know...maybe I am?" she said softly, almost timidly. Was she really some kind of freak? She wouldn't have thought that Natsu would judge her. About anything. Especially given his weird vendetta with his hair, but she supposed if she really was a weirdo sexually maybe he couldn't help it. Maybe she was doomed to scare off any potential partners, even her soulmate! Lucy steadily spiraled as her hormones fueled the fire.

Natsu listened to the change in her tone, confused. One minute they were heating things up ina direction he could get behind, and the next she was shrinking away. His gaze dropped to the sidewalk disappearing under his feet as he focused all of his attention on her. She was still flushed, but she had stopped rubbing her thighs together and seemed to be trembling.

"Lucy? What's wrong? I was only teasing. Everybody's got their kinks right?"

"They do?" Lucy questioned having a huge moment of self-doubt. It wasn't exactly something Miss Aquarius or any of her other tutors had taught her. Why hadn't she done more research into this when they started doing...whatever it was they were doing? Fooling around? Why did she care this much?! Suddenly she felt like crying. What if he really thought she was a freak?! What was normal for a person sexually?! Why hadn't she thought of this before?! She scrambled to get to her computer to look it up, but abandoned the idea when she got to the end of her extension cord.

Fuck it. Nothing was worth leaving the heat behind.

"Of course they do. Shit, LUCY! No crying remember? Did you actually think I was making fun of you? Gods, why would I do that to you?" For a second, Natsu was angry, the irrational wave of emotion rearing up in him. Wait, what the fuck was he mad about? That she doubted him? This whole too many emotions thing was driving him nuts! "Luce, I'm trying to tell you I think it's hot, dammit!"

"Wait...really?" Lucy felt the tears prickling at the back of her eyes subside a bit.

"Fuck yes. I _am_ a guy, last time I checked," he said like that explained everything.

"What's that got to do with it?" Lucy automatically responded. Natsu wasn't sure what to say to that.

"Geez, how sheltered were you growing up? One of these days, you've got to tell me your story. You owe me some deep dark secrets. But yeah...just watching a girl get turned on will pretty much do it for most guys. If we're causing it? Shit, that's even harder to resist...and there are a lot weirder kinks than a little submissive talk. Trust me." He cringed a bit remembering some of the truly weird things he'd done with girls. He'd been totally into whatever at the time, because, duh, horny girl in his bed, but there were some experiences that did not hold up after the fact. Like the one girl with the… He was jerked out of his thoughts by Lucy's next question though.

"So, um, what are _your_ kinks then?" Fuck. Now she was biting her lip too. He practically groaned. She didn't even realize she was fulfilling one of his now. He had a real thing for biting. And the whole feeling her body through his body just made everything more...sensitive. This was not a good conversation to have while trying to walk down a public sidewalk. Thank the gods he was almost home. He lifted his slightly blurry dilated eyes to look instinctually for Fairy Tail and froze.

There were billows of smoke rising from where his fraternity house would be.

"Shit, Lucy? I've got to go. I'm pretty sure my house is on fire!"

"WHAT?!"

Natsu didn't hear what else she had to say, pulling the phone from his ear and running the rest of the way. How had he not noticed the smell of smoke heavy on the air?

He skidded to a stop, breathing hard at the end of their driveway, joining the crowd of his frat brothers watching the conflagration in front of them.

"What...the fuck...did you guys...DO?!" he gasped, staring at the column of flames shooting into the sky. As one, without taking their eyes off the towering inferno, the members of Fairy Tail pointed at Romeo Conbolt, whose face had turned the unappetizing color of dirty snow. "Romeo? You did this?"

Romeo turned numbly at Natsu's words and nodded, swiftly returning his gaze to the blaze.

"In retrospect," came a voice from behind Natsu, "we probably shouldn't have used oil paint all those years...and left the paint cans in the tower. This shit was just waiting to happen." Gray stepped up next to Natsu and went to tuck his hands in his pockets...remembering at the last minute that he wasn't wearing anything with pockets. He had stripped out of his jeans and shirt early on. It was too damn hot for that shit. Noticing this, but unfazed at this point, Natsu just turned back to watch the beautiful fire consuming the castle of Fairy Tail, the pretty flowery vine taken over my blackened ash and soot.

"Stripper."

"PMS Victim."

"...touche."

At least they hadn't put the flags back on yet. He could see the colorful embroidered fabric, a gift from an alum some years ago, stacked far away from the flames. Well, that was something. Poor Romeo. He clearly felt terrible. It was probably worse for him because his father had helped build the thing all those years ago.

But really, in the end, it wasn't that big a deal. It wasn't like they all hadn't done shit just as bad at one time or another. No need to be gloomy.

"Hey, Romeo, ya know what we need?" Natsu barked out. But he didn't get a chance to finish, because Cana beat him to the punch. Running out of the house with the necessary supplies.

"S'mores for all!" she yelled out, laying the spread of ingredients on the hood of someone's car. "And hotdogs for dinner! Come on boys, it isn't everyday we get to celebrate Romeo's first act of arson! Bacchus, the booze, if you please!" And just like that they were having a party. Natsu couldn't help but observe to himself that she fit right in. Cana was clearly a Fairy Tail member at heart, already taking care of her boys. Granted, it would have been better if she could have prevented the fire, but that was probably too much to hope for. New house mother or not, they were still Fairy Tail.

The random neighbors who, having gotten used to Fairy Tail's antics, had come out to see what was going on _now_ , grabbed a stick from Droy, who was whittling down branches off a tree, and started roasting. It only took moments before Romeo had been forced to down several shots and was finally looking a normal color.

Gray and Natsu just kept their places, enjoying the heat on their faces and the cool fall breeze at their backs.

"Welcome home." Gray deadpanned.

"Yeah, thanks." Natsu replied in kind.

"How's Lu-" Gray cut himself off as the blaze quieted it's crackling just enough for him to hear something coming from Natsu's phone, forgotten in his hand. Upon closer examination, they could hear yelling coming from it. Natsu hesitantly put his ear closer to the phone, a good foot away still when he could hear Lucy clearly. Gray grabbed his phone and put it on speaker phone. Suddenly her voice was amplified ten fold.

"-mind me, I'm just sitting here freaking out and worrying if you're dying in a house fire! Don't you worry about it at all! Don't bother to let me know you're ok, or even hang up the phone! With maybe a proper goodbye! Why I like you is beyond me! You're probably burning shit in the fire already! Why I'm attracted to you is beyond me!"

Natsu grinned at Gray, who raised his eyebrows back. Several of the guys waiting to get marshmallows and hot dogs wandered over to see what the ruckus was. Lucy just continued to rant, unknowing of the audience she had gained.

"I mean, there are the muscles and the hair, and the funny things you do, and the sexy body art, but, come on, that doesn't really make up for half the crazy shit you do!"

She was winding down from a yell now, returning to more of a conversational voice. Natsu wondered if she even realized she had reverted to thinking out loud.

"But then, of course there is that amazing thing you do with your fingers which makes up for a hell of a lot…"

A wolf whistle went up at that, gathering more men around the cell phone as the whistler was shushed. Loudly. Yet still Lucy carried on, oblivious to who was listening.

"Gods, I can't imagine what it would be like to actually have sex with you. According to half the junior class it would apparently be mind blowing, so there is that...but that's a-whole-nother thing! How much of a manwhore can a guy be? You've slept with so many-"

A whiff of smoke floated in their direction as she continued to complain about his previous manslut ways, causing Natsu, who had stolen the phone back finally, to cough loudly. Lucy's rant halted in its proverbial tracks. As she felt the cough she heard. Cautiously, she said in a normal tone of voice,

"Natsu? Are you there?"

Natsu leaned forward with a wink and a finger over his lips to the watching men before replying.

"Yep. I've been here a _while_ actually." He could almost hear her swallow through the phone as he tried desperately not to laugh. He would feel bad for her, but honestly, she had gotten herself into this one. And he was having trouble stopping his grin. At least he knew she still liked him as much as he did her. The hair being a pro instead of a con was a surprise though.

"Oh?" she said faintly. "How much did you, um, hear?"

"Weeeeeeelllll…" The men around him doubled over in contained silent laughter, doing their best to remain quiet so they could hear what Lucy was going to say next.

"Oh gods this is so embarrassing!" Many of the men nodded their heads as they laughed. Yeah, that was almost the definition of embarrassing. And she didn't even know they were listening...yet.

Suddenly Romeo walked up, already tipsy from the liquor Cana had plied him with (but generally in much better mood) and glanced at Natsu's phone where it sat on his hand in front of everyone. He quirked an eyebrow.

"Lucy? Who's that? Hey Natsu, is that the chick that you confessed to at the Moon Drip party?"

Two things happened then.

First, the entire male population standing outside of Fairy Tail simultaneously recalled the video they had watched of Natsu confessing on camera, turning on Natsu and dropping their veil of silence.

And, second, as the guys all called out baiting suggestions, and occasionally advice to her, Lucy finally realized she was on speakerphone.

"Hey Natsu, why don't you show her what all those girls are talking about?"

"Yeah, use those _sexy muscles!_ Ahahahahahahaha!"

"Why don't you ever draw us sexy body art Natsu? Don't you love us as much as you _love_ Lucy?"

"Run for the hills Lucy! I don't even know you, but you're definitely too good for him!"

"I can second that!"

"Yeah Lucy, but I'm available for the dance this weekend just in case! Here's my number!"

Lucy sat stunned on her bed, mortified by the situation she found herself in coming to light as dozens of male voices called out their phone numbers to her. So they had all heard basically everything embarrassing she had said. Awesome. Her cheeks burned as the suggestions got more and more graphic. But, she couldn't help but smile. It was pretty funny if she really stepped back and thought about it. Gods, she would never rant to an empty phone again.

She should have just hung up and called him back. But she was so worried he'd do something stupid, like run into a burning building, that she couldn't bear to hang up. And then he had just ignored her...which had pissed her off. And she tended to rant when she was really angry.

Still, lesson learned. Definitely don't confess feelings of any kind to a phone you think no one is listening to. Noted. _Ladies don't make such stupid mistakes!_ She flinched at Aquarius' voice in her head. Huzzah. The voice that could make her feel smaller than small was becoming a regular companion again. Great.

Finally, she heard the ruckus become dim background noise and Natsu's voice came on clear again.

"So...you like my hair?"

Lucy sat in dumb silence for a moment, before deadpanning.

"Out of everything I said, _that's_ what you come away with?"

"Well yeah. It made it pretty high up on the list of sexy things about me, so I'm curious why it's never come up before," he teased her. A little strand of genuine curiosity floating in the question.

"Well...I like your hair, ok? It's unique. And it looks...soft. And it goes nicely with your skin tone. And it's kinda hot, ALRIGHT? Happy? Now why the fuck did you put me on FUCKING SPEAKERPHONE!?" Natsu held his phone away from his ear again, walking another few feet away from the castle burning party behind him, gathering new participants every minute.

"That actually wasn't me. Gray stole my phone, because he could hear it was you yelling at me through the phone and put it on speaker. And then we heard what you were saying and I...sort of wanted to hear what you had to say. You have to admit, it was of particular interest to me, after all. You're not the most open person about yourself, so it was kind of fun to hear you speaking your mind. And then it kind of snowballed from there," he said with an apologetic shrug.

"Then remind me I owe Gray a kick in the shins next time I see him."

"I will _definitely_ do that," Natsu responded, a sharky grin gracing his lips as he turned to watch the stripper trying to get close enough to the flames to roast his marshmallow without any protection on his skin. He had two raw ones shoved into his cheeks already, so Natsu didn't get why he was even bothering...until a girl next to him took the toasted mallow from him. With her teeth. Yeah, that pretty much explained _that_. "That bastard could _use_ a good kick somewhere."

"So, uh, I guess this means you aren't dying, or on fire, huh?" she asked somewhat sheepishly.

Natsu laughed at her insinuation. Lucy always blew things out of proportion. Just because he said his house was on fire, didn't mean he was going to die a fiery death that instant. Although...he probably would have run into the house for Happy even if it was burning...and maybe for his keepsake drawer...ok, yeah, she maybe had some valid concerns.

"Nope. I'm fine," he finally answered her.

"Well, I was really worried. The least you could have done was call me back and tell me you were alright! Or at the very least, stay on the phone with me until you knew what was going on!"

Natsu rolled his eyes.

"Oh yeah, sure, next time I'm about to enter a spontaneously dangerous situation, I'll call and let you know what's going on first." He could hear her humpf and sigh as she realized how ridiculous that was, even if she didn't like his sarcastic tone. If he had that kind of time, it wouldn't really be a particularly dangerous situation. Natsu quickly took on a more sedate tone, and continued, "but seriously though, sorry for worrying you. And for the speakerphone thing. I'm really not earning points with you this week already, am I?" He cringed. Yeah, thinking back, it was a miracle she was still talking to him. Especially since she had a womb reminding her that being a woman fucking sucked once a month.

"Well, you'll just have to make up for it with the rest of the week then. You have five more days left of Homecoming week to make it up to me, after all."

Natsu's grin returned.

"Is that a challenge?"

"Maybe…" Lucy's voice took on a coy tone to it that he hadn't heard her use before. It did uncomfortable things to the growing situation in his pants. So he turned away and headed toward the house/ the privacy of his room before returning the favor.

"Then I'll work to fit it all in, _Lady Lucy_."

"Fuck you Natsu Dragneel." Lucy knew he could feel her core thrumming in response to his shameless innuendo.

"That's the idea Luce, that's the idea."

* * *

 **You guessed it. This chapter begins a series of six, ending on Saturday with the Homecoming game...probably...lol. So many things to watch for...Lucy with a mysterious stalker, FT scrambling to have a new float ready in time, Erza and Mystogan's meeting with Jellal, a dance that has never seen the likes of FT before, some great discoveries for Levy and Lucy, and most of all, Natsu trying to stay on Lucy's good side as they go through everything that hormones and the big bad Crimson Bitch (yep, I'm just making up my own now, deal with it) can throw at them! What's not to love in the Welcome Home arc? It will all come to a head as Operation True Freedom becomes more important than any of them thought probable, so here's hoping they come up with a plan soon! As usual, it will all probably go to hell and end up in a tornado of random encounters and FT shenanigans, but it should at least be as fun to read as it will be to write. Stay-tuned for this exciting, and probably demented six part extravaganza!**

 **For the dazed and confused:**

 **Wanna-be Fabio- for the younguns out there, Fabio is an Italian actor/model known for his long golden locks, which were featured on hundreds (I may be exaggerating a bit...maybe) of romance novel covers of the 80s and 90s. He was also in incredible shape in his prime, so you know, he fits the whole FT average body type! Lol. A young Fabio is sort of what I picture for our mysterious follower...or maybe a younger Ricardo Montalbán in Wrath of Khan, but with Fabio hair. Any guesses on who this creeper could be?**

 **The movie Gajeel and Levy saw, for anyone who is curious-** _ **Your Name**_ **, a fantastic anime movie in which the two characters switch bodies for a clandestine reason, eventually falling in love. I won't say more than that, just go watch it, it's fanfuckingtastic.**


	27. Welcome Home-Wednesday

**Well guys, it only took two chapters, but I've already veered off the plan. To be fair, this one's on Levy. That girl has become a handful. I'll attempt to get back on point, but for now, exciting developments this chapter! I'm still going to try to keep it on the correct days of the week, but...well, we'll see.**

 **Special thanks to BeachBumBabe for the fantastic float idea. I couldn't resist!**

* * *

Gajeel woke up in a terrible mood, the fight he'd had with the petite spitfire he called a girlfriend still fresh in his mind from the night before. Was he the only one in this whole mess who didn't see that messing with forces you didn't understand could lead to trouble? Seemed pretty fucking obvious to him. But then, he was just a _lowly tattoo artist._ He sneered at the thought. Levy hadn't said it straight out, but the more they argued, the closer she inched to bringing it up. He could feel it.

Most of the time, the fact that she not only believed she was the smartest person in the room, but also actually was, was a huge turn-on. It felt good knowing that the little genius was so happy to be with him. Usually. But after the fight the previous night, over her stupid insistence to continue studying "flashing" (yeah, don't worry, he had made fun of her to the fullest at what it sounded like she was doing with her time) he was starting to doubt how much she valued him in their relationship. Plus there was the whole sex thing.

Neither of them had ever addressed waking up naked together with no memory of the night before. Whether that was out of mutual avoidance of the topic completely, or because they were both suddenly ridiculously busy, he didn't know. They'd grabbed a few moments of heavy making out, but hadn't had time for much else. It wasn't so strange considering while Gajeel saw her every day of the week at some point, they were rarely alone with any kind of privacy.

He walked her to class, but usually accompanied by Lucy. They worked together, but business had really picked up with the school year getting rolling and they barely had time for more than basic communication and a quick word over meal breaks.

And he had to give Levy that: she was damn good at her job. Almost every person who set foot through the door now ended up getting some kind of tattoo or piercing. She could sell wool to a sheep, and the sheep would be back for more. Plus she had taken it upon herself to revolutionize his marketing, plastering the campus and local businesses with posters and business cards and setting him up a facebook page and website. He was so booked up now, he was thinking about hiring someone to help him get it all done.

But, while he was ecstatic that his dream/gamble was paying off, his free time was a lot more limited. Which brought him back to the original issue with the shrimp.

He grabbed a navy blue t-shirt off the floor of his room and gave it a sniff. Deeming it good enough, he threw it on, tugged on his jeans and headed over to the blunette's apartment. She didn't have class for at least another hour and he didn't open for another two. If she wasn't going to give up on that idiotic plan of hers, then something had to change. So they were going to fix it. Now.

It was time to solve the godsdamned problem. If only because he was sick of arguing about it.

* * *

Lucy woke up to a blaring alarm, with her dead cell phone stuck to her face and an exceedingly hot stomach.

When had she even fallen asleep?

Reaching over to unplug the heating pad - and thanking any nearby gods that it hadn't burned down her apartment - she rolled out of bed and padded to the bathroom. A slight pain in her ribs reminded her that she had slept with her bra on too, the underwire digging in where she had lain on it wrong.

Stripping out of her clothes from the previous day, she groggily made a beeline for the shower. The habit was so ingrained in her at this point, she hardly noticed what she was doing as she picked up the pen on her bathroom counter and jotted out a quick note.

 _Shower?_

Not waiting for an answer, she turned on the taps, letting the cold water run itself until there was steam rising from behind the curtain. Normally she didn't take such hot showers, but when Bloody Mary came to visit, she found she couldn't get her wash water scalding enough, though as her skin flushed with the heat. She was starting to get antsy when Natsu finally responded.

 **you get up too damned early.**

 _Too bad. I've got class. Don't you?_

 **ug. don't remind me.**

 _You showering or not?_

 **of course I am. like I'm gonna pass up the chance to feel that body covered in soap.** Which was the point at which Natsu woke up enough to realize what he had written.

Fuck. He pretty much had no filter this early, and the flirting they had been doing late into the night before was still heavy on his tongue.

But, it was more than that. He didn't fight the grin that snuck up on his face.

It felt like something had changed between them. He wasn't sure exactly when it had happened. It could have been the flirtatious banter of the night before, or maybe the shared agony of the shittiest Monday of his life, or even the little tickle of warmth in his stomach at her worry over him the previous night, but it was like a wall that had been standing between them had come down and they weren't hiding their clear mutual attraction anymore.

Sure, they'd been jacking off together in the shower for weeks now, but they had never really talked about it. And, to be fair, when it had first started, he hadn't taken it as an emotional thing at all. It was about mutual pleasure and satisfaction. Lots, and _lots_ , of mutual pleasure and satisfaction, but that was it. And, if he went out of his way to hit those spots that made her eyes roll back and her legs muscles tremble, it was a one-sided challenge; an experiment to see where the erogenous zones translated, a point of male pride to push her to the edge without fail.

But now...he wanted his words to get her hot and wet in ways he'd never wanted before. He wanted her mind focused on nothing but him. He wanted to tease and touch...not just because it was convenient, because with _Lucy_ it was irresistible. Knowing that body was naked and waiting sent little zings of electricity straight to his groin. And, most of all, he wanted to distract her from the pain he was already starting to feel return to her belly. After the stupid shit he'd said the day before, he felt like he had a lot of making up to do on behalf of the male population. Natsu could feel her, pressing her palm into the overly hot skin of her stomach, applying pressure to try and lessen the ache, and he wanted to fix it. To make her feel better.

Grabbing his towel, he headed into the bathroom he and Gray shared with Max and Elfman, predictably empty at the early hour. He turned on the water, stripped out of his boxers, and leaned against the sink counter to wait, leaving the light off to avoiding blinding his tired eyes as he absentmindedly rubbed circles into his abdomen directly over the spot he could feel her hand. He closed his eyes, revelling sleepily in the warmth from her hand, the smoothness of her skin beneath her fingers, and the heat of the friction created by his motion.

Her breath filled his lungs, her contented sigh passed through his throat and into his ears. He felt the hand holding the pen grip it firmly and he lifted his arm to read her response.

 _Another one of those things that automatically turns on men?_

Natsu smirked sleepily.

 **I feel pretty confident guessing that all of mankind would be turned on by your naked body covered in suds, but I'm actually just talking about me. you naked and dripping definitely turns me on.** The one track attention he maintained on her in his still sleepy haze brought him an unexpected surprise when he heard her gasp in his ear, followed shortly by her soft whispered curse. "Hot damn."

Natsu's eyes shot open, losing his relaxed state a bit. Had he just heard her? Whispering? Or had he imagined it? Usually things had to be loud, and typically from someone else talking to make it through their bond. And sometimes not even then.

He felt her step into the shower and followed suit, struggling to try and return to that hazy, open feeling he'd had just moments before; the scientist in him demanded he repeat the experiment! His muscle memory took over as he wet his hair, and then pulled his head from the water, luxuriating in the feeling of her fingers dragging along her scalp with the shampoo.

It was a deal they'd worked out early on: she took care of the hair products, he bought the body wash. Why waste money when it transferred and they always showered together anyway? He lifted his hands and massaged in the magically appearing lather in his hair, massaging the skin just above his neck. Grasping loosely onto the hazy blend of steam and sleep, he pressed a little harder, inciting a moan from Lucy. A moan that he _definitely_ heard.

Shit. That was so fucking hot. He had a fleeting thought, questioning whether she could hear him the same way...which reminded him... His eyes fluttered halfway open and he looked down at himself.

Could she actually see him if she wanted? With further thought on the matter, he had come to the conclusion that it had been some kind of a trick (he suspected Gray was at fault), but with this new development, it didn't seem too far out of the realm of possibility. And, the idea of her looking out of his eyes at the water running down his body was kinda thrilling. So maybe…

Maybe he _could_ do it too. Maybe he had just been focusing too hard before. If the secret was this floaty, open feeling, maybe he'd just been going about it the wrong way.

Grabbing his bath poof and, coating it liberally in soap, he sudsed it up and started on his arm, the soap easily erasing their most recent messages as he worked his way up to his shoulder and chest. He closed his eyes, breathing deeply and trying to hold that elusive half-asleep feeling as he pictured her body, pale and practically glowing. The bath poof slid across his weirdly sensitized nipples, making him wince and lose the feeling again. How the fuck did girls _do_ this once a month?! He gritted his teeth.

Why was it so hard to be half asleep? He'd attended half of high school that way. This should be a piece of cake.

So, determined, he tried again, absentmindedly scrubbing his skin in circles until he felt like he could fall asleep any moment, even where he stood under the flow of water. He pulled out the image of Lucy that haunted his favorite dreams, her face flushed, her mouth pulling her bottom lip between her teeth as she stared wantonly at his unclothed chest. It was his favorite image of her, at least in his head. The day they had met at the train station. Then, holding his breath, he slowly opened his eyes.

His vision flickered with light, making him squint automatically. He got a brief glimpse of a glistening white tile wall with a delicate, pale hand braced on it, the fingernails painted a bright pink. Then it flickered out and he was in his dark shower again, his bath pouf dropping from his hand to the floor of the shower. He quickly stooped to pick it up again, starting languidly on one leg, scrubbing at the tan skin of his ankle and muscular calf.

Natsu swallowed his excitement at what he was pretty sure he had just seen, and worked to fall back into the haze. Every time he did it, it got easier, the feeling settling like a familiar weight over him.

He trailed soap up his leg and felt her delicate fingers trailing up her leg in time to his motions. He got to his upper thigh and then switched legs, beginning again at his ankle, scrubbing away lightly and lethargically. He breathed deeply and tried closing his eyes and opening them again slowly. This time, he was met with an orange glow. It took him a second to recognize what he was seeing. Her eyes were closed. Struggling to keep the glow superimposed over the image of his own dark shower, he dropped the poof and grabbed his manhood with a soapy hand, pumping it firmly and swiftly.

Lucy's eyes popped open and flew down her body, a tiny cry of surprise accompanying her gasp. The musical sound in his ears seemed to strengthen his vision as he gazed through her eyes at the swell of her breasts, blocking the rest of her body from his sight. Soapy water slid over her, the spray of the shower coming down at her from an angle, just missing her chest and hitting her warmly in the stomach, easing the ache. "Fuck, Natsu…" she whispered, the sound of his name sending a tingle of satisfaction and adrenaline coursing through him. He lost the image through her eyes, but was sent into a flashback instead of the dark of his own shower.

 _Instead, he found himself in a locker room shower, water streaming onto his back as he blocked the flow from reaching the girl whose mouth was wrapped around his cock._

 _He watched her with hazy eyes, both hands buried in her golden locks, gripping and regripping reflexively as he strove not to thrust into her like his hips were begging him to. It was his first blowjob and he wasn't sure what the rules were, but he didn't want to do anything to prematurely end the unbelievable warmth of his girlfriend's mouth. Curses fell from his lips as she did something awesome with her tongue, his eyes locked on where he could see himself disappearing into her. Thank the gods he had stayed late after practice._

 _As though she could feel him looking at her, she flicked open her eyes and met him gaze for gaze, the wet hair sticking to her bare chest making the perfect backdrop for the erotic sight of her smile as she took him in again and sucked._

 _His mind went completely blank as he felt himself jerk towards her. Words fell out of his mouth again._

" _Ah, fuck, Kay, how are you so damn good at this?"_

 _She hummed an "I don't know" sort of noise and withdrew, pumping him continuously with her hand while she caught her breath and flicked her hair away._

" _I read," she said breathlessly, swiftly returning to the task at hand with her dexterous tongue. The return to her moist chasm was almost too much for him after the break from it. In a few more thrusts he was coming undone._

" _Fuck, Kaylyn, I'm about to come!"_

 _She swiftly pulled off of him and stood up, pumping him with her hand until he let go, releasing harmlessly onto the floor, the substance being washed away by the water now pounding down on them both._

 _They both breathed heavily for a second, just leaning on each other under the spray. Eventually she pulled away a bit, the arm he had wrapped around her holding their waists together still._

" _Sorry...I don't think I can...I don't know, it just seems so gross to swallow…"_

" _Fuck, Kay, do not apologize. That was the greatest thing that has ever happened to me. I wouldn't change a damn thing." He grinned down at her. She ducked her head a bit, but returned the smile, peeking through her wet bangs._

" _Well, ok then," she said playfully with a smirk. "Maybe next time you could show me what all the fuss is about."_

 _Natsu's mouth went dry as he pulled away a bit and raked her body with his eyes, settling on the patch of golden curls between her legs. She'd let him...fuck, she_ wanted _him, to touch her there? Taste her there? The thought of it made his cock sit up a bit and pay attention again._

" _Why not now?" he responded breathlessly, letting his free hand slide over her slick skin until it reached her hip and drifted toward her center. But before he got there, she laughed and stepped away._

" _Because we're already late to meet your parents for dinner. If we stick around here for..._ that _, they're gonna know something's up. Plus I've got to dry my hair. It's not like I just came from practice too."_

" _Fuck, you're right," he replied, the post-orgasmic haze lifting to remind him that there were indeed people waiting for them. "You dry your hair, I'll finish cleaning up and meet you out there."_

" _Ok," she said, slinking back to him to plant a kiss on his neck and dart away again. She was always such a tease. He took a step to follow her and slipped, falling to land on the hard tile._

SMACK!

The sound of Natsu's back hitting the floor of the shower sounded worse than it was, but it still knocked the air out of him. To add insult to injury, the spray from the shower hit him squarely in the face, causing him to sputter and cough. He carefully got up, noticing the soap was gone from his body and turned off the shower, grabbing his towel. His phone trilled from where he had left it on the counter.

" _And I don't want the world to see me, cause I don't think that…"_

He quickly dried off a hand and picked it up before it could ring anymore and wake up his housemates.

"Hey Luce."

"Are you ok?! What the hell happened?" she replied, worry tinting her tone.

"Flashback," he replied succinctly. "And then I slipped and sort of...fell out of it." He glanced at the fogged up mirror and swiped a section to look at his back. It was red, already starting to bruise a bit. He winced. "Sorry for the monster bruise."

"Don't worry about it. It'll be fine. At least the flashback explains…" she trailed off as he felt her heartbeat speed up.

"What?"

"Well, did you, um, have a….sex-related flashback, by any chance?"

Natsu immediately adopted a deer in the headlights look, as though he had been caught doing something he shouldn't. Which was stupid, since he definitely couldn't control the flashbacks he got. And no one could actually see him. But still, he hemmed and hawed a bit before responding.

"Er..um...maybe…why?"

"Because I felt you, uh...come? And you weren't doing anything with your hands, but it still felt kind of...awesome…" Lucy could feel her face flushing and hoped he'd attribute it to the steamy atmosphere. She couldn't even describe the feeling she'd been having, but she'd known it was coming from him somehow. "What did you flash back to?"

"Weeeeeellll, you may or may not have been with me in a locker room...giving me a blowjob…" He expected embarrassment or stammering. But she'd been so weird with her responses the last day or so, he couldn't read her at all. Her casual response did nothing to alleviate his confusion.

"So, was I any good?"

He choked on his own spit for a second, an image of her staring up at him with her lips wrapped around him flashing across his vision for a second.

"You were fucking amazing," he said honestly, rubbing his crotch more briskly than normal as he toweled off. It had been a while since he'd left one of his showers with Lucy still feeling frustrated, but that particular vision had left him hungry for more.

"Well, that's comforting," she continued, deceptively casual. He focused on it for a second and felt her racing heart. Natsu grinned. So she wasn't as unaffected as she seemed. That certainly _was_ comforting. "Did you catch any names?"

Her non sequitor threw him off for a moment.

"What?"

"Did either of us say either of our names during the flashback?" she elaborated.

"Well, I called you something...Kay, I think. And once...Kaylyn, maybe? I was a little distracted…" He grinned to himself. "Why?"

"Just something I've been thinking about. I'll let you know if it leads to anything." She paused for a moment before continuing in a different tone of voice. "Anyway, I've got to get to class. Talk to you later maybe?"

"Yeah, call me when you're out of class."

"Ok, will do. Have a good day!"

"You too."

"Bye."

"Later, Lady Lucy."

Natsu took the phone from his ear and ended the call, still leaning against the counter with a towel wrapped loosely around his trim hips. He curled over slightly, slumping a bit as he felt the energy leaving his body, his muscles contracting as stray drips from his hair found the dips between his muscles and ran down into the towel. Maybe he'd go back to bed for a bit…

As he opened the door to the bathroom, he came face to face with his roommate, his own bathing things in hand. They stared each other down for a second.

Things had been...awkward when they were alone together ever since the Moon Drip party. As stupid as he knew he was being Natsu just couldn't seem to completely let it go.

And it didn't help that he knew Gray was talking to Lucy and lying to him about it. He prodded Gray on every text message, asked him about the girl he was talking to, needled him somewhat hostily about who he was making out with these days, but Gray remained stoic and cool, answering each question with a new falsehood. It got under Natsu's skin that his best friend could lie to him so easily.

Occasionally he would catch a glimmer of something that could be guilt, but it never lasted. Deep down, under that cold exterior, Natsu hoped he was suffering under a mountain of guilt. It was petty, but he didn't fucking care. Just thinking about Gray kissing Lucy made him want to punch his stupid face. So he generally tried not to think about it.

Under all the surface anger though, he really missed the easy relationship they'd had almost their whole lives. It was weird not having the comfortable silence they used to spend doing their homework, or the playful animosity between them as they competed on various video games. He was hoping some of his ribbing would bring that back, but there was so much actual hostility leaking out with his words, Gray always refused to rise to the occasion.

The night before, when Gray teased him about Lucy's period, had been the first time he'd ventured a snarky comment in days. Remembering the smile they had shared for a brief moment, Natsu cleared his throat and grinned as he pushed past his roommate, tossing a baiting remark over his shoulder.

"Used up all the hot water for ya. You're welcome, ice princess."

Gray stayed frozen for a moment before a slow grin edged onto his face, hidden from Natsu as he faced the now empty bathroom. Sauntering into the bathroom with a bit more life than he'd had before, he snapped a quick reply in his native language.

"Dobro je da se vratite, šupak."

"What did you call me?!" Natsu yelled back, spinning to meet a closed and locked door. He grudgingly smiled a bit. If Gray was insulting him in another language, they'd be fine. Eventually.

He felt better for having taken a step toward fixing things and pulled himself back up to his loft. He didn't have class for another hour. So he was going the fuck back to sleep. And if he dreamt about past Lucy and her hot little mouth, so be it.

* * *

Levy gulped down another cup of coffee and turned back to her notes, powering through the exhaustion permeating her overused and sleep-deprived brain. After her fight with Gajeel, she hadn't been able to sleep. So she had done what she always did when she couldn't sleep: research.

It had started with Bisca's blog. It had been weeks since Levy had had time to read any more and it seemed like the right place to start searching for answers, but, two hours of reading later, she hadn't been able to find anything about controlling flashbacks. With how rare Ultear had told her it was, she wasn't necessarily surprised, but she had been hoping to learn _something_ from the blog. She had slugged through descriptions of Bisca's life with Alzack, updates sporadic and mostly personal life stuff, with nuggets of information to glean. But the third week into a horrendous fight between the two of them over Alzack's jealousy and possessiveness was more than she wanted to read. It felt like she was watching a soap opera, but with less exciting revelations and even more whining.

So, she had abandoned that avenue and decided to put her hours of insomnia into something useful. Like practicing controlling her visions.

No matter what Ultear said, she found it hard to believe that she couldn't figure out some way to gain power over the flashes as long as she worked at it hard enough. It was her own mind after all! And she was nothing if not a master over her own mind!

She just needed to keep trying new things until something worked.

So she had spent the next four hours vision gazing. The first hour had been the same thing she'd been doing at Ultear's house, merely summoning a vision on command and trying to summon the same vision more than once, or the subsequent section of time to create some sort of a timeline.

As she went, she wrote down the different lives, giving each life a page and recording brief notes in shorthand describing the events of each flashback and her best guess to the time period. She could put them in order later, but she didn't want to forget anything.

However, aside from giving her more looks into her past lives, that hour had done almost nothing for the development of her skills. She still couldn't get her psyche to let her see the life where she had been interrogating Black Steel. She still couldn't repeat the same vision, and she still couldn't leave a vision when she wanted to. So, it was time to try something new.

So, Levy came up with a theory and tested it. Reading, when the writing was compelling and well done, often made her feel very strongly. And that feeling was predictable. Exactly the same each time. So, if she read something, while thinking about a certain person, maybe she could get the flashback to happen twice. Or at least land in the same timeline chronologically. Maybe she just needed an anchor to keep her grounded on one thought. She used the trigger lines in her favorite novels to take her back.

Her results didn't vary. So she tried again. This time, she altered her mantra to "Black Steel" on the hopes that merely speaking it would at least trigger it in her mind enough to take her to the lifeline she so desperately needed to see.

The result was even more frustrating, sending her no flashbacks at all. She was starting to think this was just all one sick joke. That the gods were laughing at her feeble attempts to master divine sight. With the fresh image of a hodgepodged pantheon of international gods and goddesses rolling around in stitches, Levy pouted and lay back on her bed. Why was this so hard? When it came to her brain, it had never failed her, zooming ahead to supply her with whatever answers she needed.

Now, it felt sluggish and unprepared, like she'd shown up for a test without reading the material. Or what she assumed that would be like. She had never been so ill prepared. So she had made herself a cup of exceptionally strong coffee, hoping that would help, and reviewed her notes until the much needed caffeine kicked in.

But as she gained a little bit of clarity and false energy, all she could think of were the complaints and whining her friends had lavished upon her as they lamented doing none of the homework. And then, she remembered something.

Something...helpful.

Maybe.

Jumping up from her bed, she wove through the stacks of books in her bedroom, covered in a layer of discarded clothes, to reach her desk. Opening the bottom drawer, where she tossed all manner of small miscellaneous items, she shuffled through the heap of junk, eventually finding what she was looking for. She could almost hear Juvia's voice ringing in her ears.

" _Maybe you don't need it, but some of us need a little help to function on "your level", Lev. Maybe you should try it before you judge!"_

The bottle rested lightly in her hand, containing only two of the little round pills they had been fighting over. In the end Levy had been right, and the Ritalin had not been beneficial enough to make what it did to Juvia's anxiety disorder worth the uptick in her grades, but Levy had kept the bottle the her tempestuous friend had thrown at her. She hated to throw away anything potentially useful, no matter how useless it seemed at the time. She sat staring at the bottle for a moment, thinking back to the way her friend had described her time on the drug. Extreme focus, clear-thinking, and something about increased productivity came to mind, though also the inevitable increase in paranoia and anxiety.

Levy only hesitated a moment more before swallowing the pill.

One time wouldn't hurt her. And it might help. Either way, she'd know more than she did before. That was the goal. She settled into her Lotus pose and waited. It took a few minutes, but when she started to notice her mind behaving differently, she closed her eyes and concentrated, not even needing a mantra to fall into the clarity she needed. Whatever else it did, Ritalin made the trance process a lot easier. And the next thing she knew she was thrust back into a flashback.

 _Her bare toes dug into the damp sand molding to her feet, the lapping waves caressing her toes as she stood unmoving in the balmy island air. The basket she had woven many moons ago sat several feet behind her, her bounty of berries and nuts safe from the destruction of the surf. Present Levy took note that she wore less clothes than she usually did in flashbacks, and the smell of her own body overpoweringly potent. She didn't understand the reason behind the rank odor until Past Levy glanced down and began to untie the straps holding the crudely tanned animal hides to her bare skin. It was around that time that Present Levy also realized Past Levy wasn't wearing any undergarments._

 _Animal hides, lack of underwear or shoes...as far as she could tell, this flashback was farther back than she had yet flashed. Even in the 14th Century she had had shoes. Ones that didn't have a left or right, but shoes nonetheless._

 _With the flaring imagination of a scholarly explorer, Present Levy took in as many details of her surroundings as she could, while Past Levy laid her makeshift clothing carefully by her basket and walked into the waves. After only a few moments in the waves, her smell improved and she felt refreshed. Though the smell of the sea clung to her skin and hair, it was a vast improvement to the smell of her skins._

 _Next, grabbing handfuls of sand, she ground it into the underside of the skins, wearing away at bits of putrescence still clinging to the leather. Present Levy internally wrinkled her nose. Thank the gods for modern conveniences. Past Levy finished the job by dipping the hides in the salty sea water, with more handfuls of sand to wash away the remaining flecks of what Present Levy refused to put a name to. It appeared those particular garments had been made with leather that wasn't quite...finished. Thankfully, the scouring salt-water treatment seemed to do wonders, and Levy laid the wet skins on nearby rocks to dry as she picked up her basket and continued to forage in the nearby brush, unbothered by her nakedness. Past Levy realized that clothes were necessary to protect her most sensitive areas from the beating sunlight, but shade would suffice just fine in the meantime._

 _Animals that Present Levy had never before seen, in pictures or in person, scampered across the beach, stopping to sun themselves on the hot sand, or racing off to dive into the waves. These smaller creatures had no reason to fear her. Past Levy recognized them as too small to be ample meat for her tribe. The others would hunt down the night's dinner. She was gathering food for when the animals would bed down for the great cold, and the goddess of the forest would no longer offer up her bounty for sustenance. Every berry, nut, and edible root she could find would be needed._

 _Their tribe had recently been joined by another, even larger tribe (in number and in size), and from the way the new arrivals ate, she would need to gather day and night to make sure no one starved. Past Levy mused that she should perhaps begin to cache a separate store for herself. It would not do to depend on the others to divide the shares equally. They were new and therefore not to be trusted._

 _Present Levy mused at the simple way of thinking her past self had, knowing names for very little around her, and caring even less. At times, Past Levy would mutter a strange string of syllables under her breath, seemingly talking to herself, but in no language Present Levy was familiar with. Perhaps no language anyone living even remembered existing._

 _Eventually, Levy deemed her clothing dry enough to adorn herself with, the sun-warmed musk still a less than pleasant smell, and made her way through the forest toward home, still keeping to the cooler shaded areas and avoiding the irregular patches of light that filtered through the leaves above her._

 _To Present Levy's surprise, Past Levy began to hum to herself, lacking a proper melody or timing but clearly creating a sound that could only be described as musical. Fascinated, she listened to the meandering vibration as Past Levy slowly made her way back to the place she felt was her home, stopping often to gather berries and wild onions, as well as the large fallen seed pods she knew contained small seeds, what Present Levy recognized from her memory as some form of giant walnut._

 _Carried away with the new plants and occasional animal that crossed her path, Present Levy willingly tagged along as Past Levy ventured further inland, excited to learn so much about a time before recorded history._

* * *

"Well….it's not the _worst_ idea we've ever had…" Vijeeter said skeptically as he looked at the mountain of wooden kegs stacked in every available inch of parking lot space. It had taken astoundingly little time to clear away the burned remains of their beautiful castle and clean up the metal frame of the trailer, which had been surprisingly structurally intact when the firefighters had finished their work. A trip to the hardware store and a call from Cana later, everyone without a class that morning was standing in the parking lot trying to figure out where to start.

"That's true. But the question is, how the hell are we going to do it all in a week?" replied Warren, scratching his head absentmindedly. The group stood in silent contemplation for a minute or two.

"Well, it won't happen with us standing around," Laxus said eventually, shouldering his way through the string of men and grabbing a wide board off the pile. "Come on guys. Let's get to work already, this pirate ship won't build itself."

"Aye Sir!" they all shouted as one, grinning as Laxus groaned and rolled his eyes. Yeah, he should have known that was coming.

* * *

Mystogan sat across from Erza as she stared into her coffee cup, the steam swirling and dissipating into the air. There was an autumn-like chill in the air, a harbinger of the harsher seasons to come, as they sat at their outdoor cafe table. Erza had wanted to meet with him, but aside from her initial greeting, she hadn't said a word.

Luckily, he was a naturally patient person. He had grown accustomed to silence, noticing that he learned more by listening than talking most of the time. It was actually something he and Erza had in common. It had led to several afternoons of comfortable silences over the last couple of weeks.

But today, in contrast, Erza's lack of speech was full of tension. He was honestly surprised she hadn't shattered the sturdy mug between her hands, she was clutching it so intensely. Her knuckles were white. So, he decided it was time for some prompting.

"What did you want to talk about Erza?"

Mystogan's words jerked the redhead out of her thoughts and she finally looked up at him, meeting his eyes for a flash before looking away again. There was a pang of something he couldn't quite identify in their depths, and then she smiled a bit, taking a sip of the still hot coffee before replying. He was suddenly struck by how tired she looked, her lovely eyes shadowed with sleep deprivation. When had she last gotten a decent night's sleep?

"I'm sorry to drag you out here. I'm sure you have better things to be doing with your morning."

"It's not any trouble, as I told you on the phone, but I assume there is an underlying purpose you intend to get to eventually?" he prodded. He both anticipated and dreaded her reasoning for getting him there. It had to do with Jellal. It was the only explanation.

He was hoping she had decided not to go visit the bastard after all. There wasn't any good that could come from his brother. Not for her. Or anyone for that matter. He was toxic, infecting everyone he met. It was natural for him not to want the woman he was seeing to be involved in that. Right?

But, at the same time, he knew if she never went to see Jellal, they could never move forward. At some point, she needed to unload all of her baggage, instead of dragging it around behind her for the rest of her life.

Erza's eyes had narrowed a bit at his remark, sensing a hint of irritation behind his words as she stared at his hands, deceptively relaxed. While she generally resented being hurried, she took that as her cue to bring up the topic she'd been trying to breach since he got there.

"I need to know about Jellal. If we're going to go see him this week, then I need to be prepared. I need the blanks filled in for me."

Mystogan sighed. Of course she wanted to know more. He'd been waiting for her to ask more about his erstwhile brother since their very first conversation. It was kind of a miracle it hadn't happened sooner. "Ok. What do you want to know?"

"I guess the biggest thing is why he's in prison. What happened?"

"Honestly," Mystogan responded, pushing aside the plate that had held his meager breakfast and taking a sip of his own, now lukewarm, coffee (the college cafe was not exactly up to gourmet standards, but it got the job done). "I'm a little sketchy on the details myself. He was convicted of identity theft. I guess he was running a whole gambit of schemes to obtain personal information from people. But as far as I know, he was doing a lot more than that. I know he dealt drugs in high school, without our parents knowing, because people were always mistaking me for him, and he made really good money at it, so I doubt that stopped. By the time he graduated and moved out, we were strangers. After the first few times I refused to get involved in his "business" he decided I wasn't worth his time. He cut himself off from us completely. It nearly killed our mom. Literally, she had a heart attack about a month after he cut ties and spent a week in the hospital. Dad wasn't much better. I almost didn't go to college. It was so hard to leave them like that, but in the end they convinced me I had to take advantage of my scholarship and do something with my life." Mystogan paused to take another drink of coffee before continuing.

"And we all got on with our lives until Jellal called to get bailed out of jail. At that point, I don't think any of us were surprised. Dad flat out refused to pay the bail, though Mom wanted to. She thought it was going to be some kind of prodigal son thing or something. They fought about it for weeks. And by then Jellal's trial had gone through and he was convicted and sent to prison. To be frank, I don't know much more than that. I visited him once, right after he got sent there, to see if it had changed him at all, but he was still a heartless bastard. So, yeah, that's pretty much all I know about it. I get people coming up to me sometimes thinking I'm him, which always reveals some new low-life thing he's done. Apparently he was quite the philanderer. A few months before he got arrested, I ran into his 'fiance'."

Erza's eyebrows popped up at that, a whisper escaping her. "Fiance?"

"Yeah, apparently. I'm pretty sure it was a scam though, considering she was so excited to see me alive and kicking. It took a while to convince her that I wasn't Jellal, and that he had somehow faked his death. When we first met, I sort of thought you might have been another one, with the way you acted," Mystogan finished apologetically. He finished his coffee and set the cup on his empty plate, turning his full attention back to Erza. "Even years apart and living in separate cities, he still manages to make my life difficult."

Across the table from him, Erza processed the new information. It wasn't what she'd been expecting...but then she hadn't really known what she'd been expecting. Settling back in her chair, she mulled over what he'd told her. But decided it didn't change anything.

"I still need to go see him."

Mystogan sighed and settled back in his chair as well. It was uncanny how she could answer his thoughts sometimes. "I know."

"I can't put it off anymore."

"I know."

"It doesn't matter what he says or not. It's a closure thing."

"I know."

Erza stopped, really looking directly into his eyes for the first time. Her lips twisted up in a humorless smile. "I'm really happy you're coming with me."

Mystogan smiled back and couldn't resist.

"I know."

* * *

By the time Gajeel got to Levy's apartment, he was ready to wring someone's neck. MU's campus lay in between his apartment and hers, so crossing through campus was the quickest way to get to her. Unfortunately, everyone on fucking campus was nuts right now. He had been asked to sign 8 different petitions for shit he didn't care about, been assaulted by a large banner he hadn't noticed being carried toward him, and been enveloped in the mass of local alumni swarming campus. Apparently there were events all week, according to an obnoxious sign and a girl firing a glitter cannon all over everything. He had barely missed being covered in the damn stuff. Barely.

But the end result of his myriad of troubles was that he arrived at Levy's door half an hour later than he intended and severely pissed off.

So he may have pounded on her door a bit too loud.

Because Lucy opened her door and popped out her head to see what was going on.

"For the love of Serena, Gajeel, what'd Levy's door ever do to you?"

"Hey, Bunny Girl, how about shutting the fuck up right now? I've got to talk to Levy, and it has nothing to do with you, so back the fuck off."

Lucy ground her teeth. She was going to kill Levy for telling Gajeel about that stupid nickname. "Well, if you wanted me to stay out of it, _Black Steel_ , then maybe you shouldn't have assaulted her door and alerted the whole damn hallway," she fired back, crossing her arms with a scowl. This was not the week to fuck with Lucy. She had her hands full with the Carmine Cunt (yep, went there), she didn't need any other crotchety bitches messing up her day. And two could play at the nasty nickname game.

Gajeel growled at her and pounded on the door again, shaking it under his assault. "Seriously Lucy, I don't have time for your crap today. The shrimp is gonna get her ass into trouble. We've got to have this out now." When his second round of knocking clearly hadn't summoned the little blunette from her slumber, and Gajeel was raising his fist to knock for a third time, Lucy huffed and pushed past him, turning the knob and opening the door. She glared at him for a moment over her shoulder and walked into her friend's apartment, expecting to find Levy passed out among her books again. But a quick perusal of the public rooms didn't turn up any sign of her friend.

Lucy's brow wrinkled. Levy was definitely home. She never left for class with Lucy. And she could usually hear Levy's door slam shut through the ridiculously thin hallway wall anyway.

"Oh my gods LEVY!" A desperate yell came from across the apartment. "Lucy! Get in here!"

Lucy immediately raced toward Gajeel's panic-filled voice, jumping hurdles over the many stacks of books, knocking one over to spill across the ground before reaching the blunette's bedroom. The sight that she met there wasn't a comforting one. Gajeel crouched in front of where Levy sat on the edge of the bed, clutching her shoulders and shaking her progressively less gently the longer she failed to respond.

"Levy! Wake up! Levy! Snap out of it!" he ground out as the tiny woman in his arms remained unresponsive. Lucy quickly joined him, halting his shaking with a hand so she could see her friend clearly. She gasped as she saw Levy's eyes darting impossibly quickly, back and forth beneath their lids. Lucy leaned forward to see if she was breathing and put out a hand to steady herself on the bed next to her friend, unexpectedly connecting with rounded plastic. Picking up the object on which she had leant, her eyes went wide.

"Oh Levy," she whispered. "What have you done?"

Gajeel pulled away from where he was taking Levy's pulse and immediately looked to Lucy as she held out the pill bottle in her hand.

"Ritalin?" he asked, confusion heavy in his voice. "What like the ADD stuff? Why would she take that?" He looked a little closer at the bottle, wondering who Juvia Locksar was. "It's not even her prescription."

"She said she was learning how to control her flashbacks. We were going to talk it over at lunch. Maybe she thought it would help?" Lucy ventured, carefully peeling back an eyelid to no effect. Motion and light stimuli didn't seem to affect her at all. "Wait, is she having a flashback right now?!"

Gajeel stared in horror at his girlfriend, hands clenching on her arms with a grip that should have made her wince. Or yell at him. Or react in any way. But she remained non-responsive.

"I think so. This is how she looked the last time I saw her flashback. With the weird eye thing and stuff. How do we wake her up?" he said gruffly, turning to Lucy like she had all the answers. She just shook her head, eyes still glued to Levy.

"I don't know." The silence in the room was deafening for a moment, the faint sound of Levy breathing their only comfort. "But I know of someone who might." Her voice shooke with uncertainty.

Gajeel didn't respond to her. He seemed to have made a decision, though, because he carefully lifted the catatonic woman into his arms, his earlier aggravation completely under control as he gently shifted himself onto her bed and cradled her in his arms. Only when she was totally settled did he look back up at the blonde, seeing helplessness and pity reflected in her eyes.

"Then get them here. I don't care what you have to do."

Lucy's face morphed from helpless to determined in the blink of an eye.

"Right. I'll be back as fast as I can. Try to keep her comfortable. And make sure she keeps breathing. If anything happens to her while I'm gone I'll never forgive you Gajeel Redfox." Not waiting for a reply, Lucy spun on her heel and rushed back to her apartment to find Ultear's number. She didn't hear Gajeel's soft reply as he bent his head and scrunched his eyes closed.

"Neither would I."

It was several moments later before he realized he was repeating something under his breath over and over to the bundle in his arms.

"Just come home Levy. Just come home."

* * *

 **Dobro je da se vratite, šupak.-** "Good to have you back, asshole." in Croatian.

 **Lack of right and left shoes-** yeah, I'm about to pull out a random fashion fact, forgive me, it makes me feel like my degree was actually worth something...lol. Up until the second half of the 19th Century (1800s), shoes were made identically and were eventually worn enough to mold themselves to each separate foot. TRUE FACT. You know, just in case anyone was wondering...

 **For the love of Serena-** did anyone notice I made God Serena into a god? Because, you know...GOD Serena? Hehe. Sometimes, I just can't resist. I wonder who else will end up being a god...

 **Kaylyn-** In the interest of realism, I searched for a death for this last incarnation of Lucy that I could use as a guide. However, as the use of someone whose friends and relatives are still living is a very touchy situation. So, in this instance, I have used the first name of my inspiration, Kaylyn Pryor, who was shot and killed in a drive-by shooting in 2015, after winning a modeling contest. Her killer has yet to be found. Her story is the inspiration for Lucy's past, and I have her in my head in how I describe her, because something about her picture makes me think of Lucy. But all other actions, thoughts, or feelings on the part of Kaylyn and my story do not reflect whatsoever on what Kaylyn may have done or thought. I hope her friends family gets to find some measure of peace and the police investigating the case are able to find the perpetrators. If my use of Kaylyn's story as a piece of my story offends anyone, I apologize. I assure you, I hold a great respect for her and the tragedy that befell her. In some small part, I'd like to write an ending for her where her killer is caught, because all victims of senseless violence at least deserve a conclusive ending to their stories.

 **And, on that note, I'll see you all next week! Thanks for helping me reach over 900 reviews so far! And I look forward to hearing what you thought of the chapter!**


	28. Welcome Home-Thursday

**Sorry I'm a day late! I was going to finish the chapter Monday night and get it sent off for a good polish immediately, but I got a migraine. Which sucked by the way. So spent the night watching Inuyasha out of one eye under a mountain of pillows and blankets... and I finished it Tuesday at work. Then decided the extra day was worth it for that little extra shine that Shedauwz helps me achieve. Soooo, sorry. One of these days they'll figure out what's wrong with me and give me a pill for it. Til then, annoying life-fucking illness.**

 **Also, minor edit, I fucked up a bit naming the chapters in this little arc, since I started on Tuesday (at least as far as Lucy's class schedule goes...so, I fixed it. For those who noticed, that's why. For those who didn't...never mind...ignore the man behind the curtain...**

 **But, in other news, there's a SHIT TON going on this chapter. It almost wrote me….hehe. Fair warning: you're gonna hate the cliffhanger.**

* * *

The minute Ultear turned her phone back on, it started ringing. She checked the time and almost growled. Whoever it was had to be fucking kidding.

"Oh my god, you finally answered!"

"I'm sorry...who is this? And why the _hell_ are you calling me at one o'clock in the morning?!"

"Ultear, it's Lucy! I've been trying to get ahold of you since yesterday morning!"

"I was at a retreat. Electronics are a distraction. What the hell do you want? Can it wait until _actual_ morning? I would like to get some sleep now."

"It's Levy! Gajeel and I found her about eight o'clock yesterday morning, stuck in a flashback, and she still hasn't woken up!"

That immediately grabbed Ultear's attention. She snapped to alertness like someone had pushed her off a cliff into icy water. "What?!"

"It looks like she took something to help flash back, and we've tried everything we can think of, but nothing has worked!"

"What have you tried?"

"She doesn't respond to shaking, or us calling out to her, or strong smells, or tickling…she didn't even respond to a..book...in her hands..." Lucy devolved into sniffling then, clearly fighting back tears. Ultear could hear someone in the background comforting her and taking the phone. A male voice came on the phone then.

"Sorry, Lucy needs a minute." A voice Ultear recognized.

"Gray?!"

"Yeah...hi Ultear."

"What the hell? How do you know Lucy?"

"It's a long story," Gray said irritably. "And it really doesn't matter right now. Gajeel and Lucy are losing it over here. What can we do to help Levy? We're running out of ideas."

"Honestly, I'm not sure. I've never seen this happen to anyone before. But there's someone I can ask. Let me give her a call. Where is Levy?" Ultear responded, weariness seeping into her tone. She was starting to regret getting involved with these girls at all. They were turning out to be more than a little high-maintenance. Granted, never boring. And now her asshole of a foster brother was involved somehow. Just fucking awesome.

"She's at Fairy Hills Apartments, 3C."

"Ok, there may be someone coming by later, I'll text Lucy if she does."

"Ok. Thanks Ultear."

Ultear hung up on him, grumbling as she flipped over to the dragon woman's contact information. Calling Porlyusica at one in the morning? Ultear would be stuck on the outreach committee for their coven for at least another six months after this. Outreach was the worst; dealing with a bunch of juvenile outcasts who wanted to play witch for the most part.

She sighed and dialed anyway. Desperate times and all that shit.

* * *

 _By the time Levy hit the end of the first week in the Stone Age, she had started to feel uneasy._

 _At first, every moment had been packed with new discoveries. Or old ones? Levy wasn't quite sure what the terminology for what she had learned would exactly be, but the new-to-her plants, animals, and language that surrounded her past self daily had been exhilarating!_

 _So much knowledge that no one but she could know! What could be better?_

 _Levy just wished she could take notes. It was the only downside to the whole lucid flashing back thing. Particularly in a time when historical record didn't exist! The sheer amount of knowledge she could bring back was unbelievable, if she could only remember it all. And figuring out a completely new (old?) language was next to impossible without being able to dissect it into its parts visually. Overall, very frustrating. Thankfully she had gotten the knack of reading her past self's reactions for context, so understanding what was going on around her was at least doable with a little concentration._

 _What was most interesting though, was the sheer number of people she recognized inhabiting the camp with her past self. Not only was Gajeel there, and Lucy and Natsu too, but she also recognized Bisca and Alzack from the green-headed woman's blog, and several people she had seen around campus._

 _How had almost all of them ended up in Magnolia, after all that time? How had their souls started somewhere so isolated and remote, traveled through thousands of years, and yet still ended up in the same compact area of space, just displaced however many thousands of miles? It tested her sense of reason._

 _And sure, it was disconcerting that she had been witnessing her past self for longer than she ever had before, but she could only assume it was a side effect of the Ritalin she had taken. It had turned out to be a powerful catalyst. But surely, it would wear off eventually, right?_

 _By the third week, her unease had developed into panic, the sheer length of the flashback disturbing in itself._

 _As her past self participated in once fascinating processes for drying and storing gathered foods, and socialized with her established tribe-mates, occasionally venturing into the male half of the camp to explore her newest family members, Levy tried every way she could think of to end the accursed flashback._

 _She chanted a mantra in her head, she thought of home, she used meditation breathing. Nothing worked. She longed for the ability to move her own body. It was like a terrible case of cabin fever, without even the last ditch resort of jumping overboard. What if she had to live like this forever? What if she never got to read another book?! They didn't even have a written language at this point in history!_

 _The very thought of never seeing the written word again made her want to cry. Which she also couldn't do. It was infuriating!_

 _But more importantly, if she managed to escape this time, what was happening to her body back home? No food or movement for weeks on end? Would she have brain damage? Would her muscles have atrophied?_

 _The constant what-ifs tormented her constantly as Past Levy obliviously went on her way, living her humble, helpful life. The days dragged on in anxiety…_

 _By week six, the novelty had worn off, the panic had dulled, and she was contemplating life as a back seat observer._

 _Yeah, the very idea of it still sent a shiver down her spine (metaphorically, of course, Present Levy not currently possessing a spine), but if that was how it had to be, at least she was surrounded by the souls of friends. Lucy seemed to have been as good a friend in this life as she was in the present, spending every moment Levy was in the village, by her side, and accompanying her, early on, to find food._

 _Lack of food seemed to be a constant worry on all of their minds. As the weeks went on though, it was clear that someone else had taken primary place in Lucy's thoughts. Not that she could help it. Levy knew from experience how hard it was not to be distracted by a male constantly picking one up and running off._

 _Levy was relieved to see the stereotypical caveman behavior (of hitting a woman over the head and carrying her off to be deflowered) was just a myth. At least, on this particular island. However, what seemed to take its place was that weird spontaneous kidnapping thing._

 _How the two tribes had developed to be all female, and all male, separately on the island before meeting was beyond Levy. While she could not deny that past Levy's memories showed that to be the case, her analytical mind argued it was against the basic principles of reproduction and natural selection, not to mention geography. How so many individuals had lived within miles of one another for at least a decade and never run into one another was a mystery. It was almost as if a god's hand was at work, dropping the two populations on the tiny island together, keeping them apart until they had reached a certain age, and then letting them loose to see what occurred. It was the only explanation that Present Levy could think of...let alone accept._

 _And what occurred, seemed to be the natural inclination of the male populace to carry women off to remote locations. They didn't, as of yet, seem to know what to do with them when they got there, but it involved a lot of snuggling._

 _Some of the sneakier males, after being driven back by the female warriors so the women could get back to work gathering and preparing food stores for the Great Cold (the winter, that is, Present Levy had to keep reminding herself as she fell into Past Levy's thought patterns), had taken to stealing them away while they were sleeping. Levy herself had woken up several times, the victim of several of the males' kidnapping attempts. After the first week of kidnappings though, Gajeel had somehow established a claim on her, kidnapping her night after night, until she finally went to join him of her own accord, living together in the same tent, if only to get a decent night's rest without being awoken flung over a shoulder with her ass in the air._

 _It was an awkward time to be a woman aware of modern sexual practices. The number of times she had woken up to something hard poking her, and Gajeel sleepily humping her leg were becoming difficult to count. Past Levy ignored it for the most part, taking her own sexual frustration as a signal to keep busy, while a frustrated Present Levy waited through the agony of two people, one of which was her, figuring out what sex was for the first time._

 _Thankfully, about four weeks into the awkward mating dance they had established, gasping cries had signalled that Lucy and Natsu were the first to figure out what all the fuss was about. Natsu apparently communicated the joys of sex to his fellow man shortly after._

 _And the pattern of daily life deteriorated from there._

 _It was a whole week later before normal behaviors were re-established over the new and exciting pastime of the village. If every woman in the village wasn't with child by the end of that week, it certainly wasn't from lack of trying. Fortunately, at least the libidos of the women had been sated to allow for reason to flow once more, and the food gathering efforts doubled. The men then acknowledged the need for hunting, if only to replenish their depleted energy, and went on a trip to the other side of the island, giving the women a much needed rest._

 _Except for Natsu and Lucy, who had disappeared together and had yet to return to the village._

 _Officially anyway. Levy had run into Lucy under the light of the moon one night while she snuck back to take a generous amount of nuts and dried meats from the caches. Words hadn't been necessary to understand the flush of Lucy's skin._

 _Her lack of clothing had really said it all._

 _Levy didn't find out until later that her friend's (and Natsu's) clothing had been destroyed at the start of the orgy week (Present Levy's private label for the experience)...mysteriously and without sufficient explanation, though Lucy had done a reasonably suitable job repairing them with laces by the time Levy saw her on her next food and kindling run. The nights were becoming cool in the nights already, and many fires were left burning to keep the sleeping occupants from shivering. Though, several couples seemed to have figured out the benefits of sharing body heat, which was doing wonders for their fuel stores._

 _The reason for Natsu keeping Lucy in continued captivity was soon revealed as several men from the village were discovered beaten to within an inch of their lives after venturing out in search of the busty maiden. Apparently Natsu's description of her initial sexual prowess had outshone the later experiences of the male population with other women of the village. And Natsu was disinclined to share his treasure._

 _Levy would be surprised to see the couple back before Lucy's belly was showing the signs of a Natsu Jr. kicking away. And maybe not even then. They were insatiable._

 _Gajeel wasn't much better, though certainly more practical, realizing that Levy became less inclined to acquiesce if taken away from her daily duties. Unlike Past Lucy, Past Levy had an almost obsessive preoccupation with surviving the winter. Memories eventually revealed that her parents had frozen to death shortly before she had joined the tribe of women. Though how she had gotten to the island was still a mystery to both Levys. But to Past Levy, it didn't really matter. She was here now, so she would make the most of it. She thanked the local goddess for finding her new family and concentrated on surviving another year of freezing weather._

 _Past Levy huffed as she trudged through the caves of the island. Present Levy just sat back and tried to ignore the aching pain of her feet as she walked the miles of rough rock to reach the destination of what she thought of as the "sacred stone." Apparently all the women of the island made a pilgrimage there (when the Red Beast first cursed them with blood and pain) to pray to the local deity. Present Levy could see Past Levy's memory of going there as a young girl, newly delivered to the mysterious island. With the arrival of their male counterparts to the village, the women had decided that someone needed to bring an offering of thanks to their goddess. It was always a good idea to thank the goddess for any new occurrence, lest she think them ungrateful and bring a sickness or flood upon the land. Levy had volunteered for the task, being the most exploratory of the gatherers and knowing the island best._

 _So, here she was, traversing the rocky caves in order to visit the sacred stone. Present Levy secretly mocked her. The "sacred stone" was probably a weird shaped rock, hewn by lava, or water, or possessing a fossilized engraving that made it appear otherworldly. If there was one thing she had decided weeks ago, it was that humanity had a lot of years to go before they resembled creatures of logical reason._

 _But as Past Levy approached the shrine of their goddess, Present Levy had to bite her proverbial tongue. Two rectangular pillars of precision-cut stone rose up ahead of her, surrounded by smaller squared-off pillars. A circle had been cut from the center of the central pillars, leaving a perfectly circular void between the two of them. The people of the island did not possess the tools needed to be capable of such craftsmanship._

 _Carefully avoiding stepping too close to the stone, Levy balanced the bundle of wild flowers the women had gathered and dried over the last week in the circular void between the pillars. Levy hastily backed away and knelt, touching her head to the ground twice before looking back at her offering._

 _Which promptly burst into flame._

 _Followed swiftly by a glowing girl with flowing hair and robes, and barefoot as the rest of the island-dwellers appearing before her._

 _Which was the point at which Present Levy became a believer._

* * *

The drive over to the prison was uneventful. After seeing the puffy shadows under Erza's sleep-deprived eyes yet again, Mystogan had offered to drive, and was pleasantly surprised to see the redhead fall asleep almost immediately. It was about a two hour drive to the prison in Era, just south of Crocus. While Jellal had been captured in the nearby country of Caelum, the majority of his crimes had taken place in Fiore, so he was extradited to be imprisoned there. Thankfully, Magnolia did not possess a prison of its own.

It was a peaceful drive, especially at eight o'clock in the morning, just him, the open farmland, the distant mountains and the hot coffee he'd picked up at a drive-thru on the way out of Magnolia. Occasionally he'd pass a local on the narrow two lane highway, lifting his hand in the habitual greeting for the area as he passed, but for the most part, it was just him, the road, and the snoozing woman beside him.

Mystogan snuck another peek at her figure, curled up in the reclined seat beside him. Even sleeping she looked worn out and temperamental. Her brow was furrowed and she made little whimpering noises every so often. After another ten minutes or so, he thought he heard her muttering something and turned the already low radio off to see what she was saying.

"No...please...don't."

Mystogan narrowed his eyes and glanced at her again. What the hell was she dreaming about?

"No...Jellal...don't go in there!" This time her voice was clearer, making it very obvious what she was dreaming about.

Shit. "Erza?" he tried cautiously, reaching out with a hand to touch her shoulder gently as he kept his eyes on the road. She shuddered under his hand and cried out.

He immediately took it away and tried louder. "Erza! Wake up!"

"No! Jellal, I can't! Don't make me!" she yelled back. It was the volume of her own words that finally woke her up. Erza immediately began flailing against her seatbelt, forgetting where she was. Eventually she looked over to him with wide eyes and jerked back against the door, calming slightly under his swift glances over to her.

"Good morning," he said drily, with an attempt at levity. "At least now I know why you look like you never sleep. Because apparently you don't."

Erza sat in silence, just staring at him, seeming to still be getting her bearings. Her lack of response didn't phase the blue-haired man beside her, however.

"Well, it looks like you've got some explaining to do before we get to the prison," he started again, careful to avoid his brother's name. "And, luckily for you, we've got a good hour to talk. So, what's the story Scarlet? I've been pretty hands off with this whole thing so far, but when you wake up yelling about my brother, in my car, on the way to a prison...well, I guess, I figure I've earned the right to ask."

Erza cleared her throat. "I yelled?" she croaked out, clearing her throat again. Mystogan picked up the second coffee, that still held a breath of steam in its insulated styrofoam cup, and offered it to her. She accepted the offering gratefully and cautiously sipped the hot liquid.

"Yeah. You yelled." Mystogan didn't elaborate. He knew he didn't need to. She was well aware of what she'd been dreaming about.

"Oh." Erza didn't offer anything else for another five miles or so. Mystogan didn't mind. He hummed a line of the song that had been on the radio before he turned it off. It would be in his head for the rest of the day now. He sung the words in his head.

 _Lately something's changed, it ain't hard to define, Jesse's got himself a girl and I wanna make her mine…_

Erza eyed him curiously. She didn't know Mystogan liked 80's music. Just one more little tidbit to help figure him out. He wasn't the most voluntarily open person. But then, neither was she. She sighed.

"I've been dreaming about him since we met," she finally said.

Mystogan raised his eyebrows. "Every night? No wonder you look like the walking dead."

"Like the main cast or an extra?" It took Mystogan a second to figure out she was talking about the show. He grinned.

"Extra."

"Damn."

Erza narrowed her eyes at him, glancing down at her carefully chosen ensemble. "It's not every night. Or...it wasn't. Until last week. Now I can't sleep at all without him showing up. It's driving me crazy."

"So, that's why we're going to see him?"

"Yeah," Erza replied, shifting in her seat until she was facing him slightly. "It was the only thing I could think of to make it stop. It seemed like the only logical solution. And then, there's the fact that he sometimes calls out to me, in the dream. Like he's telling me to find him. Like he's...lost or something. Gods, I don't know. The whole thing is ridiculous! I just want to get a decent night's sleep for once!"

"I guess I'd do the same thing. I was wondering why this was urgent enough to take the morning off from class. Makes sense now. If I hadn't slept in more than a week I'd be willing to do just about anything to fix it." Mystogan shuddered as he remembered the time his mattress was stolen and destroyed through a series of typically unfortunate events that only Fairy Tail could manage. That had been the worst week of his life. His fraternity brothers had eventually all willingly chipped in to pay for a new one. Nobody liked Mystogan with inferior sleep. "You should try getting a new mattress," he added, absentmindedly.

"There is nothing wrong with my mattress. It's a top of the line Legendary Serta memory foam hybrid. I don't skimp on quality when it comes to my sleep."

Which was probably the moment that Mystogan fell in love with Erza Scarlet.

Probably.

* * *

Gajeel jerked awake at the sound of the buzzer for Levy's apartment, falling off the edge of her narrow bed and rolling, just in time to catch himself on his forearms.

Thankfully, he'd not fallen asleep with her in his lap again. He didn't need anymore bruises from accidentally dropping her on the floor. He'd made that mistake early on, and the bruise blossoming across both his and Levy's right arms had only added salt to the mental anguish of her total non-reaction to the fall.

Gajeel peered up at the digital clock above him with bleary eyes. It was six already?

At least he'd gotten _some_ sleep. The buzzer went off again. And then again. Continuously on and off every few seconds.

Stumbling through and knocking over stacks of books as he made his way through Levy's apartment, he finally found the intercom system and answered the buzzer.

"Whaddya want?!" he snapped at the speaker on the wall.

"I want to be let in, so that I can see my patient," a crisp, annoyed voice snapped back at him. "Now open the damned door."

Gajeel's heart leapt into his throat. This must be the witch's friend. The one that could help. He immediately pressed the button to unlock the apartment building door, and weaved his way back to the kitchen to start a pot of coffee.

Coffee that he had bought, in a coffee-maker he had brought over.

Honestly, for someone who loved coffee as much as the shrimp, and was that godsdamned smart, it was crazy that she couldn't make the stuff for herself without burning the hell out of it. There was a loud, brisk knock on the door, only moments later. What, had the lady run all the way up or something?

He opened the door to reveal a tall, thin, severe-looking woman with vivid pink hair. It threw him for a minute. He'd never seen anyone besides Natsu with that particular shade before.

Porlyusica did not require an invitation. She pushed past the hulking tattoo artist and, with only a momentary pause to take in the state of Levy's apartment, made a beeline for the bedroom. Gajeel quickly followed her, knocking over another stack of books. The pinkette barked at him without pausing in her trek or missing a beat:

"Pick those up. That's no way to treat a book."

Gajeel smiled wryly as he restacked the books. His faith in the complete stranger attending to his girlfriend doubled from barely any to a fair bit more than nothing. She might be harsh, but something about her reminded him of Levy.

Just then, Lucy and Gray came stumbling through the open door.

"Is she here?" the blonde gasped out, eyes too bright for the early hour. Gajeel wondered if she'd slept at all. His gaze automatically fell to her arm, and then her bare legs, her pajama shorts exposing skin covered in writing and drawings in multiple colors. Not for the first time, Gajeel wondered who the bunny girl was bonded with. When Gray had shown up with take out the night before, he'd thought maybe the playboy had finally been tied down to the perky blonde, but the lack of writing on his skin in the early light of morning disproved that idea. He _had_ clearly slept over at the apartment across the hall, though. He sent a glare his old friend's way on behalf of the mystery guy that had bonded to Lucy. He wondered if the guy she'd spent all night talking to knew another guy had been in her apartment the whole time. What was she playing at? And, if Gray knew about the bond, what the hell was he trying for?

But all of his questions faded away as he followed Lucy into Levy's bedroom, Gray close on his heels.

The pink-haired woman was standing over Levy, holding the nearly empty medicine bottle.

"When did she take this?"

"Yesterday morning or the night before. We're not sure," Lucy answered immediately. Porlyusica nodded in acknowledgement and tossed the bottle back onto the bed. Then, leaning over Levy's prone form, before anyone could move to stop her, she swiftly drew back her hand and slapped the blunette across the face.

Gajeel's growl of pain was drowned out by the sharp gasp of Levy inhaling as her eyes opened and she abruptly sat up, narrowly missing conking heads with her deliverer.

Lucy, Gajeel, and Gray stood stock-still in the doorway while the pinkette checked the previously catatonic woman's vitals.

"Why didn't you guys try that?" Gray eventually grumbled, running a hand through his sleep tousled hair.

"We did! Right after we found her," Lucy replied. Gajeel nodded in agreement, his body beginning to feel the exhaustion of the last day as the tension left his musculature.

The shrimp was fine. Levy was gonna be fine.

"Ow…" Levy whispered as she rubbed her cheek, and then the bruise on her arm.

"It was necessary. Once the medication wore off, all you needed was a physical pain link to come back. Extended release Ritalin can take days to fully leave your system, but is pretty much inert after about eight hours."

"But," Levy cried out suddenly, finding Gajeel's eyes. "I was gone for weeks! Didn't anyone think of doing that sooner?!" His eyebrows drew together immediately.

"You've only been out for a day Shrimp. Not weeks."

"But…" Levy trailed off, distracted as Porlyusica finished her examination and Lucy dove across the bed, enveloping her in a hug.

"Never do that again. Never never never never never nev-"

Levy laughed.

"I get it Lu. I'll never do it again," she said faintly, still reeling from the abrupt change of environment. She had gotten used to wearing almost nothing and sleeping on the hard ground. Waking up, fully clothed in her soft bed after weeks (to her) of living rough was messing with her head. With the relief of knowing she wouldn't be stuck in the past forever flooding her veins, her fingers itched to write down everything she'd seen before she forgot it all.

"Time moves differently when viewing the past." Porlyusica's words captured Levy's attention immediately. Taking a moment, while her friend did her level best to strangle her with love, Levy assessed the unfamiliar woman and came to a conclusion.

"Porlyusica, I assume?"

"You assume correctly. Now, I need to go. There are probably already patients waiting for me at my office. Drink lots of fluids, eat something with potassium, and meet me in my office on Tuesday as we had originally planned. You need training. Badly." She handed the blunette a business card and packed up the small bag she had brought with her.

"No." Gajeel's quiet word cut through the air like steel. Both women turned to look at him. Lucy stayed where she was, having fallen half asleep on her friend. "Levy doesn't need training. She needs to leave this shit alone. Look what messing with it did to you!" He directed the last sentence at Levy, the fury buried beneath his sickening worry finally finding release. "I told you. I fucking _told_ you Levy! You didn't know what you were getting into, and look what happened! You weren't waking up. You were trapped there. What if you never woke up? What then?! So, no. You can't fucking keep doing this! It's not safe. For either of us."

Levy opened her mouth, but Porlyusica cut her off, with a glare at Gajeel.

"It's not a matter of choice anymore. And maybe it never was. She's going to keep having flashbacks. And she's going to keep getting stuck if she doesn't learn how to control them." The pinkette turned on Levy then. "That being said, using pharmaceuticals, that were _not_ prescribed to you, to boost your visions was reckless and irresponsible. Especially unsupervised. If I find out you've been practicing outside the parameters of my instruction, you'll be on your own. Now, I'm leaving. Before you brats think of something else stupid to do. And someone tell Blondie to stop writing all over herself. Or don't. Honestly, at this point, I don't even care."

And with those parting words, Porlyusica strode from the room, leaving only Lucy's soft snoring to break the heavy silence. Eventually, Levy spoke up.

"So guys...any chance I could get a hand getting Lucy back to her apartment?" she said hopefully, looking at Gray to avoid her boyfriend's continuous glare.

"Yeah, I got her."

Gray helped Levy pry Lucy's surprisingly strong grip off of the blunette and picked her up off the bed, flushing when she immediately clamped onto his neck and nuzzled closer in her sleep. Gajeel turned his glare on Gray then, giving him a wordless warning about Lucy that Gray really could have done without.

"Soooo... I'm gonna get her home, and leave you two to figure out your shit then. Bye." And with those eloquent words, he high-tailed it out of the apartment, struggling to juggle Lucy and open the door for only a moment before exiting swiftly.

As the door swung shut behind him, he could already hear Gajeel's deep rumble growing in angry volume. Yeah, it had definitely been time to exit.

"Natsu...smell good…" Lucy muttered into his neck.

Fucking great.

As if he was under some cosmic fucking surveillance or something, his phone went off. Unfortunately, he didn't have a hand free to answer it. So, to the sounds of Coldplay, he managed to kick open Lucy's apartment door, untangle from her clinging arms, and finally check his phone. And, of course, it was Natsu. Gray sighed and answered.

"Whaddya want pyro?" Gray ran a hand through his hair and wrinkled his nose at the greasy feeling. He seriously needed a shower.

"Is Lucy ok?" Natsu's urgent voice immediately asked.

"She's fine, just tired, why?" Gray responded without thinking. He really hadn't gotten great sleep the night before. Lucy's couch was hella uncomfortable.

"HA! FINALLY! Can you fucking stop lying to me now please?"

Gray cussed himself out in his head. Well shit. That's what happened when he got next to no sleep. Lucy was going to kill him. Well, maybe not. After all, he hadn't been the one who stayed up all night writing to Natsu. He wrinkled his nose again at the thought. Natsu was definitely better in small doses.

"Fine. Yeah, I'm at her place. She's asleep. No thanks to you, by the way."

"She was upset! She wanted someone to talk to, so I talked to her. What the hell else was I supposed to do!" he argued back, belligerently. "Is Levy any better?"

"Yeah, Ultear's friend slapped her and she woke up. Apparently once the drugs wore off, all she needed was something physical to wake her up. Wish I'd done it hours ago, we all might have gotten a decent night's rest."

"Huh. That makes sense I guess. But is Lucy good then? Why were you carrying her?"

Gray felt a chill run down his spine.

"How did you know I was carrying her?"

"Because I felt it, icicle dick, how else?"

"But that could have been anyone carrying her! How did you know it was me?"

"You spent the night on her couch, and Gajeel would be too freaked out about

Levy. Who else would it be?"

"Wait, how did you know I slept on her couch? Did Lucy tell you?"

"Jesus, Gray, does it really matter? I saw you ok? She checked on you a couple of times to make sure you were still asleep."

"Saw me? That's not possible."

"I told you about Lucy doing it. You didn't seem so disbelieving then."

"Because we were fucking trolling you! I was telling her what you were seeing."

"I KNEW IT! You ASSHOLE! I'm so getting you back for that!"

"Whatever. Worth it. And it was Lucy's idea anyway. So, how the fuck did you really know?"

"I told you. I saw you last night. And heard you this morning. Fuck, if I wanted to I could hear you right now in fucking surround sound. But it makes Lucy restless, so I'd prefer not to."

Gray started to protest again, but Natsu's concern for Lucy stopped him. Natsu wasn't fucking around right now. He really did just want to know what was going on with Lucy. He was telling the truth.

"Fuck man, when did you learn how to do that?"

"Yesterday. Don't worry about it. And for fuck's sake put on a shirt."

Gray spun around to look back at Lucy, but she was still fast asleep.

"Ok, how the fuck did you know _that_?!"

"I fucking know _you_. Now, if Lucy's safe and doing ok, get back to the house. We need to talk."

"Dude, can it wait? I slept super shitty last night. I was just gonna crash here for a bit. Maybe take a shower..."

"No, _dude,_ it can't wait. Lucy is being followed. Everywhere. When you leave the apartment look around for a creepy blonde guy. Then ask if you've got time for a shower. At least you got some sleep last night. Get back to the house. And make sure you aren't followed." Natsu hung up the phone without waiting for an answer. Lucy's heartbeat was still steady in his chest, her breathing deep and even. He glanced down at his body, running a hand through his hair as he ran his exhausted eyes over the hours of silent communication between them.

Talking on the phone was still his favorite way to talk to her - the added element of her voice making all the difference - but sometimes, especially in the middle of the night, there was something kinda magical about communicating by skin. And drawing, in particular, was a lot more fun when he could blink and see the lines as they appeared on _her_ skin. It had taken some practice, but thankfully, he'd been sleepy enough the night before to maintain the daze he needed.

The trick was drawing on one surface, while looking at another from another angle. It kind of reminded him of the digital drawing class he'd taken for fun, sketching on a touchpad, but watching his work on the screen.

With his phone still in hand, he snapped a few pictures of the cooler stuff he'd drawn, or she'd written, before scrolling a few pictures into his gallery to look at the picture of the Salamander on Lucy again. He found himself looking at it more and more lately. It was like seeing through Lucy's eyes made him crave seeing her more instead of satisfying the weird need he had to spy on her. He shook off the thought and tossed his phone on his bed, grabbing his towel. He should have just enough time to shower and grab some coffee from the kitchen before Gray got back. Hopefully not waking up Lucy in the process. She had been really stressed about Levy and really needed the sleep.

Besides, it would take Gray awhile to find his shirt.

Natsu snickered. He'd never think to check the balcony.

The pinkette made a little bet with himself than Gray turned up shirtless anyway, and whistled a jaunty tune as he headed off to the shower.

* * *

"Whenever you're ready…" Mystogan prodded sarcastically.

"Shut up," Erza muttered back, still not taking even a single step closer to the prison. Two scantily clad women wearing way too much makeup walked past them, giving Erza an appraising look before clicking their high-heeled way into through the fence gate surrounding the penitentiary.

"Whatever you say," he retorted with a quiet snort.

"That's not shutting up."

Mystogan made a zipping motion over his lips. Erza nodded, satisfied with his behavior.

Until he made a broad sweeping motion towards the prison gate, his body language implying, "lead the way oh beauteous queen of mine". She glared again, but couldn't control the corner of her mouth twitching up into a smile. Several of her muscle groups relaxed, alerting her to the fact they had been tensed in the first place. The redhead glanced back at the prison, her bone-deep weariness evident as her shoulders sagged. Why did she think she could do this again?

Seeing the droop of her shoulders, Mystogan dropped his ridiculous stance and placed himself between her and the heavily secured building, blocking her view. He had grown serious, his eyes boring into hers as he rested his hands lightly on her shoulders. He kept to his silent promise and didn't say a word, though the statement he ventured with his eyes was crystal clear.

 _You don't have to do this._

Erza's look was just as clear.

 _Yeah, I do._

So, Mystogan took a step backward and offered her his hand.

Returning him a small, trembling smile, Erza took his hand and let him lead her to the gate.

They paused right before they got to the gate, sharing one final glance.

 _Then, let's do it together._

* * *

" _Ashley…"_

 _She spun on her heel, trying to figure out who had called out to her by name. There were bandaged men laid out on stretchers from wall-to-wind-whipped-tent-wall, calling for nurses and water...or death. But, though she scoured the faces in the haphazard aisles of incomplete and dying men, she couldn't find the man whose face matched the voice in her ear._

" _Ashley...I love you...you beautiful weirdo…"_

 _Lucy/Ashley spun, frantic to find her husband, confident that she had heard his voice, though she knew, logically, there was no way he could be present. Frantically, she called out for him._

" _Stirling! Where are you?!"_

 _Heads turned her way, but none of them were the one she was hoping for. A hand settled on her shoulder. The petite blonde nurse behind her was not someone she recognized. But, that was nothing new._

 _People came and went on the front in the breadth of an instant. Anything could happen at any moment. One got used to new faces._

 _Lucy/Ashley ignored the woman, a girl really, she was so young, to continue her frantic searching._

" _He's gone," the girl said._

 _Those words caught her attention again and she spun out of her grip, eyes flying wide._

" _What did you say?"_

" _He's gone, Ashley. His light has been extinguished by the darkness. I'm so very sorry."_

 _Lucy/Ashley fell to her knees, legs no longer able to support the truth she could feel behind the strange female's words. Tears dripped down her cheeks as the dried blood in the grass ground its way into the weave of her stockings. She couldn't breathe. He was the only reason she was in this godsforsaken place to begin with. The chance had been slim, but the thought of seeing him again, if only for an instant, had kept her moving for months past when he had been reported missing. She had known in her heart he was still out there. Still fighting. Still making his way back to her._

" _H-how do y-you know that?" she sobbed desperately up at the stranger. "He's-he's only missing! Th-th-that's what they t-t-told me! H-he's not g-g-g-"_

" _He_ was _missing. Trying to get back to you." The girl's words jarred Lucy as they echoed her own thoughts. "But his love was not enough." Her voice oozed pain. A pain that made no sense to the woman crying unabashedly on the ground. "It wasn't enough to save him this time."_

" _I d-d-don't underst-stand…" Lucy/Ashley implored the woman._

 _A tear slid down the woman's cheek as she whispered back, "I never do."_

 _The sharp report of rapid gunfire had both women turning toward the sound, a jolt of adrenaline stirring Lucy/Ashley to her feet. She failed to notice where the other woman had gone as she turned, disoriented, and ran her shin into the nearest cot._

Lucy woke up on her couch, not remembering how she had gotten there.

The sun was...wrong somehow, slanting in through her west facing balcony doors and lighting up the dust motes floating otherwise invisibly in her apartment. She raised a hand to rub at her eyes and discovered a Post-It stuck to her palm.

 _ **You needed the rest. Don't beat yourself up about it. Went home. Gray**_

Well, he had never been a man of many words. Lucy sighed and used her other hand to rub at the sandy bits around her eyes, wincing at the abrasion on sensitive skin. How long had she slept? How much time did she have to get to class?

Leaning forward to grab her phone, sitting on the corner of her coffee table, she clicked it on to see the time.

Immediately she leapt from her prone position to her feet.

"4:15?! WHAT THE HELL GRAY?!" Dashing through her apartment, looking for her backpack, she spit out obscenities. She'd already missed too much class yesterday! She might have slept through all but one class of the day, but she was bound and determined not to miss it! And by the gods, she was going to work if it killed her. She needed groceries. Badly.

Lucy dashed out of her apartment and down the stairs, taking them two at a time. She burst out the doors, and ran smack dab into a very solidly built body, rebounding off the man in front of her to land on her butt on the concrete. Her tailbone stung and she hissed at the pain. She looked up, an apology on her lips as she saw who it was.

The blonde student in all of her classes looked down at her, clearly startled. He offered a hand to help her up as she laughed nervously and accepted it.

"Wow, I seem to be making a habit of running into you...I'm so sorry! At least...this time there was no coffee right?" Lucy let out a little bit more uncomfortable laughter. "But...anyway...got to go! Late for class!" She started to run off, but stopped, turning. "Wait, aren't you late too?"

The blonde guy blinked a few times and muttered, "Yeah, I guess."

"Well, then, come on! Let's go!" She started off running again, not checking to see if the guy was with her or not. She heard his footsteps for a while behind her though, so she assumed he was hot on her heels, but as she slowed down to open the door to the English building, holding it open behind her, she saw that he was nowhere to be seen.

Unwilling to wait for him any longer, she raced off to her classroom, promptly forgetting about him as she hastily explained to her professor about her friend's medical emergency and why that had made her late for class.

* * *

Natsu had initially been stunned to see Lucy race across the sidewalk in front of him, words forming in his throat to call out to her. Maybe they could finally meet in person. He was getting really antsy about the whole officially meeting her thing. The shit with her dad just sounded like an excuse. Anything going on had to be better for them to handle together, right?

But then, _he_ had raced by behind her, and the words died, in favor of immediate and swift action.

Lucy was being chased by her creepy stalker! He immediately put on a burst of speed and grabbed the guy's arm, pulling him behind the nearby building and slamming him into the brick. Hard

Natsu barely managed to dodge the punch thrown his way and jump the leg that swept out to trip him, on pure instinct. His eyes widened as he stumbled back a few steps, shifting his stance and guarding his face with his fists on instinct.

"Why were you following Lucy?" he growled, refusing to beat around the bush.

"We were late for class," the man growled back as he tried to shove past Natsu, a creepy grin finding its way to his lips as he ducked Natsu's right hook. Returning the hit with one of his own, which the pinkette immediately blocked.

"Bullshit. Not just today...you follow her everywhere. What the fuck do you want from her?" Natsu scoffed, tensing for the other man's next move. He could see, this close, that he was a little older than the typical student. Late twenties, early thirties maybe.

"What's it to you?" the man replied, feinting a dodge to the left before snaking right instead. With years of experience in the ring, Natsu read his opponent's midsection like a pro, reaching out to stop him on his true intended course.

"That's none of your business, you bastard." He grabbed the man's wrist, twisting it behind the man's back and clasping his arm around the other man's neck, in a flash. This man clearly had experience fighting, but he couldn't match Natsu's speed. "And you're more than a fucking stalker. Why are you following Lucy?!" He flexed his muscles, tightening the grip he had around the other man's throat. Natsu was done playing around with this guy.

"Confidential. That's between me and Miss Heartfilia. Sorry," the man ground out with no remorse, struggling against Natsu's hold. He was wicked strong. The pinkette knew he couldn't keep his grip for very long. So he made a choice.

The guy had used Lucy's last name. Her _real_ name. And Lucy didn't seem to recognize him from her life before running away...so, that meant only one thing.

Lucy's dad knew exactly where she was.

And now, he knew about Natsu. Exactly what Lucy hadn't wanted.

He tightened his grip, cutting off the man's oxygen. The blonde's struggling increased, but Natsu managed to hold him, putting every ounce of his strength to use. Eventually, the man's limbs slackened, and his body slumped, dropping it's considerable weight onto the pinkette. Keeping the hold for a few moments more, Natsu released him and let the body drop to the ground.

Staring at the prone body on the ground, Natsu grabbed his phone and called Gray.

"So, uh..." Natsu began with a sheepish chuckle. "Remember that guy we were talking about earlier?"

* * *

"Fernandes! You've got a visitor!" The guard apathetically stood by the open door to his cell, waiting for the blunette to get off his ass and to the visitation room so he could get back to his once hot coffee.

Jellal just stared at him for a moment, not quite comprehending. He did not have visitors. He never had visitors. Everyone that knew he was still alive, and cared, was there in prison with him. Well, almost.

"Fernandes!" the guard repeated louder, still going through the motions of the daily grind.

"Just fucking go," an equally apathetic voice echoed down from the top bunk. His roommate, known to everyone (who mattered) as Midnight, didn't even bother to open his eyes. "It's probably just another of your "fiances" finding out you're a bloody twat." The sharp British accent cut through Jellal's thoughts and spurred him up.

"Good thing they never met you then," he rattled off to his friend automatically, getting up from his bunk and striding through the door of his cell, brushing fake lint off of his orange jumpsuit as he passed the guard.

Midnight huffed out a chuckle that affirmed Jellal's statement, but otherwise, didn't move, as the door to the cell closed once more. He couldn't care less. As long as he had somewhere to sleep and meditate, it didn't matter where he was. Once they'd quit trying to get him to go outside, he'd been as content as a prisoner could be. It had cut down on prison incidents significantly.

Jellal made his way down the row, occasionally pausing for a handshake or fistbump with one of his friends or acquaintances. He'd made a lot of headway with gen pop already, doing what he did best: charming people and getting what he wanted from them. It was a little trickier staying in everyone's good graces without breaking character in such a limited area, but he managed.

Eventually they left the cell block and headed down a quieter hallway to the visitation room. The blunette had been there a couple of times before, months ago. Right when he'd first been sentenced, there had been a number "victims" from his previous cons that had shown up to give him hell. And his parents had visited right after the trial.

He didn't know why they had bothered. It wasn't like he'd seen them much on the outside anyway. They hadn't come back to visit again, but his mother sent him a care package full of things to barter with every month, so at least they were good for something. Never let it be said that Jellal Fernandes wasted a single opportunity. Be prepared. The one thing that had stuck from a failed stint with that do-gooder youth group his parents had forced on him. So he was always prepared. For anything.

Except the two faces that appeared behind the heavy metal door as it swung open.

He froze in the doorway. The guard, pretty much just fucking done at that point, shoved him in and closed the door, striding off to finish his coffee. The large room, sporting a number of tables, was empty, except for the new guard assigned there, watching something on a screen in his little booth, and the two individuals obviously there to see him.

Recovering quickly from his shock, at least externally, Jellal made his way slowly to a table and took a seat, his identical twin and the redhead he never thought he'd see again following his cue.

Jellal couldn't take his eyes off of her. He had seen pictures of how she had grown up over the years, but that was nothing compared to the reality. She was stunningly beautiful, even with her bright hair pulled back severely into a ponytail. Her casual clothing hugged every curve. A cold part of Jellal's mind stored away the image for a rainy day. That body was made to incite male fantasies and had been the subject of his own more than once.

Without taking his eyes off of the unexpected view, he spoke casually.

"Hello brother. To what do I owe this visit?" His eyes, still locked with Erza's picked up a flicker of motion and noticed Mystogan grasping Erza's hand through the scratched clear acrylic of the tabletop.

Ah. So that was how it was. It explained a lot.

How...ironic.

Mystogan turned to look at Erza, clenching his jaw to bite off the reply he wished to fling at his brother. This visit wasn't for him. His angry words could wait for later. Or never.

Erza tried desperately not to let the tears welling up in her eyes escape.

There he was. He was _right there._ After years of sadness, and months of confusion and betrayal - since meeting Mystogan and finding out the truth - the boy who had haunted her thoughts and ruined her sleep was sitting right there in front of her, no longer a boy, but a man. Staring back at her. It was hard not to see the mischievous and confident boy in the twist of his grown up smile, though, or the flash in his eyes.

Seated with both of them, it was ridiculously obvious how different they were to her. She couldn't believe she'd ever mistaken one for the other. The soft caress of Mystogan's thumb, warm against her hand contrasted with the chill in Jellal's gaze.

At least on the surface. Jellal was hiding his true feelings. She could tell.

She'd gone through hell with him. She'd seen him tortured and not break, never revealing their escape plan. She had known before that he was capable of so much more than his age implied. And it didn't take much to see that his guard was up. It hurt a bit. He'd never done that to her. At least, back then he hadn't.

But then, he'd also lied and pretended he was dead without telling her, so really the guarded expression was the least of the pain he'd caused her in the long run.

"I thought you were dead," she finally got out, breaking the silence. "Why didn't you find me? Why didn't you let me know you were ok?"

"Does it really matter Erza? That was a long time ago," he replied in his smooth way, more polished than she remembered, and with less feeling. Like it really didn't matter to him.

"It matters to me. I thought we had...something. I mourned for you."

"We were just kids, what could we have possibly _had_?" Jellal averted his eyes then, meeting Mystogan's gaze for the first time. He sighed internally at the anger he saw there.

Damn fool didn't even realize. It was so much easier this way. They were together. Or would be soon. And Jellal was just a childhood friend long dead. Until his brother had obviously told her otherwise. Idiot. He could have avoided this entire situation if he had just lied to her. Just told her that his...how had he phrased in all those years ago?..."disappointment of a sibling" was long dead and gone. He kept his thoughts locked away, letting only his opinion of his brother's inferiority leak out of his expression to mess with his head. Mystogan had always been so predictable. And malleable. His thoughts were cut short by a snapping tone he didn't associate with the girl he had once known.

"Stop lying Jellal. It didn't work then, and it doesn't work now! Just tell me the damn truth. Why didn't you tell me?! We had a deal!"

Jellal's eyes widened slightly in surprise as he switched his gaze back to her, blown away by the level of malice rising from her and the heated fury spilling from her eyes. Her words sparked a memory.

" _It's a deal then. No matter what happens. We find each other. When it's all over, we'll find each other and then we won't be alone. Even if I die, I'll wait for you. And we'll know that we won't be alone ever again. Not really." Her quiet voice didn't waver as she thrust out a hand, her back turned on the rest of the kids. He remembered thinking that no one would ever understand him like she did. So he took her hand._

" _Deal."_

Mystogan looked back and forth between his brother and his girlfriend. "A deal?" he muttered, confused. Jellal raised an eyebrow at Erza. She hadn't told him.

"Yes. We had a deal," he said, not sure why he was acknowledging it. His plan had been to deny memory of everything and provoke her into hating him. Then she'd be gone and he wouldn't have to think about it anymore. But the way his brother looked at her...he couldn't help it. He wanted Mystogan to wonder. And maybe suffer a bit in his confusion. He got the girl, he could live with a little suffering.

"And you broke it." Erza instantly had his attention again. And he was stunned to see tears running down her face. The Erza he knew didn't cry. She had had unspeakable things done to her, and still she had never cried. "Tell me Jellal. Explain it. Tell me why you didn't come to find me. Why you aren't waiting for me in death, the way I planned on waiting for you."

"We were kids, Erza. We didn't know what a promise like that meant. I'm not who I was. I changed. That's all there is to it." Jellal voice was tight with emotion as he stared at the table. He didn't want to see her cry. Anyone else could take a flying leap, and let them be damned, but Erza was the perfect, fearless voice in his head, egging him on. She was the only thing that had ever felt like home. Ever. And he couldn't bear to break that image. Sometimes, it was the only thing he had to hold onto: the certainty that the girl he remembered in his mind would never change. It had taken him years to forgive her for following the plan and leaving him behind in that burning building, and by then, he was nowhere near the boy he used to be. He stood then, the chair in which he sat scooting roughly against the floor with a screeching noise as he signaled the guard to call a transfer attendant and open the door.

With a final look into his past, he turned to leave.

"Wait," Erza said as she stood up, reached out, and grabbed his hand.

He never found out what she wanted to say. What she wanted him to wait for.

Because the minute her hand touched his, a jolt of warmth swept through his body, his vision flashing brightly to white, and his muscles contracting. Erza's grip tightened, and he heard all three of them gasp for air, before he was falling and then being slammed against the floor, a heavy weight settling on him.

Parallel cries erupted from his visitors, as pain bloomed in the shoulder where the guard was kneeling on him. He gritted his teeth. What the fuck? He hadn't even done anything!

"Are you alright?" he heard the guard ask. He assumed it wasn't him that merited concern, and twisted until he could see Erza and Mystogan getting up from the floor, each rubbing their right shoulder.

A hand came up to push his face against the disgusting floor and Jellal growled, surprised to hear Erza gasp and Mystogan curse before Erza spoke up.

"He didn't do anything. We just...fell. Please, let him go!"

The weight on his shoulder eased up, but he stayed where he was until the guard barked for him to get up. He got to his feet and touched the tender spot on his left cheekbone where he had hit the floor, and winced. He would have a bruise. Jellal turned, hand still to his cheek to see what had become of his visitors and froze.

What the fuck?

There were identical red spots beginning to bruise on each of their left cheekbones, right where his own cheek stung. He dropped his hand, revealing his bruise and the couple gasped in time again, seeing what he saw.

What the fuck had just happened?!

* * *

 **Aaaaand, I just kind of realized I left off on multiple cliffhangers...so...my bad! I'm evil. Also, yeah, I'm totally off the rails here. Who knows what's going on with the float and all the homecoming celebrations? Anyone? NOT ME! But honestly? Who cares?! (Sorry if you do care...chances are that stuff might show up again sometime...lol) Hurray meandering plotlines! Take me away zephyrs of inspiration and bend me to your will! I am your author puppet! Mwahahahahahahahahahaha!**

 **Yep, made Midnight British. Cause I can. And before he actually said anything in the anime, that's how I pictured his voice. Just did, so...yeah. British Midnight. Sounds like a cool spy name to me. hehe.**

 **Also, the references just haven't been flowing like normal. Anyone have a great reference they'd like to challenge me to work in next chapter?**

 **Plus...anyone seeing how ridiculously close this thing is to 1K reviews? ANYONE?! *eyes shift nervously* Man, I'm really gonna have to get them together soon...if we hit one thousand, I think I could swing it next chapter...maybe...we'll see. Like I said, plans clearly don't work for me...**


	29. Welcome Home-Friday

**Ok, so the weirdest thing ever: I sometimes have dreams of very random mundane things happening, and multiple times, those mundane things have happened. And, the convo between Natsu and Gray at the beginning of this chapter? I absolutely dreamed about writing it. About a year before I even started watching FT… and I randomly wrote it without planning out what they'd say first...so yeah...freaking myself out right now…**

 **Also, for all of you who didn't get a spoiler in response to a review...THIS IS THE CHAPTER! The one you've been waiting for! This is when IT happens! I vaguely promised that it would happen when we hit 1,000 reviews...and I don't know if you've seen the count lately...but it happened last chapter. *squeals so high-pitched only dogs can hear it* Ahem.**

 **So. ENJOY! XD And don't forget to feed my ravenous appetite for reviews! *cracks knuckles and writes 2K Reviews on the goal board***

* * *

"I swear to the fucking gods, Natsu, if you make me lose one more night of sleep, you're gonna be worse off than this guy…"

"Shut up popsicle breath. It's not like we could carry him across campus in the middle of the afternoon now, could we? Campus only gets really dead around 2am. Plus, last night was totally on Lucy. If she'd just realize how stupid she's being about her dad, I would have been the one hanging with her last night. And, I still ended up getting no sleep. So your pity party is gonna be a party of one cause-WATCH HIS HEAD!"

Gray just halted his movements and gave Natsu a look.

"Seriously? You're the _kreten_ who knocked him out in the middle of campus and then basically insisted on kidnapping him. I don't think hitting his head on something is gonna make that big of a difference at this point…" Gray grumbled. But he adjusted his course with the restrained man through the tiny opening anyway, so that his head would be safe from further cranial assault.

"He's the one who's been following Lucy! I couldn't just let him go off and repo-"

"Yeah, yeah, I know. You don't need to tell me again. Just, maybe think before you confront the next random stalker dude following around your almost girlfriend?"

Natsu huffed in response as he dropped the stalker's feet the last few inches to lay with the rest of him. "Hopefully there won't be anymore fuckers following her around."

"Yeah, good luck with that. I'm pretty sure Lucy will have guys stalking her until there's a ring on her finger...probably even then," Gray returned with a mildly annoyed tone as he shut the trapdoor to their hiding place. While Lucy seemed to be oblivious to the looks, he'd noticed the attention she garnered from the opposite sex on the few times they'd hung out. Hell, he had been pretty sure he was going to get murdered by someone when he laid claim at the Moon Drip party. He just hadn't expected that person to be Natsu. Another niggle of guilt twisted his stomach. He stomped it down. That shit wasn't worth dwelling on again. Not when he was still keeping Operation True Freedom from Natsu.

He'd almost broken and told him when he'd called about the guy following Lucy, but, if anything, this incident had only more securely cemented the idea that Natsu should not be brought in on a plan where he could go off the rails and end up in prison. Hell, he kinda already had gone off the rails… Gray stared down at the bound and gagged man in front of him. What were they fucking doing?!

"Wait, seriously? Does she have any other stalkers I don't know about?!" Natsu exclaimed suddenly, bringing Gray's thoughts back to their conversation. He snickered.

"Only every unattached guy on campus. She's hot. Get used to it," Gray needled him, chuckling when Natsu opened his mouth, about ready to explode. "Not real stalkers dumbass. But let's just say, if you ever fuck up with her, she won't have any lack of shoulders to cry on."

Natsu closed his mouth and glowered at his roommate. "Well, it's sure a good thing I have no intention of fucking up then."

"Whatever." Gray rubbed his tired eyes and gestured to a nearby barrel. "Can we just finish this shit up and go to bed? We're gonna have to find time to interrogate him tomorrow, and I'd rather not be running on empty for the second day in a row."

Natsu muttered something under his breath about some people not getting _any_ sleep, and helped Gray push a heavy barrel on top of the door. The barrel made subdued sloshing noises as it settled into place. Natsu raised an eyebrow at his partner in crime.

"Is this still full of…?"

"Knowing Cana? Yeah, more than likely." Gray paused in silent contemplation for a moment before something occurred to him. "Can he breathe in there? Should we drill some air holes or something?"

Natsu just shook his head. "Naw, there's plenty of spaces between the boards. He'll be fine. A bit warm, maybe, but he'll live until we can get back to him."

Gray nodded in tired agreement. It worked well enough as a makeshift prison for the time being.

"Besides," the pinkette continued, planting one foot on a nearby barrel in a fairly accurate Captain Morgan pose. "What kind of brig would it be without a little discomfort thrown into the deal?"

Gray just rolled his eyes and headed back to their room. He was going to get some decent sleep for the rest of the night, if he had to knock out his pink-haired roommate to do it.

Natsu jogged to catch up with him. "Hey, what time is your last class over?"

Gray raised an eyebrow. "Five-thirty. Why?"

"Well, we have to interrogate him sometime. I've got a group project meeting at seven...and they're a bunch of morons, so….meet back here at ten or so? I think most of the guys are going to the comedian they got for Homecoming, so the house should be pretty dead by then."

"Alright. I'll meet you here. But you should probably check on him at lunchtime and make sure he hasn't died of starvation or something."

"Psh, it's one day. He'll be fine. Fucker can wait."

Gray gave Natsu a look. A very dry look.

"Ahhh, fine. I'll bring him some water or something later alright? Better?"

Gray turned and walked away. It was way too fucking early for this shit. He was going back to bed.

* * *

Lucy stood outside Levy's door, bouncing on the balls of her feet and holding her traditional offering of caffeine, with an added bonus of chocolate croissants. She had gotten home from work the night before and immediately zonked out again, waking up to feel refreshed and ready to take on the next crazy thing that happened in her life.

Because at this point, she was almost used to it. Random bonding with a stranger? Sure, why not? Accidentally kissing her soulmate's best friend? Inevitable. Best friend found in a catatonic state? Yeah, par for the course. She honestly should have seen it coming. Lucy was just never going to lead a normal life. She'd be happier if she just accepted that. So that's what she'd decided to do.

Levy opened the door to her apartment with bright eyes, for once fully awake and more than ready for her friend.

"Levy-chan! I have something important to tell you! It can't wait anymore!" Lucy said, at the exact same time that Levy burst out with:

"Lu-chan! There's so much I need to tell you! I've learned the most incredible things!"

Somehow, both understanding the other, they replied to each other with an enthusiastic "OK!" as Levy quickly grabbed her coffee, and pulled the blonde into her apartment. Neither of them had class on Fridays until ten, so they had a good few hours to finally catch up.

Levy dragged Lucy into her living room and sat her down on the loveseat that had been recently vacated by books, as evidenced by the increased height of the stacks surrounding it. Well, mostly vacated.

Lucy reached back and grabbed the offending hardback novel she'd sat on upon landing.

"Conan Doyle again?"

"Of course. Elementary, my dear Lucy! In order to think like a detective, one must get into the mindset of a detective! So, I did a quick re-read of The Final Problem last night when Gajeel wouldn't let me go to the library, and it, of course, spurred on the urge to read the rest of the series. I got done about one or so."

"Well, I can hardly blame you," Lucy agreed, grinning at the blunette across from her, "Sherlock Holmes is like a potato chip. You can't read just one case...but shouldn't you be resting?" The blonde's demeanor instantly fell into what Levy liked to think of as Mother Hen Mode. Not quite as bad as Mrs. Bennet in the worrying department, but more than Marilla Cuthbert...like Mrs. Weasley; concerned and acting on that concern before she realized what she was doing. For a girl who'd grown up without one, Lucy sure was going to make a great mom someday.

Levy just groaned playfully...sort of. She really did hate being fussed over. It really made her miss her own parents. She couldn't wait to tell them about the discoveries she had made. They'd be so excited. She doubted they'd even care about the Ritalin. In the end, she was fine, and that's all that mattered. That and the amazing research notes she had. It had been tricky to get everything written down with Gajeel hovering, but she'd managed.

"I've already slept for an entire day...basically. I'm fine! Besides, I haven't gone to bed before one since I learned to read. This is just me getting back to normal!"

"Ok...if you're sure…" Lucy hedged, watching her friend closely. Unable to identify a single symptom of sleep deprivation on her friend's perky countenance, she eased her worry into the background. It wasn't going away anytime soon, but for now, she could see Levy had pretty much reached her limit for friendly concern. So she moved on, opening her mouth to ask what she'd been dying to know since she had fully realized her friend wasn't in mortal danger, but was interrupted by the sound of Levy's phone alerting her to a call.

After a quick search for the device (which ended up being inside a shoe and under a blanket off one end of the settee), and a hurried hello as Levy answered her phone, Lucy could hear Droy's worried voice coming through the speaker. Which was apparently the last straw.

"For the love of Thoth, I'm fine! It was just a little comatose episode! Seriously, it's like no one has ever fallen into a deep, drug-induced flashback before!"

"WHAT?!" Lucy could hear from the other end of the line as she facepalmed.

Which was about the moment Levy remembered that Droy had no idea she had flashbacks...or that she had spent 24 hours trying to get out of one. A sincere, apologetic conversation later - with Levy spent pacing the winding paths through her books around Lucy as the blonde giggled into her coffee and munched on croissants - the petite student slumped back onto the couch and buried her phone in the couch cushions, looking worlds more tired than she had a quarter of an hour before.

"Ok, that's it. Turn off your phone, this conversation is not getting interrupted again!" Levy declared.

Lucy dutifully dug her phone out and turned it to silent with a smile.

"Ok, now, before-Thank you," Levy cut off again, to accept the pastry Lucy offered her. "Before anything else has a chance to stop this, I'm deadlock sealing that door and we're having a nice long chat!" She playfully pointed the pen she had tucked behind her ear at the door and then threw it behind her.

"What's a deadlock seal?"

"And _then_ immediately after this conversation, we're beginning your education on Doctor Who."

"Fair enough!" Lucy responded, still confused, but game. "Now, Levy, tell me everything!"

It took Levy about an hour to get through her description of her Stone Age adventure, glossing over her anxiety and focusing on all the new things she'd learned.

Lucy knew Levy was leaving things out, the haunted look flickering before disappearing below her smile again every few minutes. It hadn't been an easy time for Levy being stuck in her own mind. And listening to her stories about the six weeks she'd experienced, Lucy could see why.

Cut off from movement and control for close to 42 days?! Who wouldn't be completely batty after that?! But Levy seemed mostly ok, the dark glints of fear rarely peeking out. Lucy was working up to asking her about it when she became caught up in Levy's tale about, first, her relationship with Natsu, and later, the goddess of the island. Levy had been describing the goddess that had appeared in front of her shortly before being slapped back into the present.

"...and she had this gorgeous flowing blonde hair, which, if anything, only made her look younger. But her eyes! They were different. It was like there was an old woman looking out of this young girl and-"

"Holy shit Levy, I've seen her!" Lucy exclaimed. Levy's eyes widened.

"What?! Have you flashed back that far too?"

"No. I saw her in a medical tent in...what I'm pretty sure was World War II. She just sort of showed up, right when my husband was dying. Except, I didn't really know how I knew he was dying. I just heard his voice. And it was Natsu's voice, and then that woman _, the one you were just describing,_ was there and telling me that he was dead and she was sorry, and it all just made no sense! Then she was gone, all of a sudden. I came out of the flashback, and I didn't really think about her much." Lucy trailed off into thought, feeling sort of muddled, like she should be putting something together but wasn't.

Unbeknownst to her, Levy was experiencing a similar feeling as they sat in silence. She felt like there was a veil of some kind keeping everything from becoming clear. After a moment of struggle, she wrote it off as lack of sleep.

"It was probably nothing…coincidence...wait, what were we just talking about?" Levy eventually said, a bit dazed. "What did you want to tell me earlier?"

"Oh!" Lucy immediately felt clear again as she recalled her discovery. "I wanted to tell you that I think we can do more than flash back to past lives! I was talking to Natsu, and I had a weird sort of vision thing, but it was of my bedroom now, and I'm pretty sure I was remembering what happened the night of the Fairy Tail party. You know, during "the gap." And I've tried a few times to remember everything that happened, just to see if I'm right, but I can't seemed to get there...I thought maybe, since you're so good at this, you'd want to give it a go. I know you really _really_ want to know what happened with Gajeel that night…" Lucy's voice took on a sly and teasing undertone.

Levy felt herself blushing, but barely noticed under the mix of excitement and panic mixing in her gut. Her usual self was urging her to dive right in and try it, eager to find out what her first time was like, and sort of hoping it would be easier to get past with Gajeel if she didn't have the huge chunk of time as a blank. It probably bothered her more than it should, but for some reason she just felt awkward around him without knowing what really happened. And avoidance had done nothing good for either of them.

But ever since she'd awoken from the stone age, she'd felt an undercurrent of fear. A version of herself that was hiding itself away where she couldn't get hurt; where her mind would stay nice and safe, right where it was. The thought of even trying filled that part of her with terror. What if she never woke up? What if she didn't go where she wanted? What if she ended up even further back? As an amoeba or something crawling out of the primordial ooze? She mentally shuddered at the thought. Even an hour of time in the real world stuck in such a hell would be more mental torture than she could take...wait, did single celled organisms even have souls? Probably not…

"Lev? You ok?" Lucy said hesitantly, watching bewildered as various emotions fought on her friend's face. "What's wrong? Do you not want to know?"

"No…" Levy finally said, staring at her lap. "I really do! It's just...what if…" She lifted her gaze then, locking eyes with Lucy suddenly before whispering, "What if I can't wake up?"

Lucy immediately understood the cloud over her friend. It was the same feeling that plagued her own mind whenever she thought of her father. What if?

What if he got me home and never let me leave again? What if he made me do things I could never forgive myself for?

So, ironically, she crafted a response born from the many times Levy had helped to break her own 'what if' mindset using the only weapon their similar minds would respond to 100% of the time...eventually: logic.

"Listen, the only reason you got stuck in the flashback was the Ritalin, right? Well, that scary woman proved that it no longer has a hold on you right? So, even if you got stuck again, after twenty minutes or something, I could slap you and bring you back. Plus, you wouldn't be trying to flash back, just remember, using your mad flashing skills...so it should be easier right? Because it was you _now_ , instead of you _then_...there should be less barriers, right? Logically? On top of that, I'm not sure it's possible to get stuck in a memory of your own life...at the very least, it could only last until you reached the time you started remembering, so that's only like, what? A couple weeks? An hour or two maybe? No big deal! The most important thing, is that you can't do it alone. And you shouldn't take medications you don't understand. As long as I'm here and you're not drugged up, I don't think there's a lot that can go wrong…" Lucy trailed off as she saw the panic fade from her friend's face. She smiled. It felt really good to help Levy for a change. It felt like all her new friends had been spending all kinds of time helping Lucy lately. "And, I had another thought. You've been taking notes on your flashbacks, right? Well, I'm creating a timeline with the stuff about my own flashbacks, and I was thinking - especially after hearing that me and Natsu, and Gajeel, and other people were all there in the Stone Age - that I could put it all together and see if we can figure out why we're bonded like this. We could work together. You getting the information, and me doing that in part as well of course, and then me putting it all together to get the big picture...whataya think?"

Levy was thoughtful for a moment. Lucy's speech had said a lot of things she couldn't argue with, and the fearful part of her had shrunk considerably, but deep down, it was still there. What eventually made her throw a mental blanket over the fear, and lock it in a closet with her other internal monsters, was the memory of Porlyusica's words. She _had_ to learn. It was too late to turn back. And the fierce woman hadn't forbid her from trying to flash back, just from using medications to do it. So, it should be fine, right?

"Ok, I'll try it. Just...not yet. I need to talk to Gajeel. I think if I try anything else without him again, I'll break him."

Lucy nodded and tried not to let her disappointment show. She got it. She knew all too well what Levy's last trip had done to Gajeel. If Lucy'd been catatonic for 24 hours, Natsu probably would have burned down the city looking for her, but she had really wanted to be there to see Levy do it.

"Ok, that's probably a good idea. I think he'd probably hate me forever if I knew about your first time before he did anyway."

Lucy's attempt to lighten the mood was a smashing success as Levy snorted and started giggling uncontrollably, just picturing the look on Gajeel's face.

"Oh man, he'd...be so...pissed!" she chortled out, tears coming to the corner of her eyes. Lucy couldn't help but join in. The two talked about nonsense, and laughed, and ate croissants until they had to go to class.

Something they had both, unbeknownst to them, desperately needed.

* * *

Sunlight crept across the room, inching its way slowly over the industrial berber carpeting to finally reach the redheaded woman snuggled warmly under a fluffy blue comforter. Erza opened her eyes to a completely unfamiliar place. Which normally would have had her springing into action in a panic, but as she foggily drew her head back from the sunlight blinding her, her memories of the previous day came back to her.

The visit to the jail, the weird shock, the bruises...and the hours of processing following whatever the fuck had happened to them. And by processing, she meant the time being examined by the prison doctor, the time spent speculating with Mystogan on the way back to Magnolia, the continued conversation over dinner, and the subsequent night cap that had ended with them both tipsy, and her nodding off in his room. He must have carried her to his bed at some point.

Which explained the arm slung loosely over her waist. And the feeling of exhaustion blanketing her body in lead to the marvelously supported bed that took up most of the room. The confusion of the whole ordeal had been exhausting, but his bed was easily on par with hers, hugging her curves in cushy support. She was delighted to see she had something else in common with the man who had become...well, she wasn't sure what they were anymore. Definitely more than what they'd been.

Her leg itched and she shifted slightly to scratch at it with her toes through her jeans. Erza couldn't help but smile. Mystogan was always a gentleman. If she hadn't taken off her socks the night before, she probably would have woken up in those too. She winced a bit as she realized she'd slept in her bra though. She could feel it digging in to her ribs a bit and squirmed a bit, trying to fix it without disturbing the man behind her.

Her thoughts immediately took another turn though, as her movements stirred the hand resting on her waist to life. Quicker than the sharp inhale she took, she found herself dragged back across the bed and pressed up against a warm, hard body.

And the hard length of his erection against her backside was definitely not gentlemanly.

Her heart rate doubled.

But the nose nuzzling her hair was so sweet, and the hand settled firmly just above her belly-button (without trying for more) was reassuring. He wasn't trying to put a move on her. His even breathing indicated he was just snuggling up to her in his sleep.

But still, she felt all of her muscles tense up, unused to the intimate contact. Sure, she wasn't really shy about sex, but it had also been a long time since she'd engaged in anything of the kind. Apparently something about her was 'intimidating' (that was the word Natsu and Gray used all the time). Her nerves kept her muscles tense until she heard a soft buzz of sound next to her ear. And she had to smile, relaxing slowly, the tension in her muscles melting at the sound.

After only a few moments of his soft humming, she could pick out the melody and found herself humming it too. She knew the notes…but she just couldn't place the song...and as she mentally rifled through her musical knowledge, the pleasant rumble lulled her back to sleep, pulled a good foot away from the advancing sun by her blue-haired...more-than-a-date.

* * *

Gray had been debating what to do the whole first half of the day. With a good six hours of rest under his belt, he was thinking a little clearer, and, the way he saw it, Operation True Freedom was in desperate need of information. He had access to that information...maybe. But the only one who knew enough to ask the right questions was Lucy.

At the same time, Natsu was in control of their source of information and was not supposed to know about the True Freedom Task Force (Gray's contribution to the naming endeavor), for his own legal safety.

It was a conundrum, but not insurmountable.

Personally, Gray suspected Natsu knew about the whole thing. His _convenient_ knowledge about Lucy's father was just that: a little too convenient. How could he know about that and not everything else? Gray gritted his teeth. Sneaky spy shit was not his deal. He'd rather just beat the living hell out of his problems and live with the consequences.

But unfortunately, with his favorite punching bag permanently out of commission due to an increasingly complicated soulmate bond (Natsu's life was heading on the crazy train to Funkytown way too fast...and that random thought made Gray think maybe he could have used another couple hours of sleep), he came up with a different plan. A plan in which, if he played his cards right, he'd be done keeping secrets.

With a smirk, Gray pulled out his phone and texted his fellow conspirators to meet him at Fairy Tail at nine thirty.

* * *

Natsu couldn't concentrate on class. He had no idea what the lecture was even on, his mind wandering to Lucy whenever he wasn't actively concentrating on the words in front of him. Which weren't catching his attention the way anything chemistry-related normally did.

He hadn't spoken to her at all since he'd had his run in with her stalker. He was afraid she'd know something was up, and he couldn't tell her what had happened. Not yet. He needed to know what was going on before he worried her like that.

But Natsu missed her. He kept itching to text her, or write to her, or something. One of his morning professors had confiscated his lighter after he accidentally lit one of his notebook pages on fire. Lunch had been unbearably boring, and now, more than once, he'd caught his hand hovering over his arm instead of his notebook, pen ready to grab her attention again. Natsu was starting to think he was getting a little needy. He'd never before needed anyone to pay attention to him to the point where it was all he could think about. It probably wasn't healthy.

He purposefully brought his pen back to his notebook again and wrote down, word for word what the next slide said...but he couldn't have told anyone what he'd just written. After that slide, he gave up and started doodling on his notebook, mostly using little stars and lines, kind of like the drawing he'd done on Lucy's feet that first time.

And the next thing he knew, he was drawing little chubby chibi Lucy's all over his notebook page. She climbed up the blue lines, slowly but surely making her way to the top of the page, dashing across above his notes to parachute down the other side. He drew her in all kinds of crazy outfits. Things that would never stay up with a chest like hers: strapless, but with sleeves, because Lucy _would_ wear something weird like that. And he paired them with those short little skirts she wore, with the thigh-highs and the boots, because...well, that would never not be hot. Fuck it, they were his drawings, he could do what he wanted.

Once he'd drawn her at least a dozen different ways, in a dozen situations, he added what was glaringly missing: himself.

And so there was a chibi Natsu, in weird clothes that matched hers, helping her climb up the cliff of endless blue lines, dragging her by the hand across the page, and floating down next to her with the help of Happy. Because Natsu had always thought it'd be awesome to have a flying cat. Next to having a dragon of course. So he added a dragon in the background. Why the fuck not.

When he ran out of room, he drew on himself out of habit, totally forgetting that he was trying to avoid Lucy. He drew the little incarnations of them running across his arm, with tiny Natsu giving tiny Lucy a tiny piggyback ride, grinning as their winged cat flew around them. He finished the arm drawing with hints of background, a little grass here, a wisp of cloud there, and a range of hills behind them as they set off on the morning of an adventure.

He was just looking up to see that there was still half the lecture period left to live through, when he felt a different sort of tingle on his arm. Kind of...cold...or maybe just wet. Natsu was instantly amused to see bursts of color popping up across his arm. He hunched down and dropped his arm to his lap to keep any of his peers from noticing.

It seemed Lucy was getting in on the fun. And she had markers.

Like a kindergartner at the Crayola store, Natsu watched with a luminous grin as Lucy filled in the blanks of their little world. First their hair came to life, in yellow and pink. Her outfit became blue and gold, his navy and gold. Happy was blue, assumedly because there weren't any white markers (and because she really seemed to like blue). The path was filled in with speckles of brown and tan, and the wisps of grass became two vibrant tones of green.

But the real show was when she started coloring in the sky. Natsu had been mistaken. Lucy showed him that what he'd drawn wasn't them setting out for adventure, but instead, returning on a mesmerizing night. Using blotches of marker, and what smelled like hand sanitizer, she bled the colors of a nebula across the bare expanse of his arm, never quite reaching black around the edges, but trying her hardest with the deep dark purple that passed for black in the marker world.

Just when he thought she was finished, little specks of white showed up. One at a time, what he was pretty sure were White-Out stars blossomed out of the night, carefully clustered in specific patterns he assumed were the constellations. When the big dipper showed up, he figured he was right. She'd gotten about halfway done with the sky when Natsu decided the whole thing needed shading, so he dug out one of the really nice felt tip pens he'd borrowed/stolen from Reedus and started adding cross-hatching and depth.

His lecture went on for another hour, but he didn't remember a moment of the lesson.

Whatever. Everything was more fun with Lucy. How could class hope to compete?

* * *

Gajeel always knew what to do. It was something bolted to his soul; his sense of certainty.

Even when it came to dealing with his father's death, and suddenly finding out what adulthood really entailed, he'd never faltered. He knew what he wanted to do, and he knew he had two choices: do what he really wanted to, or be a chickenshit and run his old man's gym. And Gajeel had never been a chickenshit.

After that was decided, it had just been a matter of just doing what had to be done; a life of clear choices to be made and problems to be solved.

Until Levy popped into his life.

Every time he thought he knew what to do with her, she turned around and proved him wrong. Until she'd proved him right. But somehow he was still wrong? She was so confusing sometimes!

She was nothing like the women he'd dated before. Smarter, smaller, more independent, more...pure. Not in terms of morality, necessarily, just whatever she did, it was always all in. No half-assery for Levy. She also always knew what she wanted and what to do to get it. It was a trait he loved about her...one of the only things they actually had in common. Common sense told them what needed to be done and they did it, generally not getting caught up in the what-ifs (with him, because they didn't exist; with her, because she'd already considered them all). She loved to play games with people, but to him, her intentions were always crystal clear. Levy couldn't hide anything from him for long. She would love knowing he thought of her as an open book. Sometimes confusing, but always obvious.

Her intentions were crystal clear now too. It was just that now, they scared the shit out of him.

"Gajeel, I'm not saying you don't get a say, but in the end it's my life to use how I want," Levy argued, leaning over the front desk at Black Steel. The shop was on a brief lull, a rare occurrence those days, so Gajeel had decided it was a decent enough time to continue what recently seemed to be a never-ending argument.

"Like hell it is! You're my fucking girlfriend, Levy. And apparently my soulmate. We're stuck together, and that means your life is more than just yours. Just like my life is more than just mine. It's called being in a mature fucking relationship!" he responded, his frustration with her boiling just below the surface.

"This has nothing to do with our relationship. It's a personal issue," the blunette attempted next. Gajeel snorted. He could practically see her ticking off the arguments as she went along, working down the list of reasons she'd compiled to guarantee her victory. To Levy, arguing was a sport, and she was shooting for MVP.

"Yeah, that's not even close to the truth and you know it. You only started on this crazy warpath to master the flashbacks to find out what was corrupting _my_ soul. So, yeah. Not fucking buying that. Try again." He leaned back and crossed his arms, his biceps bulging a bit as his tension showed. He didn't miss how her eyes darted to his arms and her pupils dilated a bit.

She'd confessed to his arms being a turn-on before. But that was not where this conversation needed to go. And they both knew it. He intentionally stopped flexing.

She frowned a bit as she moved on to her next argument.

"Even Porlyusica said I needed to learn! I need to do this Gajeel! I just do!" Levy's belligerent stance suddenly dissipated as she dropped her gaze to the appointment book and started flipping through the pages. His gaze sharpened on her immediately. Levy never gave up in the middle of an argument.

She muttered something Gajeel didn't catch. But he instantly knew, it was important.

"What was that, short stuff?" he provoked her intentionally. Her hot little temper always overrode her embarrassment or common sense. Sometimes it amazed him that no one else could see what she was thinking, but most of the time, he didn't bother thinking about it. She was his soulmate. It all made sense once he'd accepted that.

"I said, I don't want to get stuck again! OK? I don't want to get thrown back into a flashback and lose myself! Cela me fait peur!" She turned to him with a hint of desperation in her gaze. "Et si je n'ai jamais lu un autre livre? Et si je ne vous reverrais jamais? Ou ressentiz-vous votre toucher, le contact de quelqu'un à nouveau? Quoi alors?"

Gajeel had no fucking clue what she said once she'd wandered off into another language, but he could tell she was scared. Really, really scared. So, on instinct, he unfolded his arms and pulled her against him, curling protectively around her and holding her tight.

Yeah, he was still mad at her. He wasn't used to being scared, and it bugged the crap out of him, but she wasn't used to being scared either, and right now she was terrified. Some things transcended an argument.

And some things ended one.

"I'm so sorry Gajeel," Levy whispered. "I didn't listen to you. I _should_ have listened. Maybe then...but I wanted to help so badly, and then I found out I'm this _wunderkind_ of flashing or something and it went to my head-"

"Wait," Gajeel interrupted, leaning back. "You're what now?"

"Oh, sorry, it's like...a prodigy. So I'm apparently some kind of flashback prodigy or something. What I do is _really_ uncommon, I guess. At least according to Ultear. So, I kind of got caught up in it. You know, like destiny was telling me it was the right thing to do! I felt invincible. And when I get caught up in something like that...I tend to skip the safety instructions… And then I was so sure that I was right...and well...I'm...sorry." She peeked up at him through her lashes, more vulnerable than he had ever seen her. He was pretty sure she hadn't come so close to admitting she was wrong in the entire time they'd known each other. And probably long before that. He drew her back into a hug, a turbulent mix of annoyance and amusement settling on him as he huffed out a humorless laugh.

"Of _course_ you are."

"Hey! What's that supposed to mean?!"

"Cool your jets Shrimp, I just meant, I should have seen it coming is all. What _aren't_ you good at?"

Levy blinked eyes widened by surprise at him before responding.

"What are you talking about? I'm terrible at a lot of things!"

"Psh, like what?"

"Sports."

"You hate them, yeah, but have you ever actually tried them?"

"Not really… Alright, well, I'm terrible at...ice skating!"

"That's a sport Shrimp."

"But I tried it and I was terrible! And it's different than basketball or something..."

"So barring anything involving strength or coordination, you can't think of anything you aren't great at? I'm still calling that a win for me."

"Aw, come on, I'm bad at more stuff than that!" She thought for a second. "I know! I can't cook! AT ALL. I burn _everything._ HA! You can't argue with that!"

Gajeel was quiet. He really couldn't argue with that.

"Fair enough Shrimp. But you have to admit, your "good at stuff" list is a hell of a lot longer than your "sucks at stuff" list."

"So what? I've worked hard to become good at stuff!"

Gajeel just snorted at that. "Thought we were trying for honesty Shrimp."

"Ok, fine, I've consciously _attempted_ to be good at everything, and it isn't my fault if everything is so damn easy, ok?"

"There she is. I was starting to think the weird humble Levy had taken over for good. What a relief." Gajeel chuckled as his girlfriend screwed up her face in confusion.

"Isn't that...well, wasn't that what you wanted? For me to be more humble?" Levy wasn't sure what he was getting at. If this whole argument wasn't to get her to realize she wasn't all that and bag of crunchy Cheetos, then what was the point?

"Well, I'm not gonna lie and say it wasn't nice to bring you down off your pedestal for a while...but why would I want to keep you down on the ground with us mere mortals full time? You're so much easier to kiss standing on a pedestal…" Gajeel accompanied his words with a quick grab and a spin, hauling Levy up onto the high counter in front of him and setting her firmly on the appointment book. She squeaked in surprise and then burst out laughing.

"Wow Gajeel, that was so eloquent. Are you about to propose or something?" Levy ribbed with a saucy grin. By the faint flush of the tall man's cheeks, she could tell he knew she was thinking of his first flashback again. It was one of her favorite things to tease him about.

"Hey, even if I proposed here, it would still beat a copy room!" he exclaimed, slightly embarrassed. "And I'm plenty eloquent when I want to be!"

Smiling widely up at him, Levy grabbed his cheeks and brought his forehead down to hers. "Hell yes you are. Now show me how eloquent that tongue of yours is.."

Just as he leaned forward to kiss her, the godsdamned guitar riff signalled the door opening and Gajeel bit back a frustrated growl. He closed his eyes and tried to remember that customers walking through his door were a good thing.

"What, screwing your front desk girl already, what kind of establishment is this?!"

Gajeel's eyes popped open at the voice and he grinned at the muscular black man leaning in his doorway.

"Lily! What brings you in? Finally ready to get some decent ink?" he said as he practically skipped around the counter and exchanged a man-hug with his best friend. Levy watched the exchange, mesmerized by the way her beast of a man's eyes could go from brooding, to steamy, to playful in such a short time. Some idle observer might not even note the subtle changes, perhaps labeling Gajeel a stoic, but she could see every nuance.

It wasn't until he was cleaning up after their last appointment a few hours later, that she realized they hadn't really resolved anything. She sighed and finished checking out the client, getting a promise to return.

Levy checked her phone. It was five 'til seven o'clock, when her shift ended, leaving plenty of time to eat before meeting Lucy and Gray. Maybe even enough time to try remembering...which reminded her she had forgotten something important.

The blunette cleaned up the front desk and headed to the back room, stopping just inside the door to watch her boyfriend pulling apart bits of the equipment that needed to be sterilized and wiping down everything else.

"Hey...Gajeel?"

"What's up, Shrimp?" he replied, continuing his work.

"I meant to tell you something earlier. Something Lucy told me."

"Ok, shoot."

"Well, Lucy thinks that we can flashback to missing memories of _this_ life. She's actually done it once. So anything we don't remember, we could...experience again."

Gajeel froze. So, it was possible to know for sure what had happened between them that night. That changed things a bit.

As much as he didn't want Levy diving head first into the past, he really wanted to finally get the weird tension between them resolved. He was not a fan of being cockblocked by the absence of a memory. How the fuck was he supposed to fix that? He didn't even really know why it mattered!

"But, I told her I wouldn't try it without asking you first. Because, personal, or not, you should get a say. I'm not used to the whole relationship thing, so sometimes I forget that I'm supposed to do things like that. I guess that's just another thing I'm not great at...yet."

Gajeel let out a snort at that, but soon went back to his cleaning procedures. Levy smiled a little.

"So, as long as Lucy is with me, and we don't try to go into the past, do you think it's a good idea to try and remember?"

A little part of Gajeel swelled in pride that she was asking him at all. Another part was banging his head against the wall, trying to figure out what he wanted her to do. Well, no, that wasn't quite true. He knew he wanted her to forget that flashbacks were possible and leave whole damn thing alone. But the dragon lady had said that wasn't an option, and she seemed to know what she was talking about. So where on the scale of leave-it-the-fuck-alone to life-threatening-enthusiasm did he draw his line in the sand? He really wanted her to wait to work with someone who knew what they were doing, like that Porlyusica woman at least. But, he didn't think Levy would be satisfied to wait. Though, she had been awful scared…

"Why don't you teach Lucy how to do it?" he finally suggested.

Levy cocked her head in confusion. "What?"

"You said she had already done it once...why don't you show her how to do and have her try to access her memory first? She hasn't done it on purpose before, so she probably won't fall into a flashback out of habit or whatever, and you still get answers. Plus, you said Lucy used to sit in on her dad's meetings and stuff right? So maybe she overheard something that you guys could use against him." Gajeel was not officially involved in the plan to free Lucy from her asshole dad, but with how much Levy talked to him about it, he might as well have been.

Levy's eyes got wide. "Gajeel...THAT'S BRILLIANT! Holy shit, I need to call Lucy! That could be the solution to everything!" As she spoke, she grabbed up her bag, shoving everything back into it so she could get it zipped again. She was halfway out the door when he spoke up again.

"So, you won't try anything Shrimp? You'll let it sit until the bitchy dragon lady can help ya?"

Levy stopped in place, dropping her bag and purposefully turning to stride back to him. Grabbing hunks of his wild mane, she tugged him down to her eye level.

"I won't do a damn thing except help Lucy remember. I swear. Now, I'm going. You're a fucking genius and I love you."

And with that she planted a very thorough kiss on him, broke away and ran out the door, scooping up her bag along the way.

Gajeel just stood frozen in his store until the tinny echoes of the door alarm rang themselves out.

She loved him?

"Well fuck."

He had not been expecting that.

* * *

It hadn't taken long for Lucy to figure out the basics of 'present life flashing' (Patent pending, Levy McGarden), but for a laymen without the ability to have lucid flashbacks, progress was slow. Also, while inducing feelings of lust and fear to take Lucy back to the night of Moon Drip and making her relive making out with Gray (and being scared shitless by Michelle) had been easy, figuring out how to induce flashbacks to her childhood had proved more than difficult. On top of that, Lucy was getting frazzled, and they were almost out of time.

"I don't know Levy! I was super young, ok? Anything I don't still remember happened so long ago, I couldn't even begin to tell you what I was feeling. Except sadness that my mom wasn't there. And that already made me relive her funeral, so I'm not terribly enthused to do that again…" Lucy petered out over the length of the rant that had started as a yell of frustration. Levy could see it was getting to her. That flashback to her mom's funeral really had been a doozy.

"Well, maybe there's a different way to spark the memories? Like smell or location? Scent is the strongest scent linked to memory after all! Do you remember any strong smells from your dad's office?"

"Levy, that's a really good idea and all, but I just can't do any more tonight. I'm sad, and I'm tired, and I'm hormonal, and we're out of time. We have to go meet Gray in about twenty minutes. And I don't know about you, but I would love to freshen up and change and try to feel like a human being again before we see whatever the hell he wants to show us at Fairy Tail."

"Did he ever get back to you about Natsu?"

"Yeah, he's got a group project meeting, so there shouldn't be any risk I'll run into him."

"Well, that's...good, I guess." Levy tried not to be disappointed. She'd been waiting for the two of them to get together for so long it took everything she had not to drag Lucy over to Fairy Tail and leave her tied up in his room with a big, shiny red bow.

Granted...that was still an option…

"Levy-chan…" Lucy said, drawing out the word with a warning in her voice at the expression on her friend's face. "Stop your plotting, or I'll start sending people to your Bookworm Cave and telling them they can pay you to do their homework!"

Levy gasped. "You wouldn't!"

"Don't tempt me. You can't begin to know what I'm capable of. Now, go read or something while I get ready and I'll come over when I'm done, ok?"

"Fine. I'll see if I've got any books on hypnotism...maybe that will help you with your memories! I think someone gave me one once…" Levy's voice faded as she left Lucy's apartment, cutting off altogether when she shut the door.

Lucy reveled in the silence before hitting her bathroom. She wished the fifteen minutes were an hour instead. Oh well, if she was a little bit late, Gray would just have to wait.

After a moment, she frowned down at the beautiful drawing on her arm...and texted Natsu.

 _Shower?_

 **sorry, can't. you ok though? you seemed upset earlier.** Oh right. Group project. So, she'd just wipe off the cold sweat on her skin and call it good.

 _No problem. I'm fine._

She wiped off her skin, avoiding their joint art project, and quickly changed into fresh clothes.

She didn't want to be late.

But that didn't stop her from grabbing her pink highlighter and brightening up chibi Natsu's hair. She just wasn't in the mood to hurry.

* * *

Gray waited.

And waited.

And waited.

Ok, so he didn't wait that long, but when he had a hellish nightmare of time-related events revolving in a particular sequence around him, every second seemed like an eternity.

"Where the fuck _are_ they?" he whispered harshly to the night air, pacing shirtless back across the parking lot for the hundredth time. They were only like five minutes late, which wasn't the end of the world, but too much longer and the plan would be ruined.

"Hey Gray, whatcha up to?"

The familiar voice froze him in his tracks. Shit. Everyone was supposed to be at the stupid dining hall for the guest comedian thing. Why was he still here?

"Not much Romeo. You headed over to the Homecoming thing?" he questioned casually.

"You know it. But I wanted to borrow Natsu's notes from last year's chem engineering lab. This one is kicking my ass, and I wanted to bring it with me to study in between sets and stuff. Apparently some local bands are playing after the funny man's done."

"That's cool. But Natsu's not gonna be home for a while, why don't you just ask him tomorrow?" Gray tried to play it cool, but he was more than aware that if the girls showed up while Romeo was standing with him, they'd never get rid of him. He was a joiner; never turned down an opportunity to be around people.

"Damn, my lab report is due tomorrow and I'm pretty sure I royally fucked up somewhere...can I just look through his notebooks and see if I can find it?"

"Yeah, sure, I'll let you into the room quick and you can grab it." Gray hustled the sophomore back into the house, opening his door and jotting off a quick text to the Task Force as the younger male started looking through the pile of notebooks under their couch.

 _ **Had to head inside for a min, meet u in the parking lot out back. Wait 4 me there.**_

He got a prompt response from Lucy.

 _Almost there, will do!_

Gray joined in the search after a minute, unable to sit still with all the nervous energy stabbing at him. There were so many ways this night could go south.

And why couldn't Natsu stop being a hoarder and organize his shit on a shelf like a normal human being?!

* * *

When Levy and Lucy arrived, Gray was nowhere to be seen. But that didn't really matter to them.

Because they were distracted by the positively massive pirate ship rising up in front of them and taking up more than half of the parking lot.

It was a majestic ship, built primarily out of what upon closer inspection appeared to be old wine casks, most of them cracked and useless. Where Fairy Tail had managed to obtain such a large number of old-fashioned barrels was beyond them, but they had to admit, with the addition of what looked like a telephone pole for the mast, and a long four-by-four, some molding, and a carving of a woman (that looked suspiciously like the mascot for Lamia Scale) for a figurehead, those barrels cleaned up pretty damn nice. The jolly roger flying just below the Fairy Tail flag was a nice touch.

Cautiously, the two girls approached the ship and found a rope ladder hanging over one side. Exchanging a quick look, they immediately scrambled up it, eager to see if the inside was just as incredible. It took them a few minutes, as the deck of the ship was a good fifteen feet off the ground. The ship rocked a little, but didn't move as they swayed on the rope ladder, the wheels of the trailer, concealed inside, sturdily wedged for safety.

While the inside of the ship was a little rougher around the edges, both girls still felt a sort of eerily supernatural vibe settle over them at the last vestiges of the evening sun vanished from the sky.

In the dark of the parking lot, and the muffled night sounds of Magnolia's suburbia, it was easy to imagine they were out to sea, the lack of waves the only indication that they remained on dry land. Which was good, because there was no way in hell that ship was seaworthy.

All off a sudden, they heard a rhythmic noise coming from down the deck.

 _Thu-thump._

A lesser clunking noise, then a harsher one. They froze, straining their ears to hear it again.

 _Thu-thump!_

The noise seemed more urgent now.

 _Thu-thump! Thu-thump!_

It was a bi-tonal sound...like a heartbeat. Poe's Tell-Tale Heart popped into both of their brains simultaneously and they clutched their hearts, immediately looking at the floorboards of the ship under their feet. They got to their knees and had just placed their ears to the boards when Gray swung up over the side of the ship, scaring the ever-living shit out of them.

They jumped in shock, falling over and landing on their butts as they leapt away from Gray with short, shrill screams.

"Hey! Sssssshhhh! Quiet! Do you guys want someone to come investigate?!" Gray whispered at them.

"Maybe!" Lucy whispered fiercely back, not sure why they needed to be quiet at all. "What the hell are we doing here? And _why_ is there a pirate ship in your parking lot?!"

"It's for the Homecoming parade. Our other float caught fire. I thought Natsu told you…"

Lucy vaguely remembered Natsu's explanation about the burning float, but had admittedly been very distracted when she found out she had been on speakerphone for most of her worried rant.

 _Thu-thump!_

All three of them turned toward the sound, which now clearly came from the end of the ship.

"Gray...what the HELL is that?" Levy demanded, still in a hushed tone.

"Dammit. He's rocking the barrel." Gray walked to the source of the sound and put a hand on a particular barrel, which moved again under his hand. "And we used a full one too. That bastard is strong."

"Gray...what are you talking about?"

Gray turned to Lucy, shoving the heavy barrel over about a foot, revealing the trap door underneath it, which promptly popped open, to reveal a pair of bound legs and the man attached to them: mad as hell, bound and gagged, and glaring out of the gaping hole left in the floor that had been covered up by the trap door.

"I'm talking about him. He's why I wanted you guys to come over tonight. Lucy, Natsu caught this guy following you and confronted him. He said your last name. Your _real_ last name. Natsu knocked him out last night and we hid him here. I need you to help me interrogate him before Natsu gets back. If you can identify him, we can figure out how he knows you and why he's following you."

Lucy paled. "He's been...following me?" The ending of her sentence came out in a squeak as she sidled up to the hole, the darkness still concealing the man's face. Levy moved to hold her hand, squeezing it gently. Gray pulled out his phone, turning on the flashlight app and shone it down into the hole, illuminating the man's face as he squinted at the bright light.

Lucy staggered backward pulling away from Levy. "He's...he's in all my classes!"

Gray stooped to pull the gag away from the man's mouth. "What's your name?" he said coldly, the outlines of his muscular chest blending with the shadows behind him. He knew he cut an ominous figure above their hostage, and he used it to his benefit. Levy came up behind him.

"How do you know Lucy? What do you want from her?"

"Well, it won't help you any, but Miss Heartfilia might know me by...Z. So she'll know what happens next if you don't free me," the man said calmly, evidently having decided sometime during his day of captivity just what he was willing to share to be set free.

Lucy felt the blood drain from her face and she shuffled further away from the man, intent on nothing but putting distance between them. She hadn't heard of him specifically, but if he went by a letter of the alphabet, then there was only one person he could work for.

She backed up further, self-awareness abandoned in favor of terror as she desperately fled from the man who worked for her father. Gray began speaking just as her foot caught on an uneven board and the low rail of the deck brushed against the back of her legs.

"Z? What the hell is that-" Gray was cut off by a small cry. Spinning around, he and Levy turned just in time to see Lucy disappear over the side, falling more than a dozen feet to the concrete below.

* * *

Thankfully, Natsu's group had gotten done quicker than he'd hoped...by about ten minutes.

But ten minutes sooner was ten more minutes he didn't have to wait to find out what was going on with his prisoner, so he could call Lucy to tell her what was going on. The time was _finally_ upon him and he rushed home from campus, taking a shortcut through a couple of backyards and coming out behind the house to the parking lot, where the "ship" was. It was almost ten now, so maybe Gray would already be there waiting for him.

He saw a flashlight shining faintly on the parade float he and his fellow Fairy Tail men had been working on in their every spare moment, and figured it was Gray waiting for him. It was turning out pretty damn well so far, if he did say so himself. The ninja mission to get the telephone pole had been absolutely worth it. There was still a crow's nest to build, and rigging to make, but the sails had gone up while he was in class and it was really looking like a real ship all of a sudden.

He was about fifty yards away when he saw that Gray was not alone on the ship, two silhouettes outlined against the sails with him. What the hell was going on?

With a dreaded sense of suspicion, Natsu maintained speed as he centered his focus on Lucy, praying he wouldn't hear what he heard her gasping.

"He's...he's in all my classes!"

Natsu doubled his speed. Fuck. What was Lucy doing there?! Didn't Gray understand what this would do to her? He could feel her heart jackrabbiting in her chest and her feet stumbling beneath her. He saw one of the figures moving steadily toward the edge of the ship and broke into a sprint. The other two figures didn't seem to notice what was happening behind them, occupied with something in the floor. The prisoner. Dammit Gray, turn the fuck around!

He was breathing so hard he couldn't form words. Couldn't yell out to warn them of what was about to happen. So he was gonna have to be it.

He felt the back of Lucy's foot snag on something and she hit the railing with the back of her legs, hard.

He dove forward, skidding to a stop just in time to reach out and catch her, Lucy's weight knocking him over in the process. His back hit the ground, hard, and Lucy collapsed on top of him, both groaning as pain blossomed out from their backs.

They breathed hard, laying there for a moment to try and find the wind that had been knocked out of them. Above them, over the railing, a light appeared; the flashlight he'd seen earlier blinding them both from above. Natsu just winced at the light, but Lucy turned from it, shifting to bury her head into his shoulder. He automatically brought his arm up to block her further from the light. Confused, but grateful, she turned her body, bracing herself with one hand against his chest, while he steadied her waist with his other hand, fingers sliding on her t-shirt a bit and brushing on bare skin. A thrill went through Natsu. He was touching her. Actually. Finally. _Physically_ touching Lucy.

Lucy finally manage to turn enough to look at him, straddling his waist with her unsteady knees as she flipped her hair out of her face in order to see her timely rescuer. When their eyes finally met, she froze, mouth poised to say words of thanks that stuck in her throat. For a minute they said nothing, just staring into each other's eyes and taking in the enormity of the moment that had been thrust upon them both. Something clicked inside both of them. Like a missing piece of themselves they didn't realize was missing until they had it back. It was shocking and comforting all at once. Like...coming home after a long absence away and seeing the changes of time to somewhere so familiar.

Then Gray called down from above, breaking the spell.

"Nice catch Flame Brain."

Right next to him, Levy was squealing something that sounded like "FINALLY!" and doing a little dance, her blue waves bouncing around the only part of her they could see from the ground.

"Thanks, douchebag," he called back, refusing to look away from Lucy. She was so fucking beautiful with the light filtering through her hair and making her glow. His words seemed to snap her out of their moment, her mouth shutting and her body shifting, suddenly very aware of her body still resting most of its weight on the exceptionally fit man beneath her. She cleared her throat and stuttered out a faint sentence.

"Are...are you okay? Did I hurt you?" It was a stupid thing to ask, she realized, as she felt the pain in her back throbbing away. She knew exactly how he felt.

He grinned up at her anyway, her words triggering a memory of the first time they met.

 _"Oi! Sorry there, didn't mean to hit ya like that…didn't expect ya to just stop there in the middle of everything though…you okay?"_

He answered cheekily, "I'm great. Don't worry about it. Natsu Dragneel, by the way, nice to finally meet you." He completed the sentiment with a little wave and a caress of his thumb on her waist. He couldn't resist. It felt so good to feel her there. His grin practically glowed he was beaming so wide.

Lucy sat, breathless, a hint of a smile pulling at her lips as she resisted giving in to the twinges of electricity coming from his hand at her waist. Her hand, resting on his chest, twitched involuntarily, making them both suddenly aware of their compromising position, particularly everywhere their bodies touched, from her hand on his chest to his own on her hip and her inner thighs brushing his waist.

However, neither moved a muscle to separate. Slowly, her little smile overtook her face, widening until she was beaming right back at him. With her free hand, she waved back a little, playing along.

"Lucy Heartfilia. Nice to finally meet you too."

* * *

 **YAY! They met! It happened! The sexy fun times will only go up from here! Because...they can actually touch each other now! YAAAAAAAAY!**

 **If it was disappointing in any way...well, don't tell me. I don't think I'd be able to resist tearing it apart and starting over at this point, so if you don't want me stuck on this godforsaken chapter for months on end, just sigh a little and let me get on with my life. And request a better meeting in my companion piece. I'll keep writing as many meetings as I can think up! One will never be enough!**

 **AND REFERENCES! It's like the good old days! I hardly know what to do with myself!**

 **Kreten-** Croatian for moron

 **Conan Doyle-** if for some reason someone missed all of the manifold of Sherlock Holmes references, that's what Sir Arthur Canon Doyle wrote...among many other literary gems. The Final Problem is the volume of Sherlock Holmes that contains Reichenbach Falls (in which Canon Doyle actually did intend to kill of both Sherlock and Moriarty...but the fans were so upset he had to bring them back to life in another book...kind of reminds me of Mashima intending to end FT after the Phantom Lord arc and bowing to fan whims to continue. Unfathomable! Imagine if he actually had ended it there! O.O)

 **Mrs. Bennet-** Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen

 **Marilla Cuthbert-** Anne of Green Gables by Lucy Maud Montgomery

 **Mrs. Weasley-** duh.

 **Thoth** -Ancient Egyptian god of writing, magic, wisdom, and the moon.

 **Deadlock seal** -an invention of the popular British television show, Doctor Who. Actually started out in the 1960s as a way to teach children history and science, but evolved into an amazing ball of wibbly wobbly, timey wimey...stuff. Just watch it. Brilliant. Alons-y! ( I might be in the process of rewatching all the newer seasons)

 **Cela me fait peur!** -French equivalent for "It scares the ever living hell out of me!"

 **Et si je n'ai jamais lu un autre livre? Et si je ne vous reverrais jamais? Ou ressentiz-vous votre toucher, le contact de quelqu'un à nouveau? Quoi alors?** -Please forgive any horrid grammar, I'm tapping into Google translate for this, but the intention was French for: "What if I never read another book? What if I never saw you again? Or felt your touch, anyone's touch, again? What then?!" I like to think Levy has all of her freakouts in other languages...it makes her feel more comfortable saying what she's feeling, because she knows not many people understand her.

 **Poe's Tell-Tale Heart-** for those out there who may not have been exposed to this story at some point in your education, or through your own curiosity, The Tell-Tale Heart is a story about a man who feels so guilty he believes the pounding of his own heartbeat in his ears is the beating of a heart belonging to a dead man, come back to life. Basically. It's a beautiful examination of the psyche. I didn't use it quite that introspectively, going for the more literal approach, but ever since a reviewer mentioned I hadn't used Poe yet, I've been itching to mention him. Sooo, man under the floorboards? Couldn't resist. hehe.


	30. All In

**What? You thought I was done for the week?**

 **That you'd have to wait a whole 7-8 days to find out what happened after that? If at all?**

 **Well, guess what?**

 **SURPRISE MINI CHAPTER! *shoots glitter cannon***

 **I refuse to pull a Mashima: that is, ending a chapter with Lucy straddling Natsu and just moving onto the next chapter without explaining what happened next! I REFUSE! So, here's a little snackle of Nalu, Gray-bro-ness and badass Levy to brighten up your day!**

 **Also...I may be updating a day late next week again...maybe...as always, I'll do my best...**

 ***shoves story at you and runs away***

 **ENJOY!**

* * *

"Lucy Heartfilia. Nice to finally meet you too," Lucy said, grinning down at Natsu.

"And I'm Gray Fullbuster! Now, can we maybe get on with the interrogation before someone discovers that we have a man tied up in our Homecoming float?"

Lucy sat up a bit and turned to look up at the dark silhouettes leaning over the edge to stare at them. Her hand slid off Natsu's chest and she felt blood rush to her cheeks. She had sort of forgotten there was anyone else around.

"Gray, shut the hell up! This a monumental moment! Take your time Lucy, I've got a few ideas I want to try!"

Levy dragged Gray away from the railing of the ship under protest to use the interrogation tactics her past incarnation had perfected (and she had secretly been dying to try).

Stalling as she gathered herself, Lucy kept looking up to where her two friend had been standing a moment before.

"Hey, Luce?"

She immediately turned back to him, unable to resist the lure of his voice. She leaned forward a bit, moving to brace her hands on his shoulders to keep her balance. The muscles in her back were still screaming from Natsu's landing and weren't particularly inclined to hold up her rather weighty chest on their own.

"Yeah Natsu?"

"Can you scoot back a little bit? You're kind of sitting on my lungs…"

Lucy flushed darker and immediately rose up on her knees more.

"Oh, gods, yeah, I'm so sorry! I can get up and then-"she started as she tried to find a place to brace herself that wasn't part of his body.

"No! You don't need to get up, you're still recov-" Natsu replied as he sat up a bit to try and keep her in place.

And the result of both of their actions was Lucy losing her balance, her knees slipping as she fell forward, barely catching herself on his now raised shoulders, his arms keeping her snugly pressed against the curve of his body, supporting both of their weight at a 45 degree angle with the strength of his abdomen as Lucy fit neatly into the valley created by his slightly raised knees. Not for the first time, Natsu gave himself a huge mental high five for the ridiculous workout he put himself through each week. And then his thoughts stuttered out as he realized Lucy's thighs were stretched wide over his hips and her face had halted only inches from his own.

And she was staring at his lips. Like she was starving and he was a big chicken drumstick.

Lucy struggled to breathe normally, all of her attention focused on how very close Natsu's mouth suddenly was, and the simple act of inhaling and exhaling like a _normal_ fucking person.

It wasn't like she hadn't fantasized about what meeting him in person would be like. He was her soulmate, how could she not? And of course she'd thought about what kissing him would be like too...along with other things… Hell, they'd been showering together so long, it was like she had pre-scheduled Natsu-fantasy-time built into her day!

But the fantasies were nothing compared to the reality of his warm skin beneath her fingers...his breath ghosting over her lips. All on their own, her fingers curled against his skin, catching the edge of the sleeveless shirt he was wearing as her fingertips pressed a little firmer against him.

Lucy made the effort to inhale one more time biting her lip before she let out a whisper.

"Can I just…"

Natsu was so focused on her mouth, he could feel her teeth pressing into her plump flesh, and her tongue sweeping across the slick skin just inside.

At which point he lost all patience and leaned forward, kissing her firmly. Lucy gasped and he immediately responded with his tongue, unable to stop himself from tasting her. His hands moved on their own, one snaking around her waist to lock their hips together and the other sliding up her back to tug the ponytail holder from her hair so he could bury his fingers in her golden tresses.

Lucy was wrapped in a supernova of raw sensation; an unbelievable heat sizzling through her nerve-endings. If Gray's kiss had been smoke and smooth enticing seduction, then Natsu's was the wildfire beneath the smoke: hot, hungry, and unbounded. Everywhere his body touched hers was a searing brand that radiated need to her core. He wasn't just enticing, he was irresistible.

After only a moment of his fervent advance she found herself pushing back, inciting a battle of wills, each of their bodies pushing for the same argument: more.

Her hands quickly found purchase in his wild mane, reveling in the soft tendrils she gripped as his hand, tangled in her own hair, tilted her head to lock on to her lips more securely. Her nails raked across his scalp in response, drawing a moan from both of them as she felt the motion through him on her own scalp. He mirrored the action on her, experimentally, resulting in an even louder moan from both.

They broke apart then, breathing hard, their eyes out of focus. Lucy pulled back a bit, a dazed thought that they really shouldn't be doing what they were doing _outside_ niggling at her (Ladies did NOT straddle men in public!) as she tried to remember how to function while not kissing Natsu. It was a lot harder than it should have been. Suddenly he was like oxygen to her lungs: an absolute necessity.

The force of her thought overwhelmed her. She had no desire to get off of him, no desire to stop touching him, no desire to cease _tasting_ him. She could happily stay right there, making out in the parking lot of his fraternity, next to an eerily accurate float replica of a pirate ship made of stolen lumber and barrels full of booze for the rest of her life.

And for a split second, light shown through the hazy darkness and she freaked.

It was only a moment, but that tiny spark of awareness opened her up to the realization that it had taken her all of five minutes to become entirely dependent on the man in front of her. Something she had _sworn_ she wouldn't do. The thought made her pull away a bit more, almost doubting herself…

And then she got a good look at Natsu with her now dark-adjusted eyes and couldn't hold in a snort. And ladies did NOT snort. She didn't care though. Because they absolutely would if they saw Natsu at that moment.

With the look of absolute earth-shattering shock in his eyes as he stared at her, and his entire head of hair standing completely on end, he looked like he'd been struck by lightning. She just couldn't help it. Even Miss Aquarius would have been laughing.

* * *

On the deck of the ship, Gray, Levy, and the mysterious "Z" fell silent at the first wanton moan issuing from below, their eyes wide.

"Are they seriously…" Levy trailed off suggestively. "Out here?!"

Gray just shook his head in disbelief, and yet a flicker of complete understanding. He should have known. With how hot those two had been running for each other without even being in the same proximity, it would have been more surprising if they had managed to keep their hands off of each other. Unbelievable really.

But, when there was an emissary for the enemy sitting a few yards away, they were being really fucking stupid. So Gray sighed and walked back over to the side, preparing to clear his throat loudly to let them know he'd be interrupting them in a minute...when he heard Lucy snort, and paused, just out of view next to the railing. A moment later, he heard Natsu respond softly,

"What?"

"Your hair...and that look! Oh my god, stop looking at me like that!" Lucy's musical voice was hushed, but the warmth of her tone would be obvious at half the decibels. Feeling a little guilty, but unable to stop himself, he sunk down below the railing and listened to them talk, entranced by the mutual glow in their voices.

"Like what? How am I looking at you?" It was a perfectly normal conversation, but the way Natsu said the words...it was so unbelievably...intimate. And gentle. Gray's eyebrows went up and he blew out a silent stream of air. Natsu? _Gentle?!_

"Like I just electrocuted you! Or, just...I don't know...handed you a priceless object and told you that you could just have it. Like...you can't believe your own eyes…" Lucy's voice trailed off, almost...vulnerable. But exhilarated. Breathless. Ephemeral. Thinking back to all the women he'd slept with over the years, had Gray ever heard one of them sound like...that?

Natsu chuckled a little nervously. "That's probably because I can't. Still pretty sure I'm dreaming this. Was that...was that as _amazing_ feeling for you? I mean, we were just kissing. But...shit. That was so much more than kissing…am I making any sense? Is that how it felt for you?" That same weird, vulnerable quality that had resonated in Lucy's voice resounded in his too. Shit. Would wonders never cease? Natsu openly vulnerable and gentle in the same night.

It was quiet for a few moments. Gray didn't realize they were sharing another kiss until the faint sound of their lips parting broke the silence.

"Yeah. That's exactly how it felt for me."

There was a sudden tightness in Gray's chest at her words, and the tone behind them. It was subdued, and quiet and beautiful, but so full of _joy_ he could barely breathe. How could someone sound like they _felt_ so damned much?

He didn't have the chance to figure it out though. Because the sound of Levy dropping the trap door back into place cracked through the air, startling the budding lovers below from their reverie.

"You guys ok?!" Lucy called up at them, the sounds of shuffling movement signalling that they had finally decided to untangle themselves. Gray cleared his throat, about to answer, when Levy beat him to it.

"We're great! I'm done questioning the captive!"

That got everyone's attention, all three exclaiming in unplanned unison.

"WHAT?!"

Lucy scrambled up the rope ladder, a wide-eyed Natsu unabashedly staring up her skirt the whole trip before shaking himself and following her. Gray got quickly to his feet, backing away from the railing and nonchalantly leaning against a nearby barrel like he'd been there the whole time. Levy waited for Natsu and Lucy to make it back on deck before continuing.

"Yeah, he sung like a canary. No sweat."

They all stared at her, Gray breaking away to lift the trapdoor and peer at their prisoner. "Z" stared back at him with shell-shocked eyes, the fight completely gone out of him.

"Shit Levy! What did you DO?"

"Doesn't matter," Levy glossed over, waving his bewilderment away. "What matters is that I know everything he had to offer."

"Really? So who is he?" Natsu asked, a little disappointed that he hadn't had a chance to beat the truth out of Lucy's stalker, but mostly curious about what the hell was going on.

"His name is Zancrow. He works for Lucy's dad. The whole "Z" thing is because his team uses letters of the alphabet as codenames. It seems the group of them came as a package deal when they were hired, and decided to keep their names from their employer. Jude must be one intimidating dude to have literal _mercenaries_ too scared to give their real names."

Natsu shifted back and forth between his feet as Levy spoke, unable to keep still as the description struck a chord in his memory. Couldn't be.

"Yeah," Lucy piped up. "I could have told you that. He had just hired some people who did that right before I left. It's why it freaked me out so bad to hear him say it. And then, you know, made me scared enough to not notice falling off a fake boat."

"Well, that makes sense. Anyway, according to our _good friend_ Z, there has been someone following Lucy since the moment she left home and reporting back to Jude. Lu, do you remember that girl we used to joke about at the hostel? The one who everyone just called-"

"L! Holy crap Levy! _She_ was even working for my father?! This is a disaster."

"But there's more! Apparently he's been letting you "educate yourself in nonsense" up until now, but he's planning on bringing you home soon! There's some merger he needs you there for or something. Zancrow didn't know what exactly he needs you for, but Jude ordered tighter surveillance just recently, so he can 'get you any time'!"

"How do you know that creeper doesn't know any more? Maybe I should have a little talk with him!" Natsu exclaimed and turned toward the trap door. Their captive wasn't making any noises anymore.

"Trust me. He told me everything he knows," Levy responded with a self-satisfied smirk. It was a little chilling to see. Lucy shivered. Not for the first time, she was glad that Levy was always on her side.

"Seriously Levy, what the HELL did you do to that guy?" Gray finally said, unable to keep it in any longer. "He looks like he's seen shit. Bad shit. Trust me, I would know."

Levy raised an eyebrow, but didn't ask. "I was an FBI Interrogator in a past life...a really, _really_ good one. I just talked with him for a while. And hey! You're just lucky I was here! Kidnapping and keeping a guy in _there_ for almost an entire day? What were you guys thinking? If he hadn't confessed to at least three crimes he hasn't been prosecuted for that we can use as leverage, you'd be in deep shit! Thankfully, he's agreed to leave without getting the police involved."

"But, then he'll report back to my father!" Lucy exclaimed. "He'll know we know he knows!" She shivered at the thought. Maybe she could get away before he knew or something...

A warm hand enveloping her own drew Lucy from her thoughts. Natsu was looking down at her, concerned. She gave him a small, sad smile. Maybe he'd come with her…

"Well, that's the bad news, unfortunately. Zancrow has specific check-in times. If he misses two check-ins in a row, Jude gets informed and they send someone to look for him. He's missed four already. Chances are, we're gonna have company within a day. Ex-military company." Levy's expression had turned grim.

Natsu jumped again, Lucy the only one who noticed his sudden movement. She glanced curiously up at him, wondering why he looked so uneasy. But then, why wouldn't he be? Lucy was internally freaking the fuck out.

"Ex-military?" Gray spoke the question that was on the tip of Lucy's tongue.

"Yeah, Zancrow's group used a Special Ops team for the Fiorean army. They broke away to go into the private sector. So, if we're going to keep Lucy safe, then we're going to need a hell of a plan." Levy finished her explanation with a sigh. The more they found out, the worse the situation got. How were they supposed to go up against such spectacularly terrible odds?

They sat in silence for a few minutes, each wracking their brains for a solution. Any solution. Eventually it was Lucy who spoke up.

"Listen, guys. I really appreciate all you're trying to do for me...but I can't keep pulling you into my problems. I mean, there is a man hog-tied in a hole in the floor over there! How can there not be consequences from that? If my father ever finds out, he could destroy all of your lives. Easily. I can't ask you-"

"Lu, it's handled. We just need the right leverage against Jude. We don't have the resources he does, but we've got being in the right on our side! We can still do this. And we're not about to abandon you, right?" Her question was directed at the men towering over them, Natsu nodding immediately. He squeezed the hand he still held looking down at her, and Gray watched them both. To the outside observer, this wouldn't seem like his fight. But, as if Natsu knew what he was thinking, he redirected his gaze to his almost lifelong friend, a question in his eyes. Gray returned the look. Steady and still.

Witnessing the changes in Natsu over the weeks, Gray knew Lucy wasn't going anywhere. Natsu was hooked. The way he was to his cat, and Gray, and Erza. Once Natsu adopted someone, in his mind, they were his for life. Unless they ran away from him, he wasn't about to let go..and maybe not even then. It always cracked Gray up when Natsu went on about letting everything blow through his life. Because when he decided something should stay, it had no choice. Natsu was stuck like glue.

Gray couldn't help but think back to the day he, Natsu, and Erza had decided it was them against the world.

Igneel had just died, and they were standing in the empty house that was the only place that had ever been home to Natsu, before he handed the keys over to the realtor. Erza had hugged them both fiercely for a second, overcome by the void that existed with the absence of a man they'd all grown to love in their childhoods.

Gray could almost hear her words echoing in his mind as Natsu stared him down, waiting.

" _Boys, no matter what, someday all of our parents will be gone. And we don't have real siblings, we just have each other. Promise me it will always be us. That no matter what - no matter what we get into, or where we end up - that we'll back each other up. You're my brothers. I think it would kill me to lose you at this point. So, let's make a pact." The already buxom redheaded teenager held out her fist, Natsu immediately clapping his hand on top of it, and both of them turning their gazes on Gray._

Gray remembered thinking it over then too. But in the end, it was a no brainer. Ur wouldn't be around forever, and Leon, while blood, would never be someone he could really rely on.

 _Gray eventually laid his hand on top of theirs a serious look in his eyes. Then, in a rare show of sentimentalism, he spoke._

" _My dad...my real dad, said something to me once. He said that you never know how strong you are until being strong is the only choice you have. Well, we've been through a lot of shit. More than will ever be fair. But if there's anyone else who knows what it does to a person to be strong because that's the only choice they've got, then it's you guys. So there aren't two people in this world I'd rather stand by. I'm all in. Always."_

 _Erza nodded and Natsu said with a grin, "Couldn't have said it better myself."_

So he stared back across the deck at Natsu until a smirk curled his lip.

"All in."

Natsu grinned back and added, "Always."

"But we're gonna need help."

Natsu nodded. "Yeah, I think it's time."

Gray nodded back, as the girls looked between them with confusion.

"So...are you gonna call Erza, or should I?"

* * *

Two hours later, after setting Zancrow free, and making sure he wouldn't turn right back around for revenge, Natsu and Gray walked Lucy and Levy back to their apartment complex. Halfway there, Gray got a call and turned off to meet his cousin at Lamia for something, waving and trading a warning look with Natsu, who just scoffed.

Like he'd let them walk anywhere alone right now.

When they reached the door, they stood talking for another twenty minutes, lingering even as the silences between their words grew longer. Eventually, with a sly grin, Levy expressed her 'utter exhaustion' and slipped inside, leaving Lucy and Natsu alone at last.

The minute the door closed behind the little blunette, silence fell, as they just stood there smiling at each other.

"So…"

"Yeah…"

Lucy's smile widened as the pinkette closed the space between them, sidling closer and closer until he towered over her, hands conspicuously pocketed.

"Lucy?"

"Yeah?"

"Wanna go out tomorrow night?"

"Yeah. I do."

"Good. Now. I'm gonna kiss you again."

"Yeah?" she whispered as he leaned down, his nose brushing hers. She held her breath as he inched closer.

"Yeah," he whispered back, his lips ghosting over hers with the word before he leaned into the kiss, hands instantly seeking her back to pull her closer. He enveloped her in his arms and hugged her like she would disappear if he didn't hold onto her tight enough.

A tear leaked from her eye at the relief she felt in his arms. She felt so safe. So irrationally and impossibly safe...so at home. Lucy responded to his kiss eagerly and wound her arms around him, clinging just as tightly.

And half an hour later, she stumbled through the door to her apartment, mind tunnel-visioned, heart aflutter, and lips deliciously swollen.

She had a date tomorrow.

Her very _first_ date!

* * *

 ***squeals* Now that was just TOO fun to write.**

 **Admit it, you kiiiiiinda love me right now...**

 **hopefully. lol**


	31. Welcome Home-Saturday Morning

**Hey guys. So, this week's chapter is another shorter one, because I can't stand to just not update and not explain why. My grandmother died on Sunday and, honestly, I tried to write (if only to distract myself) but I'm just not in the right frame of mind to keep track of everything as I go the way I normally do. And, per very strict instructions from my beta, under threat of desertion, I will be taking next week off from updating. So the next update should be August 29th. In the meantime, I'll still answer reviews and PMs like normal. Drop me a line and chat, I'll check back periodically.**

 **With that in mind, I made a pledge to myself to answer every review I can (guest reviews are the bane of my OCD existence), however, I'm not going to answer anything about my grandma. Mostly because, there is no good way to respond with stuff like that. Especially in my usual humorous way. And also because writing about it makes me sad. So, with that in mind, if you don't get a response from me about that stuff, know that I appreciate any and all good thoughts and sincerely thank you for them. And please don't feel obligated to say anything about it. Honestly, I wouldn't even share, but I take enough pride in my updating schedule that I want you all to know I've got a really good excuse. What can I say, I'm uppity like that.**

 **So, a little dose of Nalu to tide you over. Hope all of your weeks are fan-fucking-tastic. Because as far as I can tell, last week was shitty for most of us.**

* * *

 _Lucy was sitting in a chair that was much too big for her. Which was nothing new, honestly. Her daddy always forgot she wasn't grown-up like him, so she sat in big chairs a lot. Sometimes he even asked her grown-up questions and got mad when she didn't understand or know the answer. So she tried even harder to know all the answers. She didn't want to remind him that she was just a kid._

' _Cause Daddy didn't like other children. He never said it, but Lucy could tell. Adults always overlooked kids like her, assuming they wouldn't understand, but kids always understood more than they thought. Whenever there was a baby crying, her daddy's lip curled up and his face got ugly. Whenever other kids ran past in one of the hotels, he huffed a sigh and his face got ugly again. So it was pretty obvious he didn't like kids._

 _It was the kind of like the face she made when she didn't want to try the weird food they ate for dinner now. Though, Daddy wouldn't let her eat her favorite stuff anymore, so she just sucked it up Buttercup (whatever that meant...her nanny Grammi always said it…) and just ate it anyway. Sometimes the new food was really good! Other times, she just choked it down, swallowing her unhappiness with the yucky food. Heartfilia's never showed when they didn't like something. That's what Daddy said when she complained about it that one time. And she wanted to be a good Heartfilia for Daddy. It was always so important to him. The most important thing to him, she guessed._

 _Sometimes Lucy was better at that than Daddy at not showing what he didn't like though. He was always making faces and sighing. But she knew he was working on it, because he'd told her that Heartfilias never stopped trying to be better. And Daddy was the best Heartfilia of all._

 _After Mommy. But she was gone now. Lucy bit her lip to keep from crying. Crying didn't help at all. It just made Daddy madder._

 _Lucy frowned a bit as she pulled another sheet of construction paper out of her little briefcase (just like Daddy's!) and went to drawing a rainbow, her tongue stuck out in concentration. She had almost gotten the last one perfect. A few more and she could go back to making her stars better. Lucy suppressed a sigh. Stars were so_ hard.

 _But Daddy was busy talking with someone important, so she had to be quiet. Which meant no sighing. He_ really _didn't like it when she made noise in an important meeting. And his meetings were always important._

" _-Sawarr, I assure you, it's fool proof. It's been years since Enron and there are tons of ways around the audits if you've got a brilliant accountant, which, of course, I have…"_

" _Jude, you don't have to sell me on it. I'm all for a boost in profits. I'm just wondering how we're going to explain it to the board. Won't they wonder what's going on?"_

" _Who says they need to know anything about it? Most of them couldn't care less where the money is coming from, as long as it's coming…"_

 _Lucy grabbed the purple marker and carefully added it after the blue line above it, going all the way to the edge of the paper, but also accidentally onto the shiny wooden tabletop. Immediately panicking, she grabbed the glass of water that her daddy's secretary had left for her and dumped some water onto the mark she'd made, frantic to hide her mistake._

 _Only more water came out than she intended, and it was running out over the table! Standing up on her chair, she used the bottom of her skirt to soak up the water, leaning over further, until she slipped on her slippery new shoes, banging her knees against the edge as she fell onto the table with a loud thwack._

 _Cringing, Lucy turned her head to the now silent side of the room where he father was glaring at her._

" _Lucy, what are you doing?"_

" _I'm...um…"_

" _Speak up Lucy. A Heartfilia is always sure of themselves."_

" _I was cleaning the marker I accidentally put on the table Da-sir." Lucy carefully sat up on her knees, a large wet spot across her skirt signalling that she had managed to absorb the last of the water as she bit her lip again. She had almost made another mistake. Daddy wanted her to call him sir when they were at work._

" _Lucy! Cleaning is not your job. That's what the staff is for. Now apologize to Mr. Junelle for interrupting our meeting so rudely."_

" _It's really fine Jude, she's just-"_

" _I'm very sorry for interrupting your important meeting Mr. Junelle. Please forgive me for wasting your time," Lucy immediately interrupted, bowing her head. She knew what her daddy wanted from her. Letting the man make excuses for her wouldn't help her become a better Heartfilia. Only listening to Daddy could do that._

" _Thank you Lucy. Now, go find Grammi and tell her you need a new dress."_

 _Lucy nodded, casting a fleeting, wistful expression back at the markers she knew would be gone by the time she was allowed to come back and collect her things. Daddy didn't let her make the same mistake twice. It made her better. But she would miss the markers. They were so much brighter than her colored pencils had been..._

Lucy snapped awake in an instant, disoriented for a minute before realizing she had slid down her bed in her sleep and was now staring out the window, overlooking the street and neat rows of suburban houses below. She took it in, enjoying the simplicity and normality of it all.

It was so different from the view she had growing up, where the nearest neighbor was more than a mile away, their estate stretching far in every direction to perfect her complete isolation. She watched the middle-aged parents of the teens who lived across the street hustling their kids into the family van with fishing equipment and tents. Some kind of camping trip, probably.

Lucy wondered what camping was like. It had definitely not been high on her father's list of fun family activities. The blonde snorted to herself. Like such a list even existed.

Though, she had to admit, it was hard to justify sleeping in a tent on the ground when they owned hundreds rooms with beds in every major city across most of the world. Her father would not have seen the fun in laying out on the ground under the stars. Maybe her mom would have taken her camping...if she'd lived.

But, then again, maybe not. They'd looked at the stars from her telescope a bunch of times before her mother had been taken from her, but even at the age of five, it was clear that getting dirty wasn't Layla's idea of fun either. Lucy had dropped a particularly sloppy mud pie on one of her fancier dresses once and the result had been less than ideal.

Maybe Heartfilias just weren't made for camping...

Lucy's phone rang and she rolled to grab it before returning to the window, looking straight down at the trees below her window now, just seeing the hint of gold creeping into the otherwise green leaves. She grinned when she saw who was calling her.

"Hey Natsu. Have you ever been camping?" she spoke drowsily.

"Uh...sure. Lots of times. Weird way to answer the phone by the way. Igneel used to take me a bunch when I was little. Apparently it was the only place I could go as a kid without breaking anything," he finished with a chuckle. Lucy joined in.

"Is it fun?"

"What? Camping?"

"Yeah. It sounds like fun."

"Wait, you've never been?"

"No. My father isn't really a camping kind of guy." Natsu facepalmed at her words. Of course he wasn't. He sometimes forgot that Lucy had such a weird childhood. Even compared to his own. Which was saying something.

Other times, her childhood dominated his thoughts. Especially what to do about her dad. The bastard.

"Yeah, I guess not," he responded darkly, immediately hopping back to his cheerful self like a bipolar kangaroo. "Well...we should go sometime. You know, when things calm down!"

"I wasn't-! I mean, that wasn't what I-! I mean I wasn't fishing for you to take me or anything-!"

"What? You _don't_ want to go camping with me?" he asked, mock offended, with a smile in his voice. "We haven't even gone on a first date yet and you're already trying to get rid of me!"

"Wait, no, that's not what I meant either!" Lucy quickly shot back, not recognizing his teasing tone. "I do want to go camping with you!"

"Well, if you want to go that badly, how can I refuse?" Natsu snickered on his side of the phone while Lucy realized what he'd been doing and groaned.

"Godsdammit Natsu. I am not awake enough for this. I'm just gonna hang up and pretend I wasn't embarrassing myself and you can call me back at a decent hour."

"Luce...it's like eleven o'clock...when were you planning on getting up?"

"Wait, seriously? Why didn't my alarm go off?!"

"Beats me. ANYway...I was just calling to see what time you're available tonight."

Lucy felt her smile widen.

"You mean...for our _date_?" she said seductively, practically purring into the phone as she rolled over in bed, still riding the lazy feeling of sleeping in on a Saturday.

Natsu swallowed hard. _Jesus fucking christ, she could go from 0 to 69 in 3.5. Well, two could play at that game._ "Well yeah, I do believe I promised our first date would be something epic. So either I get a time to plan around, or we spend all night in your apartment _watching Netflix_ and getting to know each other a _lot_ better...your choice. Either way... epic." Natsu finished in almost a growl and he internally cringed. That was so fucking cheesy he almost couldn't stomach it. He felt like the lead in a 90s chick flick.

But Lucy's reaction totally made it worth it as he felt her thighs rubbing together in response to her sudden spike of arousal. Well, it was good to know he could still bring a woman to her knees when he wanted to. Even if he was falling back on corny lines to do it.

"Natsu Dragneel! What kind of lady would I be if I put out on the first date? What do you take me for?!" she teased out, the tone of her words much more confident than the butterflies in her stomach. Would she really do that on a first date? After months of long distance contact, Lucy was a little surprised to find that she might consider it. It wasn't like he was a complete stranger after all. The idea simultaneously panicked and thrilled her.

"A kinky dream come true?" he fired back, matching her tone. Fuck it. Cheesy was doing it for her. He was just gonna go with it. Lucy was silent for a second as she tried to formulate a response. This wasn't a side she associated with the Natsu she knew. But she couldn't say she wasn't enjoying it.

However, that didn't mean she had any idea what to say next.

"Well, I…" she trailed off into silence, drawing a completely blank, eventually dissolving into giggles. "I'm sorry. I can't. It's just so damn funny!" she forced out amidst her laughter, joined by his.

"What, my cheesy one-liners don't have you shivering with anticipation? I'm shocked!" he laughed back.

"Oh no, don't get me wrong, the shivering was definitely there and anticipation is at an all time high. It's just...I have no idea how you said that shit with a straight face!"

"Oh god, me neither," Natsu groaned, but kept smiling. He found he liked her laughter even more than feeling her aroused. Something he never thought he'd say. Pretty much ever. For multiple reasons. "But hey! You started it! I was just playing along!"

"Whatever," she replied, rolling her eyes. "Are you gonna tell me where we're going tonight or what?"

"Nope. It's gonna be a surprise. When are you free?"

"Well, Levy and I have plans to meet up for lunch and another strategizing session...but after that I'm available whenever."

"Ok. Well...why don't we say I'll swing by for you around three then?"

"Isn't that a little early for a date?" Lucy teased him again.

"Nope. I want you for the whole damn day." She could feel his lips tugging into a smile.

"Uh...ok. If you say so, I wouldn't know." she laughed, a little nervously this time.

"Oh come on, drop the act, you're not _that_ naive," Natsu responded.

"Naive? Maybe not...but a bit inexperienced? Definitely."

"Wait, what do you mean?"

"I mean...I told you before I was a virgin right?"

Something in the back of Natsu's head clicked, a hazy memory of a written conversation on his arm coming back to him just as the Moon Drip started to kick in. Shit. How had he forgotten that? Oh right. Moon Drip. That shit was worse than a handle of Everclear when it came to blacking out. Or Erza punching him in the stomach.

That is to say, ridiculously effective.

Though better tasting.

He was getting off topic. Lucy. Virgin.

Shit. That is really something he should not have forgotten. Did that change things? He hadn't taken anyone's v-card in a hell of a long time. And Lucy was different to begin with. As much as his male brain was telling him to hit that as soon as fucking possible, he could not fuck this up. Natsu could feel a cold sweat break out on the back of his neck.

"Um, not gonna lie, I had definitely had Moon Drip for that little conversation, so I was sort of not aware of that... But seriously, Lucy I was totally kidding before. No pressure. It's just a date. I'm not gonna jump you or anything."

"Oh, yeah, no! Sorry, no. I'm not really worried about that. Honestly, you're probably the perfect person to do it with...because you'll feel the whole thing right?" Natsu's mind went blank for a second. Shit, how had he not thought of _that?_ Lucy kept going though. "It's just...I've never really been on a real...date before even…?" Lucy trailed off, squeezing her eyes shut tightly as she cringed over her own words. What kind of eighteen-year-old hadn't ever been on a date? Unless she'd disappeared down a well into feudal Japan or something. Then it was perfectly acceptable. He was going to think she was weirder than ever.

"Wait, so - shit, sorry, I've been saying that a lot - I mean...you've never even been out on a date? With anyone? Ever?"

"That is correct." Lucy waited for the teasing to commence.

"And, therefore, you have nothing whatsoever to compare this date to?"

"That...is also correct," she replied again, confusion seeping into her tone. Where was the teasing?

"I can't decide if that takes the pressure off, or puts a hell of a lot more on…" Natsu mused, finally fully distracted from trying to imagine how that whole virginity thing was going to work with their bond. "You said _real_ date though. What is qualifying as _not_ a real date?"

Was the teasing _not_ coming then? This was seriously throwing Lucy off. She felt like how Alice probably felt when she got back from Wonderland. Where were all the disappearing cats? And high-as-fuck caterpillars?!

"Well, I'm not counting the marriage interviews. They hardly count as dates...right?" Lucy said, still a bit distracted by the analogy she'd come up with. Seriously though, Alice had to have needed one hell of an adjustment period. And then, probably, just when she was adjusted, she went right back through the looking glass!

The silence was deafening. There could have been a live reenactment of Lord of the Flies by a boys school for mimes in the gymnasium worth of silence that stretched between them. Lucy snapped back to their conversation with a little effort to find it stalled.

"Natsu? You still there? Hello? Can you hear me now?"

"Yeah, sorry. Did you say marriage interviews? As in plural? Multiple _marriage_ _interviews_? What the _fuck_ is a marriage interview?!" Natsu sounded like he could seriously use some of Alice's magic mushrooms to chill the fuck out. Ok, Lucy might have been having too much fun applying Lewis Carroll to the conversation in her head.

"Um...sort of like a business meeting where two big business families or companies decide if a marriage would be mutually beneficial. Sometimes it's just the male heir to a fortune instead of a company, but they're all basically the same."

"So, what, some guy wants to marry you, so he calls up your dad and offers to give him half his business for you or something?"

Lucy laughed. "Not quite, but close enough. I went through a ton of interviews, but he wouldn't agree to any of them. Thank the gods."

Natsu's heart thumped angrily in his temples. Who the hell did her father think he was? Lucy wasn't fucking property to be sold off. And what about all the guys who had wanted the interviews in the first place? What fucking assholes! How was this medieval shit still fucking happening?! It was the 21st Century for gods sakes! What was next, covered wagons inexplicably as the favored form of transportation even though there were trains running around everywhere? That shit just didn't make sense!

Lucy interpreted Natsu's silence incorrectly, jumping to conclusions and suddenly realizing there was a massive Middle Earthean _oliphaunt_ in the room. Exclusively on her end. Not that she knew that.

"Oh gods...I haven't told you what's really going on with my dad have I? Shit, you must think this all sounds crazy! Or...well..wait. Last night would have been a lot more confusing though. And you didn't really seem all that surprised. Everyone else knows, so I guess I didn't think about it, but…"

"Uh, yeah...about that...I sort of already know the gist of it. With your dad, and the hotel empire, and, um, your mom and stuff." Natsu dragged a hand through his hair nervously. Lucy noticed his tell and got suspicious.

"How?"

"I _may_ have overheard Gray talking to you a while ago. And then done some research."

"Oh."

Natsu waited for more of a response from her, but nothing came, another broad stretch of silence taking precedence again, signaling the second act of the spectacularly mimed double feature, Animal Farm. Because let's just assume this particular mime school took political literature very seriously. Sure. Why not?

"Luce? You still there?"

"Yeah. Just trying to figure out how much you know..."

"Well, if you had fucking told me yourself, then you wouldn't have to wonder." Lucy winced at that. She'd been doing it for his own good, but honestly, at this point, she could see where that may have been a less than realistic plan. But that didn't give him the right to eavesdrop on her.

"And you could have fucking told me you'd overheard instead of just keeping it all from me."

"And have you hightail it with a train ticket? Yeah fucking right. I'm not gonna let you run away without me. _Forgive me_ for trying to stay in the fucking loop somehow while you confided in my roommate of all fucking people. I mean, shit, Lucy, you have no room to talk."

"Fine. I'll just assume you know everything then."

"Well, I wouldn't say I know everything...I don't think. I know the basics, but I'd really like to actually hear it from you at some point. I mean, I told you everything about me. All the bullshit I never want _anyone_ to know. It would be nice not to be broadsided by your own baggage. Like fucking marriage interviews."

"Wow, that is really bothering you isn't it?"

"It doesn't bother you? That people wanted to marry you because it was good for business? And bid on you, like an auction or something, until your father decides your price has gone up enough to sell you off?"

"Well, if my father had agreed to any of them, yeah. But he didn't. It was just good for business to have the interviews at all. It opened the door to a lot of deals, even if he never agreed to marry me off to any of them."

"What the fuck? Luce...didn't it even bother you?"

"Why would it bother me?"

"Well, hell, I don't know, maybe because you might have had to marry someone you didn't love?"

"It just didn't seem that weird at the time. It's pretty common with wealthy families."

"But it's fucked up! Marriage is supposed to be with someone you care about!" Natsu almost yelled at her. The idea of the whole thing _was_ really getting to him. Why wasn't she more upset about it?

"Well, yeah, I know that now. But my first interview was when I was ten. It wasn't like I was that concerned with love at the time! I didn't hardly know what it was!" she yelled back, trying to make him understand. She could feel tears pressing at the back of her eyes, forcing themselves closer and closer to the edge so they could fall and signal her inner frustration to her empty bedroom and the belligerent man she was bonded to.

"Ten?! Is that even legal?"

"They're interviews Natsu, it's not like they were going to marry us off the next day."

"How are you so calm about this? Doesn't it matter to you? Or don't you _care_ if you love the guy you're gonna be fucking _married_ to some day?" Natsu could feel the line he'd crossed as the words left his mouth. But it was too late.

"OF COURSE I CARE, YOU ASSHOLE! How _dare_ you say that to me? Just because I'm not enraged at the memory doesn't mean I WANTED that kind of life! I didn't! Why do you think I fucking RAN AWAY? Or tried to? Since, apparently, I utterly failed at that too."

And suddenly the weird bubble they'd formed around themselves to keep out the hard facts of the night before burst into a wet sticky mess. "Hell, why even bother going out on a date tonight? It's not like I'm really free to do what I want anyway. He's probably already sent someone to get me."

"Luce…"

"Shit Natsu... Why are we pretending like this? I might as well be packing! My lack of hostility over a stupid marriage interview is a stupid thing to argue about. It hardly even compares to my other fucked-up issues."

Natsu silently agreed with that. Her dad had certainly done worse things. But something about the image of Lucy marrying some random douche fucked with his head. He didn't even know what those guys had looked like, and he found himself fantasizing about setting them each individually ablaze. Which didn't even feel like an overreaction. In hindsight, that probably should have tipped him off that something wasn't quite right. But he was distracted.

"Seriously Natsu, what's the point of a first date? It's not like there'll be a second." Lucy sounded more defeated than he'd ever heard her. "I should just get on a train and run. Maybe, eventually he'll just leave me alone."

"Lucy, snap the fuck out of it. You're not going anywhere. I'm not just gonna let those assholes carry you off. Especially not when we finally get to actually spend some fucking time together! Luce, if it's only this one night, or just the first night of a shit ton of dates, we're doing this. Because I can't not be with you anymore. Ok? I just _can't_ do it. And you agreed to a godsdamned date. So, dress up in something you spend the next three hours picking out with Levy, and meet me outside your building at three, or so help me gods, I will fucking kidnap you myself. Are we clear?"

Lucy squeaked a little and then cleared her throat. "Um, yes?"

"Ok then. Have a good lunch and I'll see you later." And just like that, he had bounced back to his ridiculously cheerful self. Seriously, it was like he was Jekyll and Hyde-ing it lately.

"Ok."

"Bye!"

"Bye..."

Lucy lay in silence for a minute taking in what had just happened. Was it even possible for one conversation to be so emotionally exhausting? She stared at her phone.

Apparently it was.

She reluctantly rolled out of bed and headed to the bathroom, only to freeze in her tracks.

Wait, was it appropriate to shower with your date before the first date?

No nuggets of wisdom from Miss Aquarius made themselves known...because she _would_ leave Lucy high and dry when she really needed her!

Why did dating have to be so hard?! Stupid bond.

In the end, she shrugged and asked anyway.

 _Shower?_

* * *

 **I'll come back and explain the references..probably.**

 **You know what? Do me a favor and look up anything you didn't understand this week?**

 **Cool. You guys rock my socks.**


	32. Welcome Home-Saturday Night

**Holy shit guys. This beast is a little over 16,000 words. A little thank you for hitting 1200 reviews while I was on my break last week. You guys rock my socks. That and HOLY SHIT PLOT and LEMONS and FLUFF! Ima go to sleep now. Or to watch Assassination Classroom. It's my fourth new anime this week. They just don't make these things LONG ENOUGH!**

 **Anyway, enjoy and drop me a line!**

* * *

Jellal was not having a good day.

Well, he was in prison, so it was not like any of his days were that great, but this day had been particularly...not good.

The day had begun with his longtime colleague and roommate hovering inches above his face and violently demanding to know where the hell he'd managed to get his hands on makeup.

Macbeth Gertrude Masters spent most of his life as the apathetic puppet master of his surroundings - bowing to greater power in few, Jellal being one of said few - but if his friend had managed to smuggle in that sweet sweet eyeliner and failed to let him blacken his eyelids with its glorious smudging power then he was about to get shanked. Very thoroughly shanked.

Which is what he manically explained with a razor blade two inches from Jellal's eye for a disturbing and confusing fifteen minutes directly after the blunette awoke from a fitful slumber. Honestly, he had been tentatively unsettled by the possibility that his cellmate actually might slice off his eyelids and rub them on his own as he threatened, until the apparent magic of lipstick appearing on his lips right before Midnight's eyes caused him to hesitate in his overzealous pursuit of cosmetics.

Which led to a conversation about Erza and Mystogan.

A short one, seeing as he had no fucking clue how or why the weird bruise and makeup transfer was happening. But as Midnight carefully removed his makeup and folded up the Kleenexes containing the mascara and lipstick that had mysteriously appeared (for him to smell and cry about later while he napped), Jellal told him everything he did know.

"So, you've formed some kind of supernatural link that shares when you get hurt - and apparently apply makeup - with your twin brother and some chick?"

"Not some chick. Erza."

"Well shit."

"Yeah, pretty much. This cannot end well."

* * *

When Erza's makeup disappeared off her face as she looked in the mirror, she knew there was something more to her weird connection with the Fernandes brothers. Unfortunately, she didn't have time to explore what that something more might be. Natsu and Gray had something important to tell her. And they always took precedence. Especially when it was both of them. In agreement.

Erza frowned a bit in concern and grabbed her purse on the way out of the door to meet with them for lunch. This could not bode well.

* * *

Mystogan, aside from an unidentifiable smudge of black at the corner of his eye that he wiped away with a raised eyebrow, had no indication he'd looked like a drag queen for about ten minutes three hours before he woke up.

Some people had all the luck.

But then, he was bonded to his twin and his twin's childhood love...so maybe not.

* * *

"Lev, it's still missing... _something,_ " Lucy mused to her friend as she patted down her latest outfit in her full-length mirror. Levy, from her perch on Lucy's bed, tilted her head and tapped her finger absentmindedly against her chin.

"Well, it would help to know what it is you're going for Lu-chan…" she hedged. Coordinated date outfits were not really her forte. That was really Lucy's area. However, they'd had lunch and tried to work on Lucy's flashing ability to her past, especially considering the new information her dream the night before had provided, but the blonde had been too distracted by her upcoming date to concentrate. So, instead, Levy was watching Lucy systematically try on every combination of clothing she owned. All of which looked fine to her. She was starting to get antsy.

"Oh, I don't know! Cool, but hot, and also kinda cute? But sort of rebellious, and dangerous? Something to knock him off his feet, but that doesn't look like I've spent tons of time on it? You know, the perfect date outfit. Plus, it's Natsu, and all I've got to work with is 'epic', so something that I can wear skydiving if I have to…" Lucy paled. "Oh gods, you don't think he's taking me skydiving, do you? Is that why we're starting at 3?!"

Levy couldn't help but laugh at her panicked expression. "No clue Lu. And you know I pretty much only have basic level fashion sense. Mostly based on color theory and the fact that I have blue hair and little-to-no money. Maybe I'm not the best person to ask…" Levy pouted and dropped her gaze, twirling her hair around one finger absentmindedly. She felt like a terrible best friend right then. Lucy had helped dress her for all her major moments with Gajeel. She felt bad that she couldn't add that... _je ne se quois_ to her friend's date outfit that she clearly thought lacking.

"Ok…" Lucy mused. "Well, let me put it in terms you'll understand... I'm going for a Holden meets Rangiku, with a hint of Lisbeth meets Anne with an E, and just a touch of Lucy Heartfilia thrown in to tie it all together." Lucy turned back to the mirror and stripped off the fitted t-shirt she'd been wearing that said, 'I only date Bad Boys' with a small growl of frustration; the shirt was fun, but not right for a first date…

"Well, why didn't you just say so!" the bluenette exclaimed, jumping up from the bed. "That was my go-to in high school...basically. Minus the Heartfilia of course."

The next thing Lucy knew, Levy had dived into her closet and drawers, flinging select clothing at her in quick succession. Eventually, the whole outfit was assembled in a pile in Lucy's arms, except for the shirt, and Levy stood looking between two tops, eventually choosing the t-shirt printed with the cover of The Great Gatsby. The book might be an overzealous love letter to symbolism, but the classic cover art really worked on a t-shirt. "You got any scissors, Lu?"

"Um, desk drawer, knock yourself out," Lucy replied, pretty sure she knew where the blunette was heading. Levy carefully cut slits on a diagonal across the top of the shirt where Lucy's cleavage would end up and rubbed the edges together to fray them up a bit, throwing the article of clothing on the heaping pile in her arms.

"Alright, suit up and let's see what we've got! Except leave the tights you've got on, it could get cold," Levy exclaimed as Lucy stripped down and did as ordered.

Eventually she turned back to the mirror, pulling her hair into low pigtails to bring that little bit of Anne into it.

"Nice." The blonde had to admit, Levy had pretty much nailed it. There were just a couple of things missing. Heading over to her wall o' jewelry (what, like she was going to leave her vast collection with her dad? That would be like abandoning a child!), she selected a dragon ear cuff she'd bought a few years before and forgotten about, and then grabbed a pair of comfy platform wedges. Her calves had been aching from standing on her tippy toes kissing Natsu the night before, so she was planning ahead, in case it turned out to be _that_ form of epic date.

"Hey, Lu, do you have a hat? That's totally what you need. Holden would have a beanie or something."

"Sweet Serena, you're right. Hold on, I think I've got something!" Opening her underwear-and-assorted-random-items-drawer (there were some days she really missed having four dressers and a walk-in closet to organize her clothing), she rummaged in the back until she came out victorious, jamming the item on her head.

"Well, it'd be better with Converse boots, but eh, you'll do…" Levy mused, stepping back with a critical eye.

"Awesome! I feel so much better now," Lucy said, tugging the edges of her jacket so it sat just right. "Now, let's get to work. I need some dirt on my father, ASAP. I feel like I'm living on borrowed time."

"Deal. And as long as you don't tell Gajeel, I think I'm going to try a little memory flashing of my own. I'm sick of not knowing what the hell happened with us."

"Yeah, I really think you'll be fine. It's not as - deep? maybe? - as normal flashing...and ooooo, _memory flashing_! I like it! That's the perfect name for it!"

"Thanks! I like it a lot better than Remembering-when-I-was-drunk-and-probably-drugged-out-of-my-mind… Has a nicer ring for sure. It was either that or 'memflashing'. Which unfortunately feels a little too 'now' and a little too '1984' at the same time."

"Definitely."

* * *

Gajeel had just stepped outside to make sure the "Now Hiring" sign he'd taped to the window was in a good spot when he heard a voice from his past chuckle behind him.

"You get decent benefits? I might just have to show you how it's fucking done," the voice said with a faint Latino accent.

Gajeel grinned and turned, already prepared to hug the one-eyed, auburn-haired, smoking (purple people eater...yeah, he might have been letting Youtube decide to play whatever it wanted next; fuck decent music that didn't get old! up with convenience to the detriment of taste!) son-of-a-bitch loitering on the sidewalk.

Seriously, Erik's mom was a stone-cold bitch. No joke. Like Claire Underwood level of bitch. That's how he'd lost the eye.

"Cobra! Long time. You still hanging out with douches and fucking over people who may or may not deserve it? Or did you get hit by lightning and enroll in college or something?" Gajeel rumbled fondly, slapping his high school friend on the back before stepping back and gesturing behind him. "Come to case my shop for future vandalism? Don't tell me I've attracted the attention of the Seis somehow."

"Naw, just walking through, I don't do that shit anymore. And I'm going by Erik these days. Though, me? College? What, I'd room with Natsu and join a basketball team or something? Yeah, fuck that. I didn't even know you worked out this way...wait, _your_ shop? You own this slick-ass metal and glass beauty? What, you win the lottery or something?" Erik replied, raising his almost maroon brows as he stamped out his smoldering cigarette butt and stepped back to re-take-in the visual heavy metal concert that was Black Steel. Minus the pyrotechnics. That was Natsu's shit.

"Naw, the old man kicked the bucket." Gajeel said it casually. Every time got easier. For some reason, it was easier to be crass about it than respectful. It's how his dad woulda done it.

"Oh, right," Erik replied awkwardly. "Heard something about that. And was sorry to hear it. Thought he'd outlive us all."

"Pssh. Yeah, I think about twenty people told me that at his funeral. Anyway, thanks. Wanna take a tour of my baby then? See what the old man's gym bought me?" Gajeel held the door open, grinning at the look Erik gave him when he heard the door's alert. It was comforting that some things never changed, and that SOB looking at everyone like he knew their secrets (and found them fucking below him) was one of those things.

"Sure. I've got some time to kill. Nine-to-five. Plus all the rest of the time." Erik stepped into the shop, giving a low whistle when he could really see what the glare on the tinted glass had been concealing. Gajeel grinned. It wasn't often this particular friend was impressed. He stood a little straighter. Then registered what the cocky bastard had just said.

"What, you're _actually_ looking for work? Legal work? Cause I could really use ya. These days, I'm practically double-booked, so I've got less than no time to train someone new. I'm on lunch now or I wouldn't even have time to put up the damn sign. And you always had a knack for it at Phantom." Gajeel had worked for Phantom Ink, the only other tattoo place in Magnolia, with Erik all through high school, and Erik had been more than decent. Fucking great actually. If he hadn't quit and dropped out of school, he could have been rolling flush and saving up for his own store by now.

"Depends. You hire ex-cons?" Erik said it almost too casually. Anyone but an old friend might have thought he said it like there was nothing at stake. But Gajeel _was_ an old friend. And knew too many good people who'd done time and had a shitty time when they got out.

"If the ex-cons are as talented as you? Sure."

Erik glanced back at him, his cocky smirk giving way to a wide grin. "Seriously?"

"Fuck yeah. Not like you're gonna steal from me. Ya know I'd kick your ass. Didn't know you'd been inside, though. How'd it happen? If I'd known, I'da sent ya some smokes or somethin'," Gajeel mused, leaning back on the front counter while his friend roamed the front room, taking it all in.

"Jellal. How else? But I'm sick of that bullshit. I got off easy this time, but I'm ready for a change. And he's got another year on his sentence, unless he manages to miracle his way out of it the way he does with everything, so I might have a chance to get out this time. He's just so damned tough to say no to."

"Don't I know it. Just glad you finally do too."

"Yeah, well, not all of us had Metallicana pointing us in the right direction."

"Are you fucking kidding me? Everyone at that fucking gym had my old man shoving them unwillingly in the right direction!" Gajeel burst out with a bark of laughter. Erik joined him. It was true. Time was, you couldn't set foot in that place without getting an earful of his profanity-laced advice. Most of which was insulting, but useful. Gajeel pulled back the metal curtain and gestured the shorter man through to the back of the studio. "Anyway, before you decide to stick around here, you should take a look at the kit. Try not to blow a load."

Erik looked skeptical as he stepped through, but was quickly reduced to a purring kitten as he groaned and caressed the equipment that had eaten almost as much of Gajeel's seed money as the remodel had.

"Oooooh, you are fucking gorgeous! Seriously, where did a gearhead like Gaj get his hands on a fucking stunning Chaos Dragon Kit like you?! I've never even seen one in person!"

"I got really lucky. And I sold my firstborn child," Gajeel replied with a grin. Chaos Dragon equipment was the best of the best, but there were only a limited number out there as the manufacturer had mysteriously disappeared off the market seven years before.

"Worth it. Go take down that sign. I will literally kill myself if you hire anyone else."

"Don'tcha mean figuratively?" Gajeel couldn't help it. The shrimp was rubbing off on him or something.

"No. I mean literally. I will literally blow my brains out all over your checkered floor if I don't get to handle your Chaos Dragon."

"Is that what they're calling it these days? Sorry, I don't swing that way." The behemoth of a man snickered like an eight-year-old getting away with telling a dirty joke. Which is basically what he was.

"I don't even care if that sounds gay, I'm dead fucking serious. Go take down that sign."

"Don't you even want to know what I can pay ya?"

"Nope. It's a job, I assume it's at least minimum wage, and I get to use a Chaos Dragon. If you hadn't already offered I'd be on my knees begging you right now."

"Well, then welcome on board. Let's get you a W-9."

"That has never sounded so sexy."

* * *

Erza was taking it really well.

It was freaking them the fuck out actually.

"So you bumped into a girl on summer break and ended up bonded to her so that writing, touch, and most of your senses transfer, and she ran away from her shitty dad who is super rich and using all of his power to control her life. Is that about it?"

Natsu and Gray just silently nodded.

"Well, that makes more sense than it doesn't." Erza took a sip of her milkshake and sat back against her side of the booth in thought. The boys just gaped at her. Natsu had just finished explaining how he had a magical connection of some kind with Lucy, had kidnapped a guy, and that he was mounting a full out assault on a fucking millionaire and Erza hadn't batted an eyelash. While she was generally stoic, and an analytical thinker, that was still a bit out of character. They were both waiting for an explosion of Titania proportions (Yeah, that's right, she's her own descriptor. Question it. I dare ya). Nothing else compared. Although Chernobyl came to mind...granted she tended to have more victims…

Finally Gray couldn't take it anymore.

"Erza, what the hell is going on with you? You would normally be sending us in for drug tests about now! Instead, you're totally cool we committed a felony and believe in what basically amounts to magic?!" Gray immediately regretted raising his voice as half the diner looked their way. Perhaps yelling out their crimes in public was not the brightest idea. Thankfully, one look from Erza had the crowd turning back around.

"Dammit, Freezepop, shut the hell up. If she doesn't feel like beating the shit out of us for any of that, then don't go asking her to!" Natsu grumbled next to him. Somehow, they always ended up on the same side of the booth when they went out with Erza. It had started years ago to take them out of hitting distance and sort of stuck.

Mostly because it was still out of hitting distance.

"Well, if you'd told me this last week, I'd have thought you were both partaking in illegal pharmaceuticals. But, as it would happen, I found myself with a similar issue only a couple of days ago. This is actually a huge relief," Erza deadpanned.

"Wait, you're bonded too? Seriously?! How the fuck am I the only one not-"

"Language Gray Fullbuster!" Erza's fist came down on his hand where it was resting on the table and he bit his cheek to keep from crying out in pain. Natsu swiftly removed his own hands from the table. Rookie mistake.

"Yes ma'am," Gray hissed through clenched teeth as he checked for broken bones under the table.

"So, who's your soulmate then, Erza?" Natsu had to ask. It was honestly a little difficult to picture Erza _with_ anyone. "Do we know him?"

For the first time since they had initiated the conversation, Erza looked uncomfortable.

Both boys sat up. They totally knew him. Their eyebrows went up in perfect synchronization as sly smiles slipped onto their faces. Thing 1 and Thing 2 could not have looked more pleased with themselves than the two frat boys did.

"Well…" Erza stared down at her hands for a second, taking a deep breath before meeting their eyes. "I don't know anything about him being my soulmate, but I seem to be...what'd you call it? Bonded? To Mystogan Fernandes…"

"Mystogan!"

"The Blueberry?!"

"...and his brother Jellal."

Silence reigned.

For about five seconds.

"Wait, Erza...as in _Jellal_ Jellal? The one from the Tower of Heaven cult thing? He's dead...isn't he? And he's _Mystogan's_ brother?" Gray asked tersely. Natsu's brow furrowed, feeling himself join Gray in the unified front of Big-Bro mode. They didn't have to take it on often for Erza, but her only real weakness was her experience being kidnapped as a child, which they knew all too well. All signs of mischief had vanished like Muppets from the goblin king's fury (yep, went there).

"Yes. The very same Jellal. It turns out he is, in fact, alive. I ran into Mystogan the day of your frat party, and nearly lost my mind since they're twins and I thought I was seeing a ghost. Which is when I found out that Jellal has been alive this whole time. And is apparently in prison."

"Damn," breathed Natsu. "Erza, do we need to call a group session? This shit is heavy."

"Language Natsu," Erza said wearily, dropping her head on the table. "I don't know. I feel like I'm in a crazy cartoon soap opera. Or anime. Whatever. Same thing. I started seeing Mystogan...romantically. Sort of," she admitted to the chipped formica of their tabletop. "And I haven't been able to sleep because I had all these dreams about Jellal, so I thought, maybe I had to visit him. You know, excise the demons? Get some closure? All that stuff we worked on as kids. So I went with Mystogan, who agreed to come with me, but something weird happened and the next thing I knew we were all getting up from the floor with matching face bruises. And then the makeup I put on this morning disappeared in front of me... It's just been a messed up week. I haven't even been patrolling Fairy Hills like normal." Erza seemed to realize the implication of that as she spoke, a haunted look overtaking her features. "Who knows how many innocent women have been assaulted by the hornier sex? I have truly failed in my duties!"

Gray and Natsu traded solemn glances. None of them were the break down and spill it kind of people. Not until shit really hit the fan, so Erza's ramble, and admission that she had shirked her self-assigned duties, was a huge red flag. With a whole herd of guys being chased by bulls running after it. Natsu and Gray had a quick argument with their eyes that Natsu won.

"Erz, why didn't you tell us about Jellal? I noticed you and Mystogan had become friends, but you never mentioned he was _Jellal's twin_ , for gods' sakes. That's too much to deal with on your own. You know that," the pinkette said roughly, but firmly. It was part of their pact. They had to call each other on their bullshit tendency toward avoidance and denial (their therapist's wording, minus the profanity). They only had each other to hold themselves to account. No one else would keep them from shutting the world out when shit got bad. Sure, Erza still had parents, but she had always been more mature than either of them, so in the grand scheme of things they might as well have gone missing for most of her life, letting her believe them dead. It probably wouldn't have affected her much.

Erza's head popped up, her brow furrowed in annoyance.

"What, and finding out you're bonded to another human being who is supposedly your soulmate and is being hunted by her own family doesn't merit a mention?!" she snapped.

"Oi! I promised Lucy I wouldn't tell, alright?! And Elsa over here only knows because he lives with me and it's just not possible to hide this shit from him. Plus he sort of met Lucy before I did." Gray shifted uncomfortably next to him in the seat, glad he didn't go into details. He'd already given himself enough shit for it. He definitely didn't need Erza's opinion on the matter. It wasn't like she'd kept her mouth shut about his womanizing in the past.

"Fuck, even Gajeel met her before I got to!" Natsu finished, basically just thinking out loud now.

"Language Natsu!" Natsu's hands twitched in relief under the trembling table as her fist came down on it again. "And I don't care what you promised, that's still stuff you should have told me!"

" _K vragu_ , we told you now!" Gray interrupted before they could really get going. Natsu and Erza's fights (verbal or physical) never ended well...for Natsu. "And we need your help. So, attempting to get back on the topic at hand before we argue any more about what either of you should have been sharing with the group, are you in to help with Lucy's dad? Because even though we really need to call a group therapy session, that's gotta take a back seat for the moment."

"Of course I'll help," Erza snapped again. "Obviously. Natsu's clearly in love with her."

Both guys fell back into their seats, Gray with relief, Natsu red in the face and avoiding her gaze. This conversation had gotten away from them. Silence fell comfortably in a blanket around them.

Natsu eventually reached for the remains of Erza's burger, obviously abandoned, and stuffed it in his mouth.

"So…" he swallowed before continuing, trying to ignore Erza's observation. "I've got my first date with Lucy tonight. Any suggestions?"

Which led to a whole different conversation (read: berating lecture) with Erza about how women deserve planning and finesse. It wasn't until another hour later, as the redhead walked out the diner's door that Gray realized they hadn't picked up on something glaringly obvious.

Like how-the-internet-can't-shut-up-about-a-simple-solar-eclipse-obvious.

Like the-fact-that-The-Red-Wedding-was-an-episode-of-Game-of-Thrones-that-no-one-will ever-forget-obvious.

Like the-two-main-characters-of-your-favorite-anime-belonging-together-even-though-they-will-probably-never-become-canon-obvious.

"She's bonded with Mystogan AND Jellal?! BOTH OF THEM? She had TWO soulmates and I still don't have one? How the fuck does this keep happening?!"

* * *

"HOLY SHIT, I'M STILL A VIRGIN!"

Levy sat in shock, having just come out of a particularly steamy memory flash. A steamy and yet completely sexless flashback. Her exclamation was so loud it succeeded in knocking Lucy completely out of her own meditative state and off the couch. She sat up, rubbing her bum where she'd hit before she processed her friend's words.

"Wait, what did you just say?"

"Gajeel and I didn't do it during the Moon Drip party! We didn't seal the deal! And it wasn't even my fault! HE BACKED OUT! Sorry Lucy, I've gotta go. I have a Neanderthal to school on womanly needs. Right. Fucking. NOW. Have fun on your date," she added belatedly as she selected Black Steel's number in her phone.

Shortly after, someone picked up the phone on the other end. Before the person in question could voice a polite greeting, Levy blew up. "Gajeel you son of a bitch! What kind of man are you?! I was practically begging for it and you decided it was your place to cock-block my plan to seduce you? What the hell?! Can't a girl lose her virginity how she wants to without some man deciding she's too drunk to know what she's doing?! No puedo decidir si eres considerado o solo lleno de ti mismo. Eres un idiota. ¿No tienes nada que decir por ti mismo?"

"Uh, who is this?" an unfamiliar voice responded blandly.

"I'm Gajeel's girlfriend. Who the fuck are you and why are you answering Gajeel's phone? "

"Lo siento... ¿Qué?"

Levy boiled over. Now he was just fucking with her.

Erik held the phone away from his ear as a torrent of words in what he was pretty sure were multiple languages he did not understand spilled from the receiver. "Eh, Gajeel, there's a crazy bitch who says she's your girlfriend yelling at you on the phone in what I think is now... Portuguese...or Greek? Should I take a message, or…?"

He could hear Gajeel cursing as he finished a feather on the angel wing he was tattooing on the chick's back in front of him and sat back to look up at his newest hire, standing in the metal beaded doorway. Fortunately, the yelling stopped abruptly from the phone as the harpy (as Erik now thought of her) answered the question for him.

"You know what, whoever you are, tell him I'm on my way. We're going to have a little discussion about the shit he pulled during the Moon Drip party." And she promptly hung up.

Erik whistled silently and tried to decide if it was worth it to stick around until she got there. Possibly get berated for no reason, but also witness the ridiculous drama surrounding his old friend's love life, or save himself and miss the moment of humiliation in all its glory? Decisions, decisions...

It really wasn't even a question. You couldn't pay for embarrassing drama that fucking real. When it dropped into his lap, Erik knew to recognize it for what it was: future ammunition.

He grabbed a sketchpad and settled in to wait, conveniently forgetting to warn Gajeel that his hellion of a ladylove would be breathing down his neck in minutes. He whistled a jaunty tune while he waited.

Best. Job. Ever.

* * *

Natsu couldn't find his favorite hat. Which, now that he thought about it, might be his only hat.

What? Why did anyone need more than one hat anyway?People only had one head. Not like he could wear more than one at a time...though he had been enamored with the idea as a child after reading that one book where the guy has, like, _all_ the hats. He'd spent an entire afternoon as a kid wearing every hat in the house he could find, along with a few shoes that he believed were hats, they were so big. Igneel had taken a whole roll of film (back when film was a thing, remember that?) taking pictures of him strutting around the house. Natsu wondered where those pictures ended up as he dug through his drawers, flinging clothes every which way in search of his beanie. Lucy would love to see those pictures. He should really raid his storage space when all this Jude bullshit was over.

Natsu huffed in frustration. If he spent too much more time looking for the stupid thing, he'd be late to pick up Lucy, but without it, he was doomed to go the day with helmet hair. Not even the industrial strength hair gel he'd been gag-gifted by his frat Secret Santa (how did it always end up being fucking Gray?!) could stand up against the de-fluffing power of a motorcycle helmet.

Eventually consigning himself, once again, to complete betrayal by his luscious locks, he grabbed his scarf and headed out, swinging his keys on a finger. Natsu jogged quickly out through the house parking lot and unlocked the shed that was shoved into the far corner of their property. He had fought tooth and nail for the use of that beat up little shack for Igneel's baby when he'd first joined the house. Luckily, most of the upperclassmen were motorcycle fans.

He threw the doors wide and pulled the cover off his dad's bundle of joy.

"I'm back! And I'm alive!" he exclaimed as he ran a loving hand over the front wheel cover, the other smoothing over the custom embossed leather seat. "You ready to fly, Etherious?" Not even Natsu knew why Igneel had named the bike what he did. It was one of many things Igneel meant to tell him someday when he was older, but never got the chance to share.

Kicking an empty gas can and various buckets out of the way, the pinkette checked over the important bits of the bike to make sure no local vermin had mutilated her since he'd checked on her a month or so ago.

And discovered that _someone_ *cough* literallyanyoneinthehousebutprobablyGray *cough* had taped a large pink and disgustingly glittery sign that said 'Just Married' to the back, with full accompaniment of streamers and tin cans trailing behind. Glancing at his phone despairingly for the time, he started ripping off streamers and through knotted string with his teeth like a tilted Mike Tyson. He did not have time for this shit.

Finally satisfied that Etherious was no longer being assaulted by a practical joke, he straddled the bike and started her up, grinning at the growl that almost immediately settled into a gentle purr. He walked her out of the shed carefully and sat in the parking lot letting her warm up. A few heads popped out of windows on the parking lot side of the frat at her first rumbles of freedom.

"Holy shit, Natsu's riding his bike again!"

"Sweet bike!"

"That's one WILD ride!"

Natsu revved the engine to the shouts, playing to the crowd of his brothers. He had to wait anyway, he might as well take a minute to show off his beauty a bit. Reaching behind him, he grabbed his helmet, custom painted with flames, of course, and made sure Igneel's old helmet was securely attached to the back of the bike for Lucy's use later.

"Who's the lucky lady?"

"Yeah pyro, is it your girl from the party?"

"Do you looooooove her?"

Natsu rolled his eyes at that, shoving on his helmet and popping up the visor to stare up at his housemates. As they took up the chant in the most sickeningly sweet voices they could muster. The shutters on the house across the street slammed shut. No one noticed.

"Holy shit you're going on a date aren't you!" The chanting stopped as the crowd leaned out of their windows to stare at Max as he stepped into the parking lot.

"Man, you are so late on the uptake! Of course he's going on a date. Why else would he bust out the Harley?" Elfman scoffed.

Yelled comments to that became a cacophony of sound Natsu just ignored after that.

Checking the time again, the pinkette cursed as he realized he was beyond late at that point, so he revved the engine one more time - to general applause, as there was now a sizable group in the parking lot with him - kicked her into gear, and flew out of the parking lot like Mia Khalifa outta Beirut. Or a cat out of an empty room for no reason. Or KD outta OKC. Or...ah, fuck it. Whichever. Same thing.

* * *

Natsu was late.

Which was not a good way to start a date. As far as Lucy knew, anyway. The internet seemed to think it was a major faux pas to show up late for a date, but Miss Aquarius had always been clear on the subject of boyfriends: that they walked on water and could get away with murder...so Lucy wasn't sure whether she should be upset or not...

Either way, she'd been sitting on the front steps to her apartment for almost fifteen minutes now, waiting for him. Maybe she _should_ have grabbed a bigger purse so she could bring a book. . It had sounded crazy when Levy suggested it (she was going on a date, wouldn't she be too busy to read?), but it was becoming clear that a book may come in handy… If she went up and grabbed her larger purse now, she could probably still get back downstairs before Natsu got there...maybe. She got to her feet, brushing off her butt as she turned back to her building, ready to unlock the door and race up for a literary crutch to fend off boredom. Which is why she heard him coming before she saw him.

Turning at the subdued rumble of a well-maintained engine (more impressive by far than the roar of a muffler-free crotch rocket in Natsu's opinion), Lucy took in the view of her date rolling to a stop on a completely chrome motorcycle at her curb. Sunlight hit the reflective surface and nearly blinded her, prompting her to throw up a hand to shade her eyes. Lucy had never really been into motor vehicles much, as a rule, but even she could appreciate the beast of a machine in front of her. Natsu kicked down the stand for his bike and pulled off his helmet, dismounting and fluffing his hair up a bit.

Unsuccessfully.

Lucy gave him a big smile and made her way down the sidewalk, stopping about ten feet away so he could take in her majestic appearance. Because seriously, she looked freaking awesome, so it was only fair.

Natsu gave her the invited once over, starting at her platform shoes, skimming up the black sheer nylons to her ultra-short denim cutoffs and up to her chest where Levy's strategic slices showed off glimpses of an insane amount of cleavage. An open, asymmetrical gray leather jacket completed the look, her long pigtails trailing over it. Natsu swallowed hard.

He had such a thing for pigtails. How did girls always do that? Find that one thing that drove him crazy and mercilessly exploit it?

Then he saw the pink and black beanie on her head.

"Hey! That's my hat!"

Lucy's smile faltered for a second. That was not the response she had been expecting.

" _Your_ hat?"

"Yeah! I was looking all over for it. Where did you find it?" Natsu stepped up and tried to grab it off of her head. She avoided his grasp, ducking out of the way, somehow bringing them closer together in the process instead of further away. How had that even happened?

"Uh...I picked it up outside the gym a while ago. Someone...dropped..it-WAIT, holy cannoli, do you go to Gajeel's dad's gym?!" Lucy bounced on her toes a bit, leaning closer to him as recognition lit up her eyes. She swayed on her high-heels a bit and Natsu automatically stepped forward to steady her hips, staring back at her in surprise. In hindsight, it was miracle he hadn't grabbed onto her in some way before that. He kept feeling more and more like an electromagnet when she was close, all it took was a look from her and the power flipped on, whisking him to her side to hold on like there was no tomorrow. That was how electromagnets worked right? Whatever, that was physics shit. If he couldn't blow it up, he didn't really care. Shaking off his wandering thoughts, his eyes lit up with suspicious surprise, though he couldn't keep his mouth from smiling at her. Controlling his own facial features around her was turning out to be a bit of chore.

"HOW DO YOU EVEN KNOW ABOUT THAT?! I practically grew up there!" he burst out finally, giving in to his grin whole heartedly as she smiled back at him.

"I went with Levy when she met Gajeel for the first time. Mostly spent time in the bakery across the street though. They have really great chocolate croissants."

"Waitwaitwaitwaitwait-that day you were eating croissants, was it there?"

"Uh...any of the days I was eating croissants I was there. It's not like there are a ton of places within walking distance that make chocolate croissants Natsu…" Lucy raised an eyebrow. He was kind of blowing it all out of proportion. So she'd picked up his dropped hat.

A coincidence, yes. But it could have been there for hours before she found it, right? If it even was _his_ hat.

"Holy crap. When you went with Levy, were you wearing a really short top? That showed off your stomach?" His fingers slipped under the edge of her shirt to caress the flesh in question. Lucy shivered a bit at the touch.

Lucy's eyes narrowed and she tried to lean away the tiniest bit, but his fingers tightened. Letting go of Lucy was always so damn hard. Luckily, Lucy didn't seem to be trying to make him stop, just reacting to his question.

"Yeeees... I was undercover! How did you…" Lucy said suspiciously. Natsu burst out with laughter.

"I TOTALLY SAW YOU! I came in and bought croissants because the smell of you eating them was driving me crazy, and I walked right past you! Twice! No fucking way. Just...no fucking way. And that was you trying to be undercover? Tch, more like uncovered. I noticed you and I wasn't even looking for you!"

"HEY! I looked awesome!" Lucy retorted. Natsu just grinned.

"Yeah, that was definitely what had me looking," he murmured suggestively, leaning in toward her, until their faces were a few inches apart. Lucy swallowed and waited for him to kiss her again. She kept trying to build up the courage to lean forward those few inches, but it was still all so unfamiliar to her. So she just got really still and waited, locking eyes with him. Or trying to.

Natsu's attention was elsewhere.

"Can I have my hat back?" Though, despite his words, he didn't make another grab for it. He was kind of enjoying seeing her wear it. At least _one_ of them wouldn't have helmet hair.

"Nope, finders keepers! Now where are we going?" Lucy smirked, gathering herself together quickly, a little embarrassed she'd been wrong about his intentions. She pushed on his chest firmly until he stumbled back a bit. Natsu mirrored her smirk in response.

"It's a surprise." He walked back to his bike and grabbed Igneel's old helmet, passing it to her without looking while he picked up his own helmet. "But first, we're hitting that bakery, yeah? I am craving croissants again, and, once again, it's all your fault."

"Um, Natsu?" Lucy's voice sounded odd, making Natsu pause in his actions and turn back to her.

Lucy was holding the helmet in her hands with a bewildered expression. And rightfully so, as there was a significant amount of fluffy, glittery white netting spilling out of it from where it had been attached and shoved haphazardly inside. Natsu busted out laughing.

"Oh man, sorry. Gray pranked my bike at some point. That's why I was late, by the way. But I didn't know he got the spare helmet too!"

"He pranked your bike with a veil? That's a weird prank."

"Well, there was a "Just Married" sign and about fifty beer cans tied to it earlier, so..."

"Ah, say no more." She ripped off the tulle and dropped it in the dumpster next to the curb, wrinkling her nose at the smell of the afternoon heat curdling her apartment complex' waste. Stepping away from it and back to toward Natsu, she took a second to admire the helmet she was holding. It had been painted with blue flames, exactly like Natsu's just a different color. Hesitantly, she shoved the unfamiliar object on her head, trying, belatedly, to keep the wisps of bang framing her face from ending up in her eyes. Which mostly worked.

Natsu laughed as she tried to poke them back into place through her visor, only making it worse with the addition of static electricity. He took the helmet off of her, fixed her hair under his hat, tucking the strands behind her ears, and carefully slid the helmet back into place, so they were matching. He stared down at her through the open visor and cursed.

"Well shit."

"What?"

"I should have kissed you before we put these damn things on."

"No kidding!" Lucy barked a little testily. "Too late now." She slapped her visor down and resettled her purse across her body, the cross-body strap segmenting her cleavage perfectly. Natsu lost his train of thought for a second as his eyes tunnel-visioned on it. "It took too much work to get the damn thing on. Let's go get croissants!" Lucy accompanied her cheer with a thrust of her fist into the air.

The motion set her off helmeted head off balance just enough to send her staggering.

Which was all Natsu needed to hear to snap him out of it. He laughed heartily as he steadied her with one hand and then swung a leg over the bike, helping to get her situated with her arms wrapped tightly around his waist. When she stopped squirming around, he took off with a burst of speed that had her squealing, grinning into the wind.

* * *

His day wasn't getting any better. Not once, but twice, at really inopportune moments, soap had randomly appeared, slicked in bubbles over his skin, only to disappear a minute later. He'd drawn a crowd in the yard, with a hundred burly fuckers demanding that he do it again. Which he obviously had no control over. Which didn't go over well with his idiotic prison mates. By the time it hit time for dinner, Jellal had retreated to his cell, skipping dinner in favor of blessed privacy. Thankfully, Midnight had been running interference, so he hadn't incurred more than a couple of discreet bruises, but if this...whatever-the-fuck-it-was was set to continue, than something had to give. Now.

Although…

Jellal's mind sparked to life, searching through the archives of his memory to push an interesting idea into the foreground. A show about a man covered in tattoos to help his brother escape prison. Yeah, it had been an over the top plan, but the idea of obtaining insider information through his skin had suddenly taken on a new meaning.

Perhaps this new ability could be a blessing after all.

Jellal sat back against the wall on his bunk and closed his eyes trying to remember everything he could about Michael Scofield and Prison Break Season 1.

Except the ending. The ending was bullshit.

* * *

When Natsu had pulled up to the backside of a strip mall and parked, Lucy had thought he was kidding.

Because, seriously? What was epic or romantic about a skeezy parking lot? But, he had parked her on his bike, knocked on the back door and had been gone for more than a few minutes. Now she was really wishing she'd had time to grab her book. Dates had a lot of down time apparently.

Finally, after a few minutes that felt more like watching Dr. Zhivago on half-speed with a healthy dose of good old fashion jump-scare fear thrown in as some not-so-savory teenagers rounded the corner of the building on skateboards, Natsu and a middle-aged man came out and traded a manly half-hug before he strode off, tossing something back to the pinkette.

Not wasting any more time, Natsu jogged over to her and helped her off the bike.

"Alright. We're all set. Just help me stash my bike inside so those douchebags don't do something stupid to it and we'll be good to go!"

Lucy just stared at him. He leaned closer to her.

"Luce? You ok? Did someone bother you or something?"

She continued to stare at him. He ducked down to look her straight in the face and leaned even closer.

"Um...okaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa-"

"OH MY GODS NATSU! WHAT THE HELL ARE WE DOING ON THIS DATE?!"

Natsu jumped back and pulled on one of his ringing ears. Lucy could fucking bring it apparently. At least he didn't need to worry about her being able to call for help if the situation merited it. That was something.

"Just, like another minute ok?" He was already moving his bike towards the doors, idling the motor. "Door is unlocked ok, just hold open the door and then I'll show you. I swear."

"Ok. But if we're spending this date in a creepy abandoned office building or something, there won't be a second date. Soulmate or not."

Natsu stopped to look at her for a second.

She looked back.

"That's fair," he deadpanned.

In moments, Natsu was guiding her through a hallway with his hands over her eyes. Which was a lot more difficult than the movies made it look, by the way. He had nowhere for his knees! But it was totally worth it as they got through the door at the end of the hall and he positioned her in the perfect place.

"Ok, you can look now!" He exclaimed.

"Natsu, seriously?"

"Yeah, what?"

"You have to move your hands dumbass."

"Oh. Right." Natsu swiftly removed his hands from her head. That touching her addiction was getting out of hand. He hadn't even realized he was doing it that time.

"Ok…" Lucy started, intrigued but confused. "So, I get where we are, but uh...what? Where are all the people?"

Natsu grinned, putting his arms loosely around her waist and resting his chin on her shoulder. "There aren't any. And there won't be any. Old friend of Igneel's owns the place, so it's ours for the day!"

Lucy was silent for a second, taking in the dark, never-ending room full of machines with blinking lights, crazy patterned glow-in-the-blacklight carpet, and contrasting tunes.

She'd made the wrong assumption earlier. They weren't in a strip mall. It might have been divided up into stores at one point, but now the long building was all connected. At one far end, she saw a massive rock wall, also lit up with bright blinking lights for hand-holds. On the other end, what looked like a giant comic book painted on the wall, with characters larger than life and speech bubbles she could almost read from that far away. As she stood there, taking it all in, Natsu babbled, starting to get a bit nervous at her silence.

"So, I wasn't sure what you did as a kid, or you know, what your favorite games were, so I figured, I'd just borrow the place and we could find out. Without a bunch of kids running around under our feet or in the way. There's a bowling alley, and a trampoline room, and the arcade of course, and I'm pretty sure he's got a basketball court somewhere, and a ball pit, and a roller rink, and lots of other things and I just figured that way you'd have to like _something_...but you're still not talking, so now I'm starting to worry…and we can go somewhere else if you want. I think the botanical gardens is open if you aren't into this stuff..." His arms tightened tensely around her waist, jerking Lucy out of her haze. She turned in his arms so he could see the absolutely radiant joy in her eyes, smiling like a little kid in a Disney commercial as she wrapped her arms around his neck and hugged him as hard as she could.

"Oh my gods, NATSU! I've never done ANY of these things! And I've always wanted to! This is so ridiculously awesome! There are so many choices, where do we even start?!" She pulled away, smiling up at him the last couple of inches that her wedges couldn't close. Natsu grinned down into her eyes and kissed her swiftly, pulling away sooner than she expected.

"Ok then. Had to do that first. Now, take off those ridiculous shoes and follow me!"

Lucy barely got her shoes and jacket off in time before he almost ripped her off her feet with a hand around her wrist, pulling her toward the side of the building with the giant comic book.

Which turned out to be laser tag. Natsu worked the equipment like a pro, explaining that he'd worked there for a couple of summers as a teen. It paid shit, but messing around on the games after hours was totally worth it. Lucy listened enviously as he strapped her into her laser tag rig. He had been so lucky. It was like karma was making up it up to him for the first shitty years of his life. He'd had the dream childhood after Igneel found him. Growing up with a father who adored him and taught him things, having the freedom to work and play when he wanted; it was really incredible.

"Alright Luce, are you ready? Whoever shoots the other person's vest the most gets to pick the next game. The laser tag arena is themed after comic books so there's all sorts of buildings and cut-outs of people and stuff to hide behind. I'll go easy on your for the first round, so you can get the hang of it, and then we'll go for real, ok?" Natsu said, holding his hand over the big red button on the wall that would fling open the doors dramatically and trigger the superhero themed music to play.

"You aren't going to do something stupid like let me win, are you?" Lucy asked coyly, batted her eyelashes at him. She'd never played laser tag, but she was confident it wouldn't be too big of a challenge. She let a little of her confidence leak out. Just enough to tease him. "I don't want to beat the pants off you and then hear made-up excuses. Like beginners luck."

"Beat the pants off me? Wouldn't mind if you followed , seriously? I used to work here. I'm pretty sure I've still got the all-time high score. Granted that was quite a few years ago, but my body never forgets anything I'm good at." He sauntered over to Lucy and towered over her in her bare-stocking bedecked feet with a suggestive look right down her cleavage. He body suddenly felt hot all over, but she just smiled warmly up at him.

"You know what? I'll forfeit the practice round. I think I'll pick it up just fine." Lucy reviewed everything she'd learned in the field combat course on her parent's estate. It had been her only time allowed outside, so she'd drilled herself most summers to feel the sunshine on her skin. He wouldn't know what hit him.

Natsu's eyebrow went up in disbelief at her bravado, but he shrugged and kept his amusement to himself. "Whatever you want Luce. Your funeral." And he hit the button.

* * *

It was hard to seethe for hours on end. And exhausting to boot. But Levy managed it, in between trading insults in Spanish with the new guy Gajeel had hired without consulting her.

Yeah, he had every right to hire whomever he wanted, but it would have been nice if he had cared what she thought. Even a little. She had to work with the guy after all.

Granted, Erik wasn't really that bad. If she hadn't had all the pent up rage toward Gajeel and his apparently antiquated viewpoint on women and sex, then she might have warmed to him a little sooner. But she was hell-bent on her warpath, and she'd managed to keep from blowing up or forgiving him by the time the shop closed, so she was counting that as a win.

"Alright, Erik, it's been a joy. Get the fuck out so I can berate my boyfriend for not fucking me when I asked him to."

Erik, having learned quickly that Levy was not afraid to share literally any personal thing about herself to a complete stranger (i.e: him; she'd muttered embarrassing things about Gajeel her entire shift to his unending amusement), he looked down at the little blunette he was already growing quite fond of and gave her a grin, crossing his arms across his chest and settling more securely into his spot against the wall.

"Naw. I think I'll stay and watch. The first act was hilarious, so I'm guessing the second will be even better."

Levy narrowed her eyes at him. He was obviously referring to the scene she'd made storming into the shop at the start of her shift, yelling at Gajeel at the top of her lungs as she stormed through the shop, only to discover Gajeel working on a massive set of wings on the bare-back of a mostly topless chick...ignoring her rant with a sweeping blush working its way up his neck. She'd quickly backtracked with a glare that promised the argument wasn't over and proceeded to seethe. Now, she curled her lip at the new hire and flipped him off.

"Seriously. Fuck off. Gajeel and I have unfinished business. And you are not invited."

Levy finished cashing out the register as Erik finally realized what he'd probably be crashing. His face split open in a grin and he raised one hand in a lazy salute.

"Aye, aye ma'am. I'll see you two tomorrow bright and early! _Recuerde, no guante, no hay amor!_ "

Levy pointed to the door and mumbled under her breath, "That's what birth control is for."

Erik laughed loudly, as though he'd heard her and twiddled his fingers, falling backwards on the door to open it and spinning himself out into the darkness outside the window.

Finally alone with Gajeel, Levy strode into the back room to find Gajeel waiting for her, liquor bottle already out and first drink poured.

"We gonna make a habit of this Shrimp? Cause then I'm gonna need to add some sound-proofing shit or something to keep the neighboring bays from filing noise complaints."

"Gajeel Redfox, you cock-blocking asshole." Gajeel's face didn't move an inch, revealing nothing.

"Yeah, you said that earlier. What the fuck are ya talkin' about now?" Levy usually found it really amusing when Gajeel got upset and he reverted to the cruder abbreviated language that came more naturally to him. But right now, it only served to reveal what was simmering below the surface.

"I'm talking about what happened during 'the gap'. I remembered today."

Gajeel's face grew a little hotter, not sure if it was the still air in the room or the tiny blunette's words that were affecting him more. He reached out a hand and lowered the temperature on the thermostat a few degrees, kicking on the system with a faint clunk and a woosh of fresh-feeling air. "Yeah, what of it Shrimp? I still have no idea what the fuck happened, so you might as well tell me what's got your panties in wad." He looked down at the drink in his hand, careful not to let the uneasiness in his gut dictate his movements. This was it. What they'd been avoiding this whole time. What if he'd done something really stupid? Some things couldn't be taken back. From the way Levy had been behaving all afternoon, he was afraid of what she could be referring to.

"You, in your infinite wisdom as the man in our relationship, apparently, decided to ruin my perfectly lovely attempt to seduce you, and flat out _refused_ to sleep with me!"

Gajeel looked up and blinked at her in surprise. "Wait, that's it?"

Levy narrowed her eyes at him. "What do you mean, that's it?! I'm a grown-ass woman who got rejected at a very vulnerable moment by someone she loves and you don't think there's anything there that I have a right to be upset about?"

"Well. Yeah. I was sitting here thinking I'd forced myself on you or something and it turns out I was an actual fucking gentleman, so yeah. I think you're blowing this out of proportion a bit, maybe. I'm pretty proud of myself for resisting you that drunk actually. That had to take some serious willpower."

"And, it's the same damn argument all over again! In hemelsnaam, Gajeel, ik ben niet van glas gemaakt!"

Gajeel growled in frustration. "Levy, I'm not going to argue with you at all if you can't stay in English long enough for me to understand what we're arguing about!"

"I _said,_ I'm not made of fucking glass, dumbass! So I was drunk while trying to seduce you. Big fucking deal! You were drunk too! You wouldn't have been taking advantage of me, and you had no way of knowing we wouldn't remember what happened, but you protected me unnecessarily, AGAIN, and I'm tired of arguing about it!"

"But you need protecting! When you don't have someone watching out for you, you do something stupid and end up in a fucking coma!" Gajeel roared back, eyes blazing red with anger.

"Yeah, I fucked up. And I apologized for that. But I'm a big girl and I'm supposed to make my own godsdamned mistakes! If I wanna lose my goddamned virginity to you, then it's just fucking rude to refuse!" Stalking forward, Levy grabbed the glass of rum he'd poured for her from the counter and swallowed it back in one go. Wheezing a bit at the sudden burn, she choked out, "And if it takes a little alcohol to make me courageous enough to do the seducing because my fucking _soulmate_ won't make the first move, then dammit, I'm going to get fucking smashed and you'll do nothing to stop me!" With that, Levy pulled her shirt over her head and grabbed Gajeel's shirt, dragging his lips down to her level.

Fueling their passion with their mutual anger, and not an insignificant amount of pent-up sexual frustration, the two practically tore each other's remaining clothes off before Gajeel hoisted Levy bare-assed up onto the counter and running his hands over her porcelain skin. His thumbs flicked over her pebbled nipples and she keened, arching her back into him. Meanwhile, her hands were exploring his torso, gazing with dazed eyes on his exceptional body, sort of absentmindedly wondering if the creatures looking out from his skin thought she looked good naked or not.

That rum had kicked in quick. Or maybe it just wasn't needed.

Planting rough kisses down the curve of her neck to her collar bone, Gajeel slid his hands up her thighs, pulling her to the edge of the counter and spreading her legs wide, one hand finding her center and sliding a finger over her core.

Levy clenched her thighs quivering with anticipation and memory as he coaxed her wet opening until she was dripping. He'd done that the night of the party too. Stroked her until she was wriggling before finally penetrating her with his hand. As though her body relived the memory, she moaned and rocked her hips into him, encouraging him to give her took the hint, sliding a finger into her core and pumping it into her quickly before curling it inside of her.

Levy cried out, rocking her hips and wrapping her small hands around his manhood, waving erect between them. She'd seen him that night too, but it didn't make his length any less impressive. She stroked him tentatively, finding a rhythm that her body remembered, pleased that his breaths were coming as short as hers as they worked each other's bodies in agonizing pleasure.

He added fingers, filling her up and stretching her out as his lips and tongue tasted every inch of her he could reach while she rode his hand, emitting soft little moans in rhythm with his movements. The uncontrollable urge to take her was worse now even than it had been then, the thought startling him as he remembered almost giving in and fucking the living daylights out of this tiny woman in her tangled sheets; rolling around in a dizzy fever, touching each other in new and exciting ways. He'd been drunk off his ass, but still hesitant to take her. It had felt wrong, like he'd be violating her. Something about how her first time should be special. Not a result of just being drunk and horny.

Which made him realize how close he was to taking her virginity on the counter in his fucking tattoo parlor. The thought froze him for a moment, which made Levy's eyes pop open and her soft mewling make way for soft, heaving breaths. She gripped him harder and doubled her pace, a look of determination in her eyes as he groaned at the feeling of her stroking him and thrust uncontrollably into her hands. All he could think was how she deserved better than this.

But all he could _feel_ was how incredibly right it felt to be with her, to be drawing out her cries and pushing her to the edge. To be fucking her with his hand, and how much better it would be to fuck her for real.

And then a whisper of warmth flooded through as he realized why it felt right this time. Why he'd hesitated before, but couldn't begin to resist now.

Because she loved him.

That thought driving him home, he withdrew his hand and pushed her hands away from him, lining himself up with the ease of practice and driving into her, almost desperately, as she clutched helplessly at his back with her nails, barely feeling the pain through the absolute ecstasy enthralling her body. It was all she could do to hold on to him as he drove her into the counter time after time, biting into his shoulder to keep herself from screaming. He stoked her fire until it exploded in a burst of white, contracting her muscles against her will and releasing her soul to float away from her, leaving only her body to feel the aftershocks of their lovemaking and the warmth of his own release inside of her.

Both of them collapsed against each other, Gajeel supporting them both with him arms on the counter as Levy clung to the damp skin of his torso. They'd finally fulfilled what they'd both started but left unfinished and waiting so many weeks before.

And in the aftermath, they basked in the flow of relief that came of finally being one.

* * *

It had been the perfect date.

After Lucy kicked Natsu's ass in the first round, and he'd proceeded to hit his stride and trounce her in the next four rounds of laser tag, they'd moved on to almost every game in the place. They'd bowled, they'd roller-skated, and they'd pigged out on greasy food that Natsu whipped up in the kitchen, feeding each other gooey mozzarella sticks with one hand, while they saw who could shoot more basketballs into contained hoops. Everything was a competition.

If they didn't know at least one thing in common between them before their first date, then they knew one now: they both loved to win. But even the sting of losing wasn't so bad when there was always a new competition to test their skills ready and waiting.

The rules of competition were always the same. Winner picks the next game. It took Lucy a while to realize why Natsu kept choosing air hockey time after time when he lost every game. Until the puck had landed not-so-accidentally in her cleavage as she leaned forward to block him.

It was almost nine when they had finally exhausted themselves, taking a breather as they lay in the ball pit, pretending to be ninjas.

"Hey Natsu?" Lucy ventured dreamily, her breathing finally beginning to slow and stabilize with her heartrate. Her query was met with silence except for the shifting of balls to her right. She turned her head, trying to find the pinkette, but seeing nothing but a becalmed sea of blue, red, and yellow spheres. "Natsu?"

And suddenly she was grabbed from beneath, Natsu popping up and shedding the population of his hiding place as he lifted her up in the air and waded to the side, setting her on her feet at the edge and leaping out after her, tugging lightly on one of her pigtails and grabbing his beanie off her head before racing off at top speed.

Screaming in outrage and delight, she chased after him, catching up to him outside of laser tag again.

"Ok, Luce," he huffed, winded from his mad sprint. He triumphantly thrust the beanie over his head. Lucy tried to summon outrage at his theft, but found the way his hair curled up around the edge of the hat too adorable for words. " I think we need to raise the stakes."

"Raise the stakes? Now? Four hours in?"

"Yeah...why not? It's after dark. Aren't the stakes always higher on a date after dark?" he cajoled with a twinkle in his eye. Lucy shivered convulsively and sidled closer to him.

"Then what, mine mortal enemy, do you propose to sweeten the pot?"

"Well, my dearest competitor, nothing short of a game of skill and seduction...strip laser tag."

Lucy's heart began to race at his words, her cheeks and chest flushing under the glow from their dash to his arena of choice. She weighed her options.

Was she ready for something like that?

But in the end, her competitive streak and her desire to see his incredible abs again won out. "You're on. What are the rules of engagement?"

Natsu's eyes sparkled down at her with glee. "A direct shot forfeits one piece of clothing. The piece of clothing in question must be removed before your vest resets. First person to their birthday suit loses."

"Ok. Sounds fair enough." Lucy went over to the little pile of clothing that contained her jacket and her shoes and quickly slipped them back on. "But, since you have a clear advantage here, I get my jacket and shoes."

"Sure. Whatever you want." Lucy wondered if Natsu felt has exhilarated by the prospect of their new game as she did. All it took was a moment of concentration to feel his racing heartbeat to know he was just as amped.

Lucy had played strip poker once when she and a bunch of other executives' kids had snuck away from a stuffy benefit they were attending for a little fun, but it hadn't been what she'd call fun. It was more embarrassing than anything, undressing in front of a bunch of complete strangers. Thankfully, she was a decent hand at poker, and when they'd been discovered by their parents, hours later, she'd barely removed her outer layers.

But with Natsu it was different. As he reset their game to keep score and checked to make sure their rigs worked properly, she found herself imagining the ways she could tease him as she removed her clothes, and guessing what he'd take off first...or last. Lucy's mouth went dry at the thought and she recommitted herself to winning. Natsu had already seen her in nothing but underwear in that picture she'd sent him. It was time to return the favor. With interest.

Natsu hit the button, and they were off, immediately dodging in separate directions as they fell into their now comfortable hunting patterns. Natsu preferred to prowl for his prey, taking the open spaces slow, but making up time as he darted through the structures. Lucy's best strategy had been hiding and waiting for Natsu to ramble past, finding unconventional hiding places atop the structures or shoved into almost impossible spaces. It was how she'd beaten him in the first round, and though the surprise of that approach had been spent, she had still managed to keep neck and neck with him as he proceeded to beat her in the subsequent games.

Lucy tucked herself into a corner between two "walls" and turned her head to see out of the window on the wall beside her, trying her best not to be seen. But Natsu caught the glint of her glossy blonde hair in the black lights and immediately zeroed in on his target.

On behalf of men everywhere, this was one battle he refused to lose.

He hopped down off of the platform he'd used to get a good angle on Lucy through the window and trotted over, hoping she'd be slow enough to follow from that location.

What he found instead were her shoes, left behind. Natsu grinned wolfishly and ran out of the structure, holding his gun ready and waiting. Lucy slid farther into the shadows and he ran right past her, unable to see her dead vest in the dark until it reset. She had about ten more seconds before it lit her up for him and made her a target once more, but that was all she needed. Stalking him swiftly and quietly in her stockinged feet, she nailed him in the back in one try, slipping away again to the ramp that led to the roof of one structure, ducking behind a cut out of Batman crouched on the edge, but unable to resist a peek to see what clothing item Natsu had chosen to shed. His tennis shoes had been kicked off and joined her own.

Her sniping position served her well for another round, scoring Natsu's socks off of him before he got her twice in succession for which she abandoned her jacket and her shorts, making her much less visible in the dark, in just her navy shirt and black nylons. That added element of stealth won her his t-shirt. The removing of which distracted her long enough to give him a ridiculously easy target. Just as he got his harness buckled back on, he nailed her, quick as red lightning. Darting away as her vest alerted her to yet another his, she peeled off her tights and squeezed into a narrow space between two buildings to catch her breath and wait. Sooner or later he'd run past her gap and she'd have him.

They were all tied up. Three pieces of clothing left apiece. Lucy with her shirt, bra, and panties. Natsu with his hat, shorts and boxers.

The stakes had never been higher. Natsu could feel her heartbeat pulsing within him as he fed off of her adrenaline rush. This was the Thunderdome, two would enter, only one could leave. He planned on walking out of there with his dignity intact.

Lucy had other plans.

Eventually Natsu did walk cautiously out in front of her trap and she hit his target quickly, slipping out of the hiding place and moving to another without risking another look back at his beautiful chest until she got there.

At which point she discovered he'd shed his shorts and wore nothing but his boxers and the beanie. Her mouth fell open unabashedly as she stared at him, longing to reach out and run her fingers down his sculpted chest and down to the trail of pink hair on his stomach that almost glowed under the black lights. Her throat went dry and her throat tickled until she couldn't stand it anymore and coughed harshly, quickly running away, but getting nailed the moment right before she escaped around a corner. She froze for a moment, then started to dart off again, but was immediately stilled by Natsu's presence against her back, his hand on her arm, keeping her in place.

"Wait. I wanna see this one," he whispered into her ear, gently teasing her with his teeth, making Lucy shiver again. Slowly, her hand reached down and lifted up the hem of her shirt. But instead of removing it, she just revealed the clasp of her bra to him. Leaning back a bit, he got a really spectacular view of her bared backside, the lace of her skimpy underwear matching the back of her bra.

Shit. Running just got a hell of a lot harder.

Literally.

"Will you unhook me then?" she whispered back, sounding much more seductive than she thought she would. Natsu drew in a sharp breath and reached out to carefully move her harness strap and unhook her lacy bra, frozen as Lucy pulled the straps off over her arms, and slid the flimsy lingerie from under her shirt. Dangling it from one finger, she dropped it next to her and strode away, putting a little more sway in her hips than usual until she was safe to turn and run. She barely made the corner before her vest lit up again, signaling she was once again back in the game. Running without a bra sucked, but the rush she felt from Natsu when she took it off was totally worth it. The internet research she'd snuck in after Levy left was paying off. Lucy sent up a silent thanks to Virgo for her mad finding skills. That little vixen had Google tied around her little finger...or just tied up. With all the bondage websites that had turned up, she was starting to think the little woman in her computer had a bit of kink.

Lucy stayed still for a moment concentrating on Natsu to see if he was on the move. When she had felt no movement except deep hard breaths for a while, she chanced a look back where she'd last seen him. He stood with her bra in his hand, looking down at the lace and running his fingers over the soft fabric that still bore the heat from her skin.

Seeing her shot, she took it, crowing out in her triumph as his vest went dark. She yelled out to him as she switched positions, taking refuge behind a cutout of Wonder Woman. "So, what'll it be? Boxers or beanie? I know which one I'm hoping for…"

"Sorry to disappoint," he replied, ripping the beanie off his head and vigorously shaking his head, like a dog flinging water out of his coat. It still get the shape it had with the hat though, completely flattened to his head except for the bottom edge, which flipped up and out. "But we did say the first to buck-ass-naked loses. And the hat wouldn't do much to keep me covered...though I don't think I'd have trouble keeping it on _somewhere else_ at the moment. I don't think a book cover has ever looked that hot."

Lucy looked down at her Gatsby shirt, immediately startled to see the white parts of the eyes glowing under the black lights at her in between the slashes. It made her laugh. "Creepy you mean!" she called back.

"Huh? Creepy? Why?"

She automatically popped out from behind Wonder Woman to point to her shirt. "Because there are eyes glow-" The sound of her vest being shot cut her off and she stared in shock at the deviously grinning pinkette, whose vest was blinking merrily once more. "You cheater!" she exclaimed, stomping over to him.

He just blew across the end of his gun like he was Dirty Harry (ok, he was pretty sure Clint Eastwood had never actually done that, but it made him feel badass to imagine, alright?!) and his smile got a little devious as she bounced, _excessively_ , with each step. Where was a bucket of water when you needed one? Oh wait...he'd just shot her. Which meant...

"So what'll it be Lucy? The top…" His eyes raked down her torso, past the expanse of taut skin exposed across her hips to the tiny scrap of lace she had the nerve to call underwear. "Or the bottom?"

Lucy's face heated up as she slowly unbuckled the unresponsive vest and dropped it on the ground. Turning her back to Natsu with a glare, she grabbed the hem of her shirt and whipped it over her head.

Which is when the music cut out and they heard a voice from just outside the laser tag arena call out a brisk, "Hello?"

"Shit! The night guard!" Natsu spit out, looking around frantically for Lucy's clothes. "Run and hide. I'll deal with him!"

Lucy scooped up her shirt, leaving the vest behind and hightailed it into the nearest 'building', which thankfully contained her shorts. Natsu had just managed to tug on his shorts when the door opened, flooding the dark space with a bright angle of light. Lucy ducked down behind the window she was watching from and frantically continued to dress herself as best she could.

"Natsu? I thought that was your bike. What are you doin' here this late?" a stout man in a uniform asked the shirtless man from the doorway. "A late night craving for laser tag? By yourself?"

"Heya Jay! What's up?" Natsu said casually, trying his best to pretend that it was completely normal to be half-dressed in a laser tag arena at...he checked his phone. Jesus, 11? Where had the time gone?

"Hey, that's still Mr. Zirconis to you, brat!" the man returned playfully. "But seriously kid, what're ya doin'?"

Natsu strolled up and lowered his voice before responding. "I cashed in a favor with the big guy and borrowed the place for a date. Sorry I didn't give you a heads up man, but I didn't think we'd be here this late. Can you give me like...ten minutes? Then we'll be out of your hair!" Natsu shared a knowing grin with the man in front of him.

"Ah, yes. Of course. I'll leave you to it then. Introduce me to the lucky lady sometime? She must be a hell of a girl to make you put in this much effort."

"Oh yeah, she is. Wait til you ge-" Natsu was cut off by a feminine cough behind him. He saw the night guard's eyes shift over his shoulder and blow wide, which prompted him to turn and see a still very obviously braless Lucy approaching him.

"Um, Natsu? Have you seen my...er, never mind!" Lucy blushed hard and darted way again. She'd thought the guard was gone, but apparently not. She quickly hid behind a building and thanked the gods she hadn't gotten the chance to ask him where her bra had ended up. She'd managed to track down everything else, stuffing her nylons in the pocket of her jacket instead of putting them back on.

Jay Zirconis whistled low and looked back at Natsu with a newfound respect in his eyes. He didn't need to say anything else. He just stuck out his hand, shook Natsu's and left, closing the door behind him. Natsu sighed in relief. At least Jay was still the night guard. He shuddered to think of the mess they'd be in if they'd been discovered by someone who didn't recognize his bike and call out before entering.

"It's ok to come out now Luce!" he called out, turning to face her as the blonde crept out a little more hesitantly than before, her arms crossed securely over her chest, with her jacket thrown over them for good measure.

"Shit, that was close. Have you seen my bra?" Lucy said absentmindedly to his bare torso. Natsu flexed a little, inciting a tiny noise to escape from her throat, and grinned at her.

"You mean this?" he said, pulling the undergarment from the pocket of his shorts where he'd shoved it. Lucy's eyes immediately snapped to his hand and ran forward making a grab for it.

"Hey! Give it here!" she exclaimed, making a reach for it as Natsu swung it up and just out of her reach. She braced a hand on his shoulder and jumped for it again, ending up slamming into his body and knocking him over in the process. Ignoring the pain in her back transferred from him at the fall, she leaned over him to grab the bra from his hand, but froze when she felt his breath on her bare skin.

"Shit Luce..." She swallowed and looked down, seeing that she was once again straddling him and had unintentionally almost smothered him with her cleavage. Before she could apologize though, he'd flipped her over and started suckling her neck. Her breath left her in a quiet whoosh and she gave herself over to the sensation of him tasting her skin.

"Oh gods...Natsu...uh AH, don't we need to be getting ou-" She was cut off my Natsu's lips, his tongue invading her mouth and killing her thoughts for a moment. She kissed him back, fierce with longing as she wrapped her legs around his waist and thrust her hips into his. He groaned at the sensation into her mouth and she broke away suddenly, panting. "Seriously. Natsu...we need to leave, right?" Natsu shook his head to clear it, trying to make sense of her words. It was like she was a drug. He was riding high on her - literally - and completely addicted.

"Uh, yeah," he replied hoarsely, clearing his throat. "Yes. Sorry." He sat up, pulling Lucy with him, since her legs were still locked firmly around him. "Did I tell you how amazing you look today, by the way?"

"No, you haven't actually. So I'll try not to take it personally that you only bothered to mention it when I'm half-dressed and straddling you."

"Well, you looked hot before, and even more gorgeous straddling me. Feel better?"

Lucy just groaned and dropped her head on his shoulder. "No!" she returned playfully.

"Well…" Natsu nuzzled her ear as he murmured, "You're always the most beautiful thing I've ever laid eyes on, so it's sort of hard to compare you to yourself."

Lucy's thighs tightened on his hips and she drew back enough to look at him suspiciously. "Back to the cheesy lines now?"

"Naw. That one's just true. Can't help it if it's cheesy." Lucy rested her forehead on his and they sat quietly for a moment. Eventually the blonde sighed and pulled away from him.

"We really need to go."

Natsu sighed too. "Yeah. Just admit I won and we can be on our way." His eyes twinkled at her.

"Like hell you won! If anything it was tie!" She pushed off of him and staggered to her feet, grabbing her bra quickly from the floor before stomping off behind a wall to put it back on.

Natsu just lay back down on the floor with his hands behind his head and sighed in contentment. His life might be weird, but it was also pretty damn good at the moment. He was jerked out of his thoughts as Lucy dropped his t-shirt on his face and his cross-trainers on his stomach.

"Alright you perv, put a shirt on so I can stop thinking about jumping you and let's go. I'm a bit peckish."

"For some cheesy comestibles?" he teased as she pulled the shirt over his head and started on his socks.

"Sorry, what?" At Lucy's response he froze and narrowed his gaze on her, mock disappointment in his eyes.

"That's it. Next date we watch Monty Python. Stat. You are sadly lacking in comedy sketch knowledge." He pulled on his shoes and hopped up, opening the door to the bright lights again motioning her through before throwing an arm around her shoulders.

"Sounds like a plan," she said, grinning over at him, taller on her wedges again. He leaned over and briefly kissed her before steering them towards the door they came in through. Jay was waiting for them, drooling over Natsu's motorcycle.

After a brief re-introduction, Natsu returned the keys to the building and walked his bike through the wide doorway before tossing Lucy her helmet and donning his own. She hopped on like a Hell's Angel's mistress who born to it and waved to the night guard as she and Natsu sped off into the night.

The wind whipped her pigtails around her shoulders as they flew down the empty streets. It took too little time to get back to her apartment, there before she realized they had slowed down.

And the next thing she knew they were standing at her door as she fiddled with her keys, not wanting the night to end, but not really knowing how to invite him up either.

"Uh, Natsu…"

"So Luce," he cut her off. "I probably should have mentioned this before...but Gray and Erza and I talked it over and we decided that until we get this whole thing with your dad sorted out, someone should stay with you in your apartment...and I sort of insisted that I got tonight, so no one would interrupt our date or anything…" His hand automatically ran through the hair on his head as he avoided looking in her eyes. Lucy bit her lip to keep from grinning. He really was super cute when he was flustered. There were so many sides to Natsu. One minute he was whispering steamy things in her ear, the next he was grinning like a kid and stealing her clothes. On anyone else it'd come off a little more than nuts...but on him? It worked.

"So, what you're saying is you've basically already reserved the right to follow me upstairs? That's a little presumptuous, isn't it?" she teased him.

"No, you misunderstand," he replied, matching her tone. "I've reserved the right to come back after I park my bike for the night where it will be safe, break into your apartment and scare the shit out of you and then spend the night on your couch trying not to think about your naked body in the room next door."

"Naked? Why would I be na-"

"Ssssshhh. Don't ruin it…" he murmured, his finger over his lips as he closed his eyes dreamily, one popping open to gauge her reaction a moment too soon and ruining the act. Lucy smacked him on the arm with a laugh.

"You perv! Go put Etherious away and hurry back. I'll whip up something to munch on for when you get back."

Natsu's eyes lit up. "And you're officially the best girlfriend ever."

Lucy's heart stuttered a bit. "Girlfriend?"

Up came the hand to his hair again as he backed away from her. "Well, we've got at least two more dates planned and we're apparently bonded for all of time, so I'm thinking girlfriend is not a huge stretch…"

"Well, yeah, I guess not." Lucy said, bemused. She hadn't even taken a moment to think about it yet...wait… "Two more dates?" she called after him.

"Yeah! Monty Python and then Die Hard, remember? I do believe you promised you'd watch it on our third date!" he yelled back to her, already grabbing his helmet off his bike. "I'll be back in a bit!"

Lucy watched him ride away until she couldn't see him anymore and then sped up to her apartment.

* * *

It only took Natsu fifteen minutes to stash Etherious and start back toward Lucy's place. Whistling to himself, he pulled his phone from his pocket to discover that somehow the whole damn display had been set to Spanish. He recalled uncontrollable giggles coming from Lucy during that laser tease and cursed. He desperately hit clicked a button and tried to summon Siri for help.

"Siri, turn my language back to English."

"¿Cual es la palabra magica?"

"What the fuck Siri, just turn it back!"

"'Fuck' no es la palabra mágica."

"What the fuck? Just change it you crazy bitch!" Natsu yelled desperately at his phone.

"Vete a la mierda, eres el Natsu equivocado."

"AAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHH!"

Suddenly his phone buzzed in his hand.

"Tienes un nuevo mensaje de Lucy."

"No shit Sherlock," he muttered in response as he opened the text from Lucy. It had her apartment number on it so he could buzz her when he got there. "Fuck it. I'll deal with you later Siri."

"Fuck no se puede encontrar en mi diccionario español. Expresar de otro modo."

"And I'm done with that shit."

He shoved his phone in his pocket and picked up his pace back to Lucy's.

When he'd been standing outside for another ten minutes trying to get her to buzz open the door, he started to worry. Maybe her buzzer was broken. Any other time of the day he'd have buzzed the other apartments to get someone to let him in, but it was past midnight at this point.

He checked his phone, thankful that at least the time was fucking universal. He had another option...Natsu'd been in his fair share of the Fairy Hills Apartments, so he knew the basic layout of the building. After attempts to buzz her again, text her, and call her were met with voice mail messages and failure (ok, he honestly couldn't get his phone to call her or text her, but he really did try!), he carefully counted windows and found he was in luck as there was a tree right outside her open window. The light was on, the only one at this time of night, but that reassured the roiling coil in his stomach. Everything about this felt wrong. His instincts were screaming. Or maybe it was the adrenaline rush crashing over him.

Jumping up to grab a low branch, the pinkette swiftly scaled the tree and jumped to the sill of her window, landing on her bed. The light he'd seen came from the lamp on her bedside table.

Everything looked normal. Nothing out of place. Natsu cautiously called out for Lucy, not getting a response. The apartment was eerily quiet.

Suddenly, a red welt appeared on his arm, stinging with pain. He panicked, frantically darting to Lucy's living room to find the cushions ripped off the couch and the door hanging open, a broken plate and pieces of sandwich strewn over the floor.

He started for the door, but was suddenly overcome by dizziness, his vision blurring as a sweet, cloying smell invaded his senses. As he collapsed to the floor, his hazy half asleep state connected him with Lucy moments before he lost consciousness and he heard her mumbled words.

"Natsu...please...help me…"

And then another voice, a male one he didn't recognize, echoed in the space surrounding her.

"Hush Lucy. We'll be home soon."

* * *

 **WMAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA! So, I wasn't gonna go there. But it turns out kidnapping Lucy is just so damned easy. How could I resist? Hopefully this RIDICULOUSLY long chapter will help you get by until next week's update. Also, I'll save you the trouble. I'm evil. I know. What can I say? I LOVE cliffhangers. hehe**

 **The Goods:**

 **Macbeth Gertrude Masters** -sooooo, Macbeth/Midnight apparently doesn't have a last name in canon...this shit is all from my head. I feel like Midnight might have killed his parents for naming him...maybe.

 **Holden** -main character from Catcher in the Rye

 **Rangiku** \- Rangiku Matsumoto, the busty redheaded Soul Reaper Lieutenant from Bleach

 **Lisbeth** -Main character from the Girl with the Dragon Tattoo

 **Anne with an E** -reference to Anne of Green Gables (basically the sum of the parts is equal parts sweet, sexy, dangerous bad girl, and apathetic drifter; my version of Lucy uses clothes to set the scene, a sort of manipulation she learned from her father, because image is everything to a Heartfilia)

' **Memflashing'/1984** -a reference to the abbreviated language Orwell created for his masterpiece 1984 called 'Newspeak', in which everything was abbreviated and combined in order to use connotation to control thought and attitude...a little too eerily similar to how we abbreviate phrases now for comfort…

 **one-eyed, auburn-haired, smoking (purple people eater.**.-referring to the ridiculous but ear worm of a song by Sheb Wooley entitled "Flying Purple People Eater". The original lyrics are "It was a one-eyed, one-horned, flying purple people eater". This is honestly just my brain being silly. Started that sentence about Erik and then noticed the rhythm was super similar and couldn't resist!

 **Claire Underwood-** reference to Frank's wife in House of Cards

 **Thing 1 and Thing 2-** just in case you were deprived of Dr. Seuss as a child and have no idea what I was referring to, Things 1& 2 are humanoid creatures from The Cat and the Hat whose sole purpose seems to be wreaking havoc on nice houses and getting kids in trouble while their parents are away under the supervision of their feline overlord, the one and only wearing a ridiculous chapeau.

 **All signs of mischief had vanished like Muppets from the goblin king's fury-** reference to Labyrinth. The greatest David Bowie movie of all time. Forever and ever, amen.

 **Elsa-** do I need to explain this? I assume not.

 **K vragu** _-_ the equivalent of "damn it" in Croatian

 **No puedo decidir si eres considerado o solo lleno de ti mismo. Eres un idiota. ¿No tienes nada que decir por ti mismo?** -Spanish for "I can't decide if you're considerate or just full of yourself. You asshole. Don't you have anything to say for yourself?" according to Google translate.

 **Lo siento... ¿Qué?** -Spanish for "I'm sorry...what?" because I think it would be hilarious if Erik knows Spanish too and Levy talk about Gajeel without him understanding while they're at work all the time. hehe

 **that one book where the guy has, like,** _ **all**_ **the hats-** _Caps for Sale: A Tale of a Peddler, Some Monkeys and Their Monkey Business_ by Esphyr Slobodkina. Don't know where this reference came from. My childhood mind was apparently a steel trap. Though, I definitely had to look up the title again...

 **Recuerde, no guante, no hay amor!** -Spanish for "Remember, no glove, no love!"

 **In hemelsnaam, Gajeel, ik ben niet van glas gemaakt!** \- Dutch translated to roughly, "For heaven's sake, Gajeel, I'm not made of glass!"

 **Thunderdome, two would enter, only one could leave** -reference to Mad Max Beyond Thunderdome, the third of the original Mad Max movies starring Mel Gibson, in which he becomes a post apocalyptic gladiator in the Thunderdome.

 **Mia Khalifa outta Beirut-** ok, moment of honestly, this bad boy was devised by my beta Shedauwz. I know nothing about muslim porn stars or their apparent forced exodus from Beirut (or really anything about modern pop culture I can't get from a book or a movie). But it had a nice ring and when explained cracked me up, so, there you have it. But it's all his, so credit where credit is due!

 **Siri's spanish:** in deference to the inspiration for that little moment, I will not be translating Siri's half of the convo for you. Because HE NEVER FUCKING DOES!

Nope, I'm a pushover. Here's what she's saying:

 **What's the magic word?**

 **Fuck is not the magic word.**

 **Fuck off, you're the wrong Natsu.**

 **You have a new message from Lucy.**

 **Fuck cannot be found in my Spanish dictionary. Please rephrase.**


	33. Solidarity

**A quick shout out for the guest who was kind enough to correct my Spanish. THANKS! I'm unfortunately not a polyglot *runs into the corner to cry eyes out in depression over this fact* so I use Google translate. But I KNOW the translations are clinical at best. Unfortunately, I have no secondary source to check with for colloquial quirks and rhythm.**

 **With this in mind, I would LOVE to post a couple of missions on the metaphorical job board: If you are fluent in one of the languages I throw out to make Levy badass or globalize our characters a bit (so far Croatian, French, Spanish (Grimnack recently graciously offered to help me out with this one!), German, Dutch...I'm sure there are a few more, but those tend to be my go-tos) and are willing to trade PMs with me as a consultant, please let me know! I would love to run Google's translations past someone who can understand if they're right and correct them accordingly. I respect the fuck out of English grammar, and it makes me feel shitty thinking that I'm butchering another language's grammar, so I'd love your help if you're willing! Just PM me and let me know! (Super low commitment, just the occasional double check on something quick!)**

 **Additionally, if you have a mother language that it would make you warm and fuzzy to see show up in a chapter, give me a shout out!**

 **Thanks guys! You hold me to a high standard and I want to live up to that, but I need a little help to do it!**

 **Now, what you're really here for.**

* * *

"Can someone get me a fucking beer please?" Gray called out faintly from somewhere under the main sail...that is, the fire curtain from the campus theater department, which may or may not have been borrowed at the last minute, and fallen down almost immediately after the parade. Whatever, their float had been badass until then.

"Cana? Any beer left?" Max yelled helpfully, echoing the request from his cohort as he tugged up the skirt of his Tinkerbell costume to scratch at where a mosquito was trying its best to exsanguinate him.

"Dude!" several of the guys sitting south of him responded, shielding their eyes from the view up his loose boxers.

"You know what, fuck you guys. I look amazing," Max responded, fluffing his newly bleached hair.

"No beer left me hearties! We're down to the grog! But we've plenty of that, so drink up lads! Can't put me ship in storage with even a draught o' the clap o' thunder still sloshing around in her, mates!" Cana yelled over him, rolling a mostly empty cask Gray's way with a shove of her foot, as she adjusted the ridiculously large feather in her hat.

"Why did we make her captain again?" Mickey mused to Simon, both laying out on the lower deck, next to the rigging they'd tied out of torn up and twisted old bed sheets. It was a miracle no one had died getting to the crow's nest.

Fuck, it was a miracle they had a crow's nest.

"Boobs if I recall correctly."

"Oh, right. We've really gotta get better about ignoring her cleavage."

"Hers and every other woman's who seduces us into doing whatever they want."

"So Mira then."

"Yeah, basically."

Gray dragged himself out from under the heavy curtain/sail that had been blocking out the passing streetlights so he could attempt a nap, and staggered across the moving deck toward the barrel rolling his way. The ship took a turn and everyone standing fell over, a cry of disgruntlement arose from the passengers of the erstwhile man o' war sailing down the streets of Magnolia suburbia.

"ELFMAN!"

The cask rolled back away from where Gray hit the worn planks. At which point he gave up. He shouldn't really be drinking anyway.

"Sorry men! And Tinkerbell!" he roared back from the truck's cabin hooked up to the ship. Max half-heartedly responded by flipping him the bird. If the constant jokes throughout the day and the clapping to let them know that they did in fact believe in fairies hadn't broken him, then Elfman's comments certainly wouldn't. The driver belatedly added, "We're almost home! Keep an eye on that main boom, we can't afford to replace any more windows!"

"Aye aye, sir!" yelled back Jet, Owen, and Nobarly as they swung around from their positions on the boom in question. Just as the boom was about to hit the gutter of a house as they passed, they each threw out an arm and sent it swinging back the other way. Which rocked the boat/float/trailer-with-barrels-attached-to-it, and sent those fucked-up enough to have attempted standing again falling to their asses. Thank the gods they were almost home.

Half of the occupants of the ship made silent or muttered promises to themselves to get a commercial trucker's license so they wouldn't be at the mercy of Elfman's ham-handed driving the next time they had to pull their mighty schooner through the narrow channels of Magnolia. That is the streets. Because they were all pretty sure the "ship" they'd been "sailing" wouldn't make it past the docks on the actual canal running through the city. But never fear, it had been suggested and hastily shot down.

It took Elfman another hour of backing up and a spectacular 24 point turn to get the ship parked somewhere near the inside of the parking lot; a flowerbed (a surprise to all, who knew they had flowerbeds?) and the handicap parking sign its only victims. All around, not a bad day's work.

The crew of pirates staggered over to the edge of the ship and began climbing down the multiple rope ladders they had eventually installed after discovering their complete lack of patience as a whole. Their fearless captain, with her impressively fluffy fake beard and far-too-sexy-to-be-pirate-attire-striped-silk-bloomers, counted them off as they went in.

"Wait guys, shit, where'd we lose Loke?" she exclaimed with a frown as the last scurvy-ridden fraternity brother staggered past her in pursuit of his bed.

"Peter Pan? Pretty sure he jumped ship at Fairy Hills. Something about a window."

There was a collective groan.

Not even Loke could be that cliché, right?

* * *

Natsu tried to bring moisture back to the desert in his mouth as he spun in and out of consciousness. A pain stabbed its way into his temples as he finally peeled his face off the linoleum extending out from Lucy's kitchen.

He'd only been out for a moment or two fully, certain, somehow, that Lucy was still down for the count. The pinkette abruptly shook the fog from his head, thankful that the spinning subsided a bit at the action. Just as he was beginning to take measure of his surroundings, a crash from Lucy's bedroom jerked him awake enough to remember what had landed him on the floor in the first place.

Staggering to his feet, he attempted a strong stance to defend himself if necessary, facing her bedroom doorway, preparing himself for the worst.

What he was not prepared for, was Loke standing in the doorway in bright green tights and a jaunty feathered-bedecked cap. With his arms akimbo, fists planted on his waist above the zigzagged hem of his eye-smartingly green, and _short,_ tunic, he was the spitting image of Peter Pan. If Peter Pan had suffered from a sudden growth spurt and wore sunglasses.

"...thafuck?" Natsu slurred, another wave of that sweet smell hitting him. He keeled over, Loke catching him a second before his face got acquainted with the floor of Lucy's apartment. Well, reacquainted.

"Bro, what is wrong with you? Breaking into some girl's apartment only to pass out? What kind of panty raid is this?" Loke questioned, grunting under Natsu's weight. For someone so trim, he weighed more than a pregnancy scare from a side piece. And that shit was heavy.

"Ish nota panty raid, ya pervy ginsher. Lushy! Sheesin trouble!"

Loke stared at the pinkette skeptically, sniffing the air around him, but not smelling booze. Though, there was the faint hint of…

"Holy shit Natsu! Chloroform?! I didn't think you had it in ya! But you're doing it wrong. You don't chloroform _yourself_ , ya idiot..."

"Shuddup Loke, 'snot me. 'S Lushy!" Natsu shook his head roughly and buzzed his lips, trying to get them to say what he wanted. He felt like his head had run into a metal pole. At a full run. And demolished it. "Dammit. Lu-cy! Lucy 'sin trouble!"

Loke's eyebrows immediately furrowed as he glanced around the empty apartment. "So this _Lucy_ is the girl you're hung up on! Is this her apartment? Where is she?"

"Gone. Chlrf-chlorf-chlororof-fuck, you know. Knocked...out. Kidnapped," Natsu managed to finally get out around his teeth. Which suddenly felt like they were too big for his mouth. Or his huge fuzzy tongue. Chloroform was not pleasant secondhand. Though, it had to be worse firsthand. Natsu's fists clenched. They had to find Lucy.

"Kidnapped? Are you kidding me? We're in fucking Magnolia. No one gets kidnapped in Magnolia." Loke got a shoulder under Natsu's arm and led him over to the couch, setting him down and taking in the sandwiches and broken plate on the floor again. He'd thought maybe Natsu had been carrying the strewn food when he fell, but the shards intermixed with cheese and ham took on a new meaning with Natsu's words. With the note of skepticism in his voice slightly reduced, he queried with genuine concern, "Who would even do that?"

"Her dad." Talking was suddenly a lot easier when Natsu didn't have to also concentrate on standing. As long as he spoke slowly, words were coming out right again. "What the fuck're you doing here? Did you come in through the window after me? Why do you look like a pedophile trying to abuse an overeager teenaged girl? While her parents are downstairs watching Oprah or some such shit?"

"Didn't take _you_ long to sober up did it, you plebeian pyro," Loke replied drily with a sniff and a tug on his green tunic. "I was honored to play Peter Pan on our float, for the ladies, and I saw you jumping through the window on our way bringing the ship back. There's a huge pool going on who the mysterious love of your life is. I was just planning on catching a glimpse and seeing what apartment you were in to get a jump on the competition. Then I saw you collapse and came to check on you. Definitely didn't expect chloroform though. Why would her _dad_ kidnap her? And chloroform you?"

"He's a controlling fucking cunt's why. Loke, you gotta call Gray and tell him. He'll know what to do. Tell him Lucy's been taken and he'll round everybody up."

"Everybody? Who the fuck is this girl? Lois Lane? Are we calling in the Justice League to get her back before Superman has a conniption and kills us all?"

"Wrong fandom jackass. JUST FUCKING CALL HIM LOKE!"

"My lost boys and their Wendy. You little rascals never grow up."

"I swear to fucking hell, if you don't call Gray I will punch you in the dick so hard, you'll make it to the second star on the right," Natsu growled.

"Sheesh. Dialing. Don't get your tights in a wad."

"Hey, I'm _not_ the douche wearing fucking tights here. Your balls are showing btw. Fucker."

* * *

Lucy was drunk. And surrounded by people she didn't know.

Oh wait. This was a flashback.

 _She stared at the circle of laughing teenagers around her and felt cranked! Everyone was tight. They were her friends! Coooool friends! Neato friends! Friends were peachy! Everything was just...peachy! But especially Pink Squirrels. Peachy Pink Squirrels? Whatever, Pink Squirrels were boss! Illuminations were hitting her like water on a rainy night and she had managed to leave her square threads at home for the bash of the year. She was on Cloud 9. A hazy, dazy Cloud 9!_

 _If only_ he _was here...where'd he go anyway?_

 _Lucy/Whoever-the-fuck-she-was-this-time stumbled to her feet and spun around, searching the room for that sexy-god-man-guy who did the unbelievable things with his tongue. It was one of her favorite things about him, the dexterity of his tongue. Oh the words he could pontificate! Pontificate! Dexterity! She tasted the words as she said the second out loud a couple of times._

" _Dex-ter-i-teeee, dexTERity, dexterITeeeee…" Lucy mumbled to herself. "What a neato word!" Words were far out peachy keen. Hehe, words._

 _A wave of laughter washed over the crowd of her friends-her friends were righteous!-and Lucy joined them, spinning around again just for the fun of spinning, forgetting what she was looking for. Something about a tongue..._

" _She's totally on the hook. Look, she can't even go ten minutes without trying to find that cat!" one of the group chattered, disregarding whether Lucy could hear them._

" _Agreed. That kitten's totally kookie for him!" another one responded with a giggle._

 _That's right. She was looking for_ him.

 _She almost missed the quieter whisper, "Isn't he pinned to that dolly?"_

" _Well, hasn't stopped him from stepping out on her before…"_

 _She shook her head a bit to try and clear the chatter and the buzz from her ears. She had to find him. This was her shot. She was finally at a cool party with cool people, and at long last felt in tune with them, totally on the stick. If she didn't find him now, he'd never see her past the paper shaker that followed him around. There were rumors they were going steady, but nothing was confirmed. That lack of confirmation was her lifeline._

 _Lucy/Whomever staggered through the scads of students surrounding her on the floor, giving half of them a decent view up her skirt. She couldn't help but smirk a little at the expressions on the boys' faces. Cube of cubes she might be, but under all that plaid, her body was cookin' and she was like a caged tiger waiting to strike. She eyeballed the crowd, searching for her quarry. He was a tall drink of water, so it wasn't like she'd miss him. But, before she could center in on his location, a wave of dizziness hit her and she swayed on her feet, tripping over someone's stray ankle, spinning in the process. Just as she had scrunched her eyes closed and accepted her inevitable future relationship with the floor, a pair of warm arms wrapped around her._

 _The result was that she was suspended, her back a few feet from the floor as she stared up into the eyes of her rescuer: the goof of their class. With his pink nest slicked back like a greaser, you'd never know he was such a nerd, but weirdo hair or not, she couldn't deny his popularity. A faint cheer went up around them at his fortuitous catch. She'd spoken to him a few times as class demanded, but had never really gotten to know him. She was flipping over his appearance now though. He wasn't only her rescuer; he was good friends with_ the guy she was looking for.

" _Oh hey ya! Thanks for catching me! Have you seen Jesse around anywhere? I've got something important to tell him!" she giggled up at her rescuer. Her hyper-focused drunk mind noticed his pupils get bigger and his breathing quicken as he stared down at her. But only for a millisecond, and then the world spun again as he righted her, one hand remaining on her waist to steady her. The heat of it made her squirm in place. Though, he still didn't remove his hand. If the tint of pink on his cheeks was any indication, he was as blitzed as she was. "Well?"_

" _Oh, yeah. Of course!" he eventually said, shaking his head with an easy grin. "But he's out back with some primo chi-"_

" _Bitchin'! Let's go then!" Lucy yelled, dragging him behind her as she pushed through the bodies and wiggled to the sounds from Linda's new turn table. That Elvis guy was a gas. She couldn't wait until he released another single. Her captive seemed content to follow her wherever, though he quickly shook off her grip on his wrist and grabbed her hand instead. Sober Lucy would have read into that, but Drunk Lucy/Whatever was all about the flow. And finding Jesse. Jesse was her destiny or something. Him and his far out words._

" _Seriously though, I don't think you really want to find him right now…" her follower tried again. But she didn't care what he had to say. She had only one thing to worry about. Finding her destiny._

 _At least, until she actually found him..._

 _Pressed up against his rag top with that easy queen all over him. Lucy just stood and stared at them making out for a few seconds, her heart plummeting with her hopes. A slight tug on her hand reminded her that she wasn't alone._

" _Tried to warn ya…" he muttered, his eyes on Jesse and the queen. Lucy worked to keep her tears from overflowing, unable to look away. What was the point of this whole stupid bash if they weren't meant to be together? But the boy squeezing her fingers wasn't done. "You get with it now? He's just a shuckster. He's really not worth rattling your cage over. Listen, I think you're wicked nifty. Let's lay a patch and split, yeah? There's a new flick playin' at the Grand. I'd love to take ya, if you're interested…"_

 _Lucy's eyes snapped to his at that. Really seeing him for the first time. Overall, he wasn't a bad guy, just a bit of an oddball. But wasn't she the same?_

 _Biting her lip, she wiggled her fingers a bit in his hand, looking down to where they were interwoven with his own. Then she traced her way up his body, back up to his face. He was holding his breath. There was something there. Something deeper than just a guy casually asking her out. She shook her head, trying to clear it enough to understand. But he took that as a negation of his offer and his face fell. He looked unbelievably low._

" _Oh well, I mean, you don't have ta or anything, obviously, I just thought maybe you could use some company since he's...busy. But, I'll just leave ya alone then." He stumbled over his own words, waiting until the last minute to tug on his fingers, reluctant to let go of her hand, but already resigned to the fact. Which is what jolted Lucy out of her thoughts. Her fingers tightened around his, not letting them go._

" _Do you have a thing for me?" she abruptly asked, the filter of self-awareness gone long ago, with her equilibrium. She narrowed her eyes, leaning closer to his face, as though she could divine his thoughts better from there, and lost her balance again, staggering forward. His other hand came up immediately to catch her by the arm, just as their foreheads connected._

" _Um, no! Of course not! I was just trying to be nice..." he trailed off unconvincingly, as he pulled away, his gaze flickering between her eyes and her lips._

" _You're lying," she breathed, mesmerized by the obvious emotions on his face. He really couldn't hide anything._

" _No I'm not," he returned stubbornly, but kept his hold on her shoulder, rubbing his thumb subconsciously over the ruffle on her sleeve as his eye decided her lips were the most interesting of her features and stayed there._

" _Ok then. If you don't like me, then I'm not going to the movies with you. What would be the point?" she decided with a nod, pulling away from him. "Seeing a movie with someone who likes me is one thing, going to the drive-in with someone who doesn't would be stupid. I mean, I've already seen that flic-"_

" _Wait," he interrupted, following her to keep their hands together. " You're right! I do. Have a thing for you. Like a crazy big thing." His eyes blew wide as he realized what he'd just admitted. Lucy's eyes squinted at him, her drunk mind confused by his words._

" _Ok. Why?" she asked simply, suddenly unable to look away from a freckle next to his lower lip. She couldn't take her eyes off of it as he hemmed and hawed about how she was cute and smart, and different and all sorts of fab things he thought about her. He wasn't as tall as Jesse, but he had his own cute thing going. Something that irresistibly sparkled behind his eyes. Kindness maybe... So partway through his ramblings, she leaned forward and kissed the freckle, freezing him in his high top Chuck Taylors. Her haze cleared for a moment as she pulled away slightly, her heart pounding at her own boldness._

" _Listen, I don't want to make you think I'm fast or anything, but if your offer is still good, I wouldn't say no to firing up and getting out of here. You in?"_

 _He spun so quickly towards the street where his hunk of junk was parked that he lost his balance, pulling her down with him harmlessly into the grass, the impact knocking the air out of them both for a second-_

Lucy's eyelids felt like they were glued together as she tried to open her eyes and figure out why her head hurt so fucking much. Her eyes scanned her surroundings and to her horror, recognized them.

She was on her father's private plane.

The corner she was facing sparked a memory in her fuzzy consciousness, her mind memory flashing like it was the next thought lined up in an argument.

"' _Daddy?! When are we going to get there?"_

" _That doesn't matter Lucy. What matters is whether your workbook will be done by the time we do. Have you gotten past that page yet?"_

 _Little Lucy turned back to the tray in front of her, holding a thick bundle of papers stapled together and a wickedly sharp pencil instead of the coloring book and crayons her mother had always let her color with on the plane. Her face fell. "No Daddy, it's not done yet."_

" _Well, you only have this flight to finish it. If we get there and you aren't done with the material to my satisfaction, I'll leave you on the plane and you won't get to see San Francisco."_

" _No Daddy! I want to! I'll get it done. Watch me! Mommy wanted-"_

" _Lucy! You know I don't like it when you talk about your mother. What she wanted doesn't matter. She's dead now. Just do your work if you want to leave the plane. Miss Aquarius will help you with anything you don't understand. Heartfilias don't waste a moment." And with that, her daddy went back to his own papers, drawing his pen across the page harshly, and crossing out line after line of a paragraph he'd been reading. Lucy dropped her eyes to the page in front of her, not daring to sigh aloud. She missed her mommy._

Lucy blinked out of the memory, not sure if the tear running down her cheek was a result of the flashback, or just her body overreacting to the dehydration the chloroform was wreaking on her system. She glanced around her, seeing a bottle of water sitting in her cupholder.

Reaching out to it, her hand was stopped short by a metal ring: half of a pair of handcuffs connecting her to her seat's armrest. Sighing, she used her other hand to grab the water and managed to awkwardly open the cap, spilling a significant amount of the water on her bare legs. The cut-offs she'd worn on her date had been adequate to keep her warm in the game center, but weren't sufficient in the air-conditioned space. It made her shiver in the cool air of the cabin, the pressure in her ears backing up the thought that they had to already be in the air. Now that she knew what to listen for, she could hear the faint whoosh of the air around the plane. She drew her leather jacket closer around her as best she could one-handed and looked around the spacious area around her.

It was empty of everyone but her; a small blessing, but a welcome one. Relieved at the moment of privacy that had been granted to her, though not intentionally for her benefit she was sure, her mind was flooded with the implications of her location.

Had they been waiting for her in her apartment? Did they get her before Natsu got there? Or after? She struggled to think back. The taste of salty ham still lingering in her mouth past the cloying sweetness.

That's right. She'd just finished making them a few sandwiches, snacking on some ham as she worked, then taking them to the living room so he'd find the food in case she was still changing into her pajamas when he got there. And then she'd heard that voice. The one that made her spine stiffen and her shoulders straighten out of reflex.

She hadn't expected him to come himself. But then she didn't know why she was surprised; he'd never trusted anything to do with her entirely to another. Even her education under Miss Aquarius had been closely monitored by her father. So, it really wasn't such a shock that he decided to come for her himself. When the stakes were high, only a Heartfilia could be relied upon.

He'd drilled that one enough times.

Lucy mentally thwacked herself in the head as she remembered how that whole situation had gone down. She should have known he'd come with leverage to tip the scales in his favor: knowledge, his favorite weapon. It had only taken a threat to "her little blue-haired friend across the hall" to convince her to leave with them. She could never put Levy in harm's way like that. Not the girl who had pulled her out of the darkness.

So Lucy had gone with them, trying her best to lock her vulnerabilities away, like she had learned to do so many years ago. To lock away all of the love and joy she'd learned to show. But the panic built in her on their way down the stairs, out of the building, and into the waiting town car. All of that adrenaline culminating in her snap decision to pull the door beside her open and bail out of the car before they got her on a plane out of Magnolia. Natsu would find her. Somehow.

Only the door was locked, the button doing nothing. And a sting of pain had her recoiling her arm from its attempt to open the impenetrable barrier as a braided length of leather whipped out at her skin. The red mark it left behind pulsed and purpled. She shot away, unbuckling her seat belt to try for the far door, only for a hand to come down from behind her, holding a rag drenched in something sweet. And then she remembered nothing.

Well, at least they had come before Natsu came back. He would be safe. Her father himself had come for her, so he wouldn't bother to stick around once he had her. The job was done, no sense in wasting time.

At that moment, the door at the end of the cabin opened abruptly, revealing the face of her familiar stalker, Zancrow, his hair let loose in tangles around his face. His presence didn't really surprise her. Of course he had been a part of her kidnapping. But the cloth and bottle in his hands terrified her.

All she could think was, _Not again._ Unconscious, she could do nothing to save herself. And she had no idea what the chemical was doing to Natsu. He could have been passed out still on his bike. He could be lying in a ditch somewhere because of her.

A wave of remorse overcame her. Natsu. How could she have been so selfish? She never should have involved him in her shitty situation to begin with. Soulmate or not.

Yet. She couldn't help but derive hope from his involvement all the same. She could almost feel his righteous anger when he found out what had happened. He'd find her. She just had to be ready for him when he came.

"Keep that shit away from me!" she snapped, trying to hide the fear from her voice. Maybe she could convince the man who had watched her for so long not to drug her again. "That's hardly necessary."

"Oh? Isn't it? You forget, I know everything about you. You've got enough training to give even me a run for my money. And your attempt in the car made it clear you're not really interested in coming quietly, no matter how many little girls we threaten." As he spoke, the blonde man opened the bottle carefully, and tipped some of its contents into the cloth in his hands. Lucy shrank away as best she could, her feet drawing up to scuffle against the Italian leather of the seat she was cuffed to. As the blonde behemoth approached, she chose her moment, kicking out at the last minute with the intent to get him squarely in the balls.

Unfortunately, he wore a long coat, which concealed his legs just enough to throw off her aim, landing the kick on his inner thigh instead. It hurt him, causing the limb to go numb as she hit the nerve right above the main artery of his leg, but, trained fighter that he was, he pushed his weight to his good leg and lunged forward landing the soaked cloth on her face once more. She struggled, using her free hand to claw and scratch at Zancrow's as her other yanked harshly against the cuffs in a bid for freedom. Eventually the clanking slowed as the fumes overtook her once more.

"Not...again…" she whispered.

* * *

Miles away, in Levy's apartment, Natsu heard her whispered words out of nowhere.

"Shit!" he groaned before his eyes rolled back in his head and he keeled over onto Erza, who sat next to him on one of the clearer areas of carpet amongst the turrets of books. To be fair, Levy had attempted to clean up a bit, freeing the love seats of their wordy burdens. It had just been Natsu and Erza's preference to take seats on the floor.

Which may have had something to do with Levy and Gajeel being coupley on one couch, and Gray and Loke being pervy on the other. Apparently it had been a while since either of them had compared notes on the girls of MU.

Erza narrowed her eyes as she made a mental note to thrash them soundly when time wasn't of the essence, and turned her concentration to the battle plan that Levy was laying out from her snug position under Gajeel's possessive arm.

At least, that's what she'd _been_ doing. Until Natsu passed out again.

 _Natsu breathed in the cool November air, letting the fresh oxygen rake over his raw throat and soothe the hangover tearing his brain apart. It was a shitty way to play basketball, but they'd pulled it out anyway. Too close for a team like Pegasus though. Way too fucking close._

 _He staggered down the sidewalk a bit as nausea assaulted him again. Narrowly avoiding blowing chunks, he made it to the train platform, his day going from bad to worse as he saw the crowds of students from his school crowding in, glad he'd pulled his hood up. The last thing he felt like was being fawned over by his "adoring fans," but the idea of standing on a packed train wasn't appealing either. Still, it won out against attempting to appear alive to a crowd of over-stimulated fangirls. Any other day. But not when he was still waiting for a message back from_ her _about that damn cup of coffee_ _and his hangover was attempting murder every five minutes. So Natsu played it low-key, finding himself shoved in, swaying with the mass of humanity around him as he ducked further under his hood._

 _And that choice immediately became the wrong one, as his vision shaded over with black spots and he felt himself falling, his muscles finally giving out against the fucking abuse he'd put them through._

 _His appointment with the floor of the train was side-tracked, however, by two delicate hands grabbing his arms, and guiding his head on a new path to a thin shoulder._

 _A few familiar blonde hairs flashed across his vision before he gave in to the sweet oblivion of darkness and dropped his eyelids._

" _Kaylyn?" he murmured into her neck._

" _That's my name," she breathed back at him. It barely permeated the ruckus of the train and the rustle of the hyped-up student passengers surrounding them, but somehow he heard it above everything and it calmed his mind. Just the sound of her voice worked magic and summoned a smile to his lips. He was happier than he'd been in a while, just resting against her. "You okay?"_

" _Yeah. just...tired, you know?" he responded, as he breathed in her scent. Probably her shampoo...it seemed too...fresh to be perfume or some shit. The muscles in his jaw relaxed and his headache eased._

" _It was a great game. My first time seeing basketball up close," she murmured as she pulled him closer, supporting him as he settled into her more comfortably. Her fingers slipped under his hood, pushing it back so she could run her fingers through his hair, soothingly._

 _He hummed at the sensation. He was probably enjoying this a little too much on a train full of people. But he couldn't bring himself to fucking care, lost in her subtle magic._

 _They talked about the game some more, this and that, as Natsu drifted in and out of consciousness. He wasn't even sure what he was saying, but that is all felt so right._

* * *

Meanwhile...

"Natsu! What happened?!" Erza immediately jumped into action as her friend slumped into her, shaking the living daylights out of the unconscious pinkette. It was a bit harder than she would have shaken any other human being, but Natsu had a harder head than most, so she had adjusted accordingly. Thankfully, Loke figured out what was ailing Natsu first and languidly came to his rescue.

"Shit Erza, stop. He's fine. The chick probably just got chloroformed again. He'll come around in a few minutes on his own. If you don't kill him by shaking him in the meantime."

Erza turned her gaze on him in a flash. "Listen, you pervert, you will keep your language appropriate or I'll give you a shaking that will make this look like a mother's caress. Understand?"

"Yes Ma'am!" Loke responded, content that she had been successfully distracted from her intent to turn Natsu's brain to jelly, but scared shitless that he'd entered the Titania's radar. Three years of careful avoidance, top-speed walks of shame, and ridiculous disguises for nothing. Wait, how the fuck had he ended up on this weird suicide squad/rescue crew/ragtag crew of emotionally damaged cohorts to begin with?

"He's our best link to Lucy! Someone, waft air across his face, maybe it will help to clear the fumes from her system too!" the tiny blunette exclaimed, jumping off her boyfriend's lap to do just that, with a hand-painted Asian-in-origin-looking fan that she grabbed from a hook on the wall.

 _Oh right,_ thought Loke. The girl. Lucy. After he'd called Gray and the group had assembled across the hall, thankfully bringing a change of clothes with them so he didn't have to sit around getting wedgies from his tights (how the FUCK did some girls wear them every fucking day?!), the moody Croatian had showed him a picture of Natsu's princess.

And princess was the right word for her. Hot damn.

That girl could chloroform him any day. Preferably with handcuffs, dressed as a French maid. Her, not him. He wasn't above cross-dressing for a fuck, if that was what a hottie was into, but it wasn't his kink.

Still, there was something about Lucy that was more than just smokin' hot. She had looked so...nice. And vulnerable. It drew him in and made him want to protect her.

It had been a long time since he'd felt the need to jump in as someone's knight in shining armor. Not since Karen. He'd been decent boyfriend material before that bitch. But the girl you love cheating on you with half the male population of the city's colleges could do that to you. He'd sworn off monogamy, love, and beautiful girls with big lyin' eyes that day, never looking back.

So the sudden sense of obligation that the mere picture of this girl incited from him was a shock to his system. The haunted looks on the faces of her friends helped explain his reaction a little. Lucy wasn't just beautiful. Or nice. She was loved. Really and truly loved. By Natsu, by the spunky blunette, by Gajeel of all people, and by Gray, not least of all. Even the Titania, who had apparently only met her once, unknowingly, had an open respect for her.

Loke might have stumbled into this odd group of (apparently supernaturally connected) people, but he felt an odd tie to them. Like he was meant to be there. They felt like teammates. Or family. And while he had every intention of questioning at a later date why the fuck a homicidal redhead, pyromaniac, bookworm, tattoo artist, and...well, Gray felt inexplicably like family, at that moment his instincts were telling him it didn't matter. That Lucy was the priority.

So, there he was, going over infiltration plans for a manor house half a country away supposedly guarded by professional mercenaries while the group fanned the unconscious idiot on the floor in the vain hope that it would help somehow, and waited for him to regain his faculties. Loke was beginning to think he should question his own sanity.

Hell, if the cute little blue one and the mammoth hadn't shown him that the whole bonded skin transfer thing really did exist, he probably already would have checked himself into Eisenwald Psychiatric Hospital with the other crazies. As it was, the world around him had gotten a lot bigger all of a sudden.

Just as he was beginning to feel his heart-rate amping up in anticipation again, a cool, heavy hand landed on his shoulder.

"Hey, Loke? Thanks man. It means a lot to me that you're helping us out." Loke glanced to his right and exchanged a look with the raven-haired man offering him a small, tense smile. He relaxed a bit, putting on the sly smile that had dropped a million and one pairs of panties.

"Well, with a woman of this caliber in mortal peril, how could I not lend a hand? Besides, with any luck, she'll take one look at my magnificence and kick ol' Natsu to the curb!"

Which was the exact moment Natsu made it clear to the group that he had regained consciousness.

By breaking Loke's perfect nose.

* * *

Lucy was next awoken, abruptly, from the continuation of her previous flashback - in which she spent a lot of time necking in the passion pit (the 1950s had some seriously weird lingo) with a past iteration of Natsu - by a bucket of frigid water being ceremoniously emptied over her head.

Sputtering at the cold and the water dripping into her sinuses, Lucy swiped at her closed eyes and burst out with a curse.

"WHAT THE FUCK, DAD?!"

She was met by the slap of something familiar and stinging against her back and the voice that had haunted her every waking hour for more than half of her life.

"Ladies don't cuss like gangster rappers on a drive-by you spoiled brat. It looks like you've forgotten everything I've taught you. We'll have to start from the beginning."

Lucy closed her eyes in frustration and hopelessness as the chilling water dripped down her face and off the end of her nose. Of course. It had to be her. Who else would her father get to set her back on the "right" path?

A mockery of the voice, floating out from the dark spaces of her mind to echo the real thing reverberating in the space around her, whispered cruelty and criticism she'd heard over and over.

"Ladies don't complain about bruises. They turn up their noses at pain and reveal nothing!"

"Ladies don't talk back to their elders. I don't say betters. Only a lady can recognize that she has no betters."

"Ladies are not mud monkeys, brat, get your filthy hide into the bath before I drown you!"

"Ladies aren't afraid of the dark. Only the weak have such paltry fears."

"Ladies do not sit in the presence of adversity. They face it head on, looking down their noses at it until it has been beaten into submission. Shed your weakness or you aren't worth my time."

The final memory galvanized her pain into ambition, as it always had. Lucy's eyes popped open and she sprung from her chair, finding herself eye-to-eye with her former governess, the aqua-tinted gray of her hair swaying in a curtain behind the fierce, youthful eyes that belied her age. A flash of respect flickered over the older woman's eyes for the briefest of moments as her protégé stared her down.

"Ladies don't pour fucking water on people either, bitch, so I guess there aren't any ladies here."

"There you are, brat. I was wondering when you were going to remember who you _really_ are, Miss Heartfilia."

"And who might that be, Miss Aquarius?" Lucy returned, with a river of scorn, bred into her through a decade of specialized education, dripping from her curled lips. She could feel it: the storm of darkness closing in on her again. Her heart screamed at her to run, while her head reminded her that escape was futile.

"Your father's daughter. The descendant of your family's empire. And the cold-hearted bitch I raised to follow the fold without question."

The secret legacy of the female Heartfilias. Hard-hearted or helpless. No half-measures for the ladies of Acalypha's first family.

"Yep, definitely no fucking ladies here."

As the chill of the water gave way to the warmth of her anger, and the familiar companions of numb despair and cruelty blanketed her in apathy, Lucy loosened her grasp on everything she'd struggled so hard to achieve since leaving home: her classwork, her teachers, her apartment, the beautiful stories she'd read, the crappy ones she'd written, even Levy...but she left one tiny corner of her carefully cultivated heart untouched. Surrounded by hate for her surroundings.

She packed it away, gently concealing it in a mask of cruelty and disdain, as she was trained to do. But it remained nonetheless, a tiny, flickering string of hope, tied securely around her heart to keep her from falling fully back into the darkness.

"Your father will be happy to see you."

"Good for him. Just take me to my cell already warden. He knows what the visiting hours are by now, I'm sure."

"Ladies don't scorn their golden cages, Lady Lucy"

"Do me a favor and drown yourself would you?"

"You first, brat."

 _Natsu will come for me._

* * *

And as though he could hear her silent self-assurance, and it lit a fire in his belly that drove him forward, Natsu picked up his solemn pace through the train station, trailing a line of equally grim companions behind him.

By the next morning he and his family of chosen companions would be in Acalypha.

And then her bastard of a father would come to know what happened when he messed with someone who belonged to Natsu Dragneel.

Jude Heartfilia would watch the prison of a life he'd built around Lucy come crashing to the ground in a fucking inferno.

Before it was all over, he'd come face-to-face with the demon that would scorch his ass inside out.

And cower in fear.

 _I'm coming for you, Lucy._

 _Just, hold on._

* * *

 **So, I know, on the slightly shorter end of the spectrum for my chapters, but it just kept winding me down to a finish, so I let it. Plus the music I was listening to while writing this apparently made me get a little dark there at the end, so it was either dive into Lucy's psyche and never come out, or stop and try again next week…**

 **And Loke has jumped onto the Lucy bandwagon. I was just discussing with someone how I intended to get him involved at some point, but the perfect circumstance hadn't come up yet...and then, BAM Loke dressed as Peter Pan and an open window! If that's not kismet, I don't know what is...**

 **Anywho, hope you enjoyed it. Drop me a line and let's chat in outdated lingo for funzies! Speaking of which...**

 **The 1950s lingo** : ok, so there's a ton of this. Hopefully I didn't lose you too much. I might have had a little too much fun throwing all this nonsense in there. Ironically, that flashback took me longer to write that the whole rest of the chapter… Some of these you definitely already know, but for the sake of knowledge and for those of you who maybe wondered how much of that was actually used in the 1950s (in the US at least), here's the complete list.

 **Cranked** -excited

 **Tight, neato, peachy, boss, righteous, bitchin', far out, fab** -cool, awesome, or great

 **Illuminations** -good ideas, thoughts

 **Square** -a regular, normal person, a conformist

 **Threads** -clothes

 **Bash** -party

 **On Cloud 9** -really happy

 **On the hook** -in love

 **Cat** -cool guy

 **Kitten** -young and inexperienced girl

 **Kookie** -nuts, in the nicest possible way

 **Pinned** -dating on the steady,in grade school usually, "going steady" being the college term

 **Dolly** -cute girl

 **Stepping out on** -cheating on

 **On the stick** -pulled together, bright, prepared

 **Paper shaker** -cheerleader

 **Cube** -a normal person

 **Cookin'** -doing it well

 **Goof** -someone who makes mistakes

 **Nest** -hairdo

 **Greaser** -a guy with tons of grease in his hair, which later described a group of people

 **Flipping** -getting really excited

 **Blitzed** -drunk

 **Primo** -top notch, grade A

 **Sounds** -music

 **A gas** -a good time

 **Rag top** -car that's got a convertible top

 **Easy** -sexually promiscuous

 **Queen** -a popular girl

 **Making out-** yeah...pretty sure I don't need to explain this one...

 **Get with it-** understand

 **Shuckster-** a deceiver, liar or cheat

 **Rattling your cage-** getting you upset

 **Wicked-** modifier, used like very

 **Lay a patch-** to accelerate so rapidly you leave a patch of rubber on the road

 **Split-** leave

 **Flick-** movie

 **Odd ball-** someone a bit off the norm

 **Low** -sad or depressed

 **Fast** -see "easy" above

 **Firing up-** starting your engine (I used this one as a bit of a stretch, but couldn't resist when I saw it on the list...hehe)

 **Hunk of junk** -crappy car

 **Pink Squirrel** -a drink popular in the 1950s consisting of 3/4 oz creme de noyaux, 3/4 oz white creme de cacao,1 1/2 oz heavy cream

 **Random vocab (for your reading pleasure):**

 **Akimbo-** refers to the position of the arms, meaning one's hands are at one's waist, with one's elbows turned outward. It's a fun word that NEVER gets used. Homework: pop it into one of your stories and use it correctly! Keep ridiculously specific vocabulary alive! (Sorry, I've been watching Assassination Classroom, so I'm a little inspirationally school-minded at the moment)

 **Pontificate** -express one's opinions in a way considered annoyingly pompous and dogmatic...honestly, this version of Lucy just likes using big words when she's drunk...lol

 **Oh yeah, props to anyone who recognized the HUGE reference to Hangover. I will win this war. Never give up, never surrender!**


	34. Natsu on the Train

**Sooooo, obviously this is a week late. Forgive me! *insert convincing bows of supplication here* But it turns out the only character in this story that I can't write off the cuff is Jude Heartfilia. The chapter actually WAS written by last Tuesday, but the first version needed a complete rewrite. Anyway, by the time I got around to that and my beta got to read it again, it was today, so...yeah.** **A HUGE thank you to Shedauwz by the way. The chapter was NOT good before. He really helped me bring the creepy factor up with Jude. So, go pop a review on Hangover or something. It's always amusing to confuse the heck out him with fan love. hehe.**

 **Fair warning, I will be trying my best to keep putting out chapters weekly, but my schedule is getting crazy amped with the con coming up at the start of November (I'm making about 6 cosplays for myself and others that have to be done before then) and these sections with Jude just take more time, apparently. Trust me, I hate the idea of not getting the updates up in a week as much as you do. I'll give it my best, but if it doesn't happen, that's why.**

 **Guest reviewers: I love you for reviewing, but you're driving me crazy with the questions when I can't PM you back! My OCD is freaking the fuck out! So, I've answered your questions at the end. I'm not a huge fan of doing that, since I add enough shit into my author's notes, but my brain must RESPOND!**

 **OH! AND 1300 REVIEWS! I LOVE YOU GUYS SO MUCH!**

 **Now, the addiction fuel you've been waiting for. Enjoy.**

* * *

The minute his band of merry rescuers, and Gajeel (merry would never be used to describe that fucker) were settled on the train, Natsu pulled off his sandal and scribbled away on his foot with a pen that seemed to appear out of nowhere.

No one was surprised at this point. The bonded pairs always seemed to have one on their person somewhere. It was just easier.

As he finished his quick message to Lucy, the pinkette's jaw cracked as he yawned. Again.

Which triggered a groan, and a series of sympathetic yawns from the rest of the train compartment.

"Godsdamn it Salamander! Can you sto-AWWWWW-p yawning already?!" Gajeel managed to get out around his own eye-smarting yawn. Levy yawned in unison with him, triggering Erza, who sat across from her.

Which triggered Mystogan, who had been dragged to the station with the True Freedom Squad (Levy's name for them) at the ungodly hour of 7am on a Sunday for an 8am train. (And, unbeknownst to them all, or even himself, Jellal, in his prison cell, also yawned in his sleep.)

"Fuck this, I'm going to get some coffee or something. Any takers?" Gray said, standing suddenly. All the soulmates yawning with each other over and over was more than pissing him off at this point.

Every hand attached to a conscious co-ed went up. Gray sighed. "I am not gonna have enough hands for that. Someone's gotta come with me…" He glanced over the faces, all looking sleepily up at him except for Loke, who had fallen asleep immediately, wheezing slightly through his puffy nose.

Mystogan glared at the ginger with his head somehow in Erza's lap already, and stood up, grabbing Loke by the arm and dragging him off the seat before taking his place beside the sedate redhead. "Loke will go with you."

"Eh?" Loke said with a yawn and a pained wince, blinking slowly as he got his feet under him.

They all groaned and the chain of jaw-cracking yawns began again while the playboy frat bros went in search of Frankenstein levels of caffeine.

Natsu capped his pen and bounced his leg uncontrollably as he waited for a reply.

* * *

Lucy was in a shitty mood.

Granted, she had every reason to be. The blonde mentally ticked off items on her ever growing list of grievances:

She'd been chloroformed,

and kidnapped,

by her shitty father,

after a super hot date, where she'd been cock-blocked at the worst possible time,

that had had the potential for even more smutty shenanigans to follow,

and then, been awoken by the harpy who raised her from her chloroform-induced sleep,

by a bucket of freezing cold water,

in her childhood home, that she had literal nightmares about returning to,

AND SHE COULDN'T QUIT FUCKING YAWNING!

Her jaw muscles were screaming, and yet still her maw gaped every few minutes. It was like a Machiavellian torture device. Death by jaw strain.

After the twentieth or so yawn, Aquarius finally snapped, "You would think you would have had enough sleep, being unconscious for most of the night, but your stamina seems to have atrophied."

"And whose fault was it that I was unconscious instead of getting an actual good night's sleep? Oh right, yours." She stalked down the plush-carpeted hallway followed by her former-governess-turned-jailer. She just wanted to get to her room already and see if someone had been stupid enough to leave a computer or phone accessible.

But, the next moment a small squeak escaped her and she stumbled as she felt the familiar feeling of a pen on the arch of her foot. She hastily regained her footing at the sniff of disapproval from the woman behind her and fought to keep excitement from her face over the feeling.

Natsu was writing to her!

And being stealthy about it.

Which meant, maybe he had figured out what had happened to her! Another fucking yawn at least helped her keep from grinning out right as she plotted a way to get away from Miss Aquarius long enough to respond to the message she could feel unfolding.

"You know what? I'm actually feeling kinda dizzy still…" Lucy trailed off as she faked a stumble this time, catching herself on the wall. A strong hand closed around her upper arm and the next thing she knew she was being whisked down the elegant hall at double time toward her room.

"I told those idiots chloroform was a stupid idea. You've got about four hours before your father expects you to dine with him for lunch. Sleep it off and make yourself presentable. Just throw those clothes away. Ladies do not wear torn _rags_ ," the older woman intoned with a sneer at the cutoffs and newly sliced up shirt Lucy was still wearing from her date. She supposed that without the nylons and jacket, she did look a little...redneck chic. "Your father was not pleased to see this is how you are attiring yourself at that school. The job he secured for you should be adequate to at least pay for undamaged clothing."

Lucy stumbled yet again, thrown off by her words. She could feel the blood drain from her face. That he had _secured_ for her?! But then…

"My father?" she mumbled.

"What? You thought you got into that school on your own merits? One month before the semester started? And received a full-ride scholarship? Tch. You were raised to be more observant than that." They had reached her old bedroom at this point and Miss Aquarius released her arm to open the ornate multi-paneled door. Lucy's back stiffened at the sight of the lavish space, a king sized canopy bed dominating the immense room, that seemed to shrink in on her as she looked into it. She swallowed hard, feeling cold water slide down her spine from her dripping hair.

 _Home sweet fucking home_.

The sound of the door shutting and locking behind her sounded suspiciously like the clank of iron bars.

* * *

Natsu had almost nodded off, pen in hand, when he finally got a response to his footnote (all the pun intended...all of it), the tickle jerking him awake enough to send him careening to the floor of the train car. He picked himself up, rubbing the hip he'd landed on as the other occupants of the compartment perked up.

Ignoring them as he sat back down and pulled his bare foot back up into his lap, Natsu reread his message and her response.

 **Lucy! we know you were taken by your dad's goons. we're on our way. are you ok?**

 _I was! I'm alright for the moment, but completely trapped. When will you get here? Who is coming? How do you know where you're going? And who's punching you in the hip?! That hurt!_

Levy leaned over Natsu's shoulder to see what Lucy had said. "Well, they haven't hurt her, so that's good I guess," she relayed to their companions. Natsu tuned her out, uncapping his pen again to respond.

 **that's good. sorry for the hip. I fell. we'll be there in about nine hours. Lev, Gaj, Erz, Mystogan, Loke, and the human popsicle. Levy did some research.**

 _I figured. Who the hell are Mystogan and Loke? They sound like a pair of gay magicians._

 **you're not far off. one's a pervy ginger who found me knocked out, and the other is Erza's blueberry boyfriend. both live at FT.**

 _In what world is that not far off? Nvm. You can tell me later. They put me in my old room in the west wing. Third floor, northwest corner room. Just in case I don't get the chance to tell you later._

 **thanks Luce. we'll get you out of there. one way or another.**

 _I know. So…_ There was a significant pause after her ellipse. Natsu frowned a little and closed his eyes, fitting himself into her senses again. At this point, it only took a moment of concentration to get him there. He released a breath he hadn't realized he'd been holding when he felt her heart beating steady and sure in her chest and the pen in her hand moving back and forth as she went to write something and then stopped at the last minute. That happened a few times, causing a grin to break out on his face.

"What is she doing?"

Levy's words jerked him out of his Lucy-trance and he stared down at the blunette next to him for a second before he responded.

"She's trying to decide whether to write something or not."

"Well, tell her to hurry up already. Who knows when they'll come back to get her. Sheesh." With those marching orders, Levy turned back to the group and started showing them a map of the Heartfilia estate that she had pulled from her bag. Thankfully, Lucy's first supposed escape had been well-researched.

 **just spit it out Luce.**

 _Ok, I kind of REALLY need a shower. But I assume you're not in a great place for that…_

 **you mean a shower? or a "shower"?**

 _AN ACTUAL SHOWER. For the love of Thoth, I'm not propositioning you!_

 **Bummer. )** Being light-hearted when he knew what they were about to face was tough, but he felt a small smile curl up her lips and he marked it up as a win. He'd take as many of those as he could get at the moment.

Natsu glanced around himself at the private compartment, and then the mob of friends huddled around Levy's map. Yeah, these were not exactly ideal conditions for either kind of shower.

 **give me like two minutes. I'll figure it out.**

Natsu capped his pen, shoved it in the pocket of his cargo shorts, and stood, slipping his sandals back on.

"Where are you going?"

He turned to see the group staring up at him with raised eyebrows. He cleared his throat and casually jerked his thumb to point behind him at the closed compartment door.

"Uh, bathroom. What? A guy can't take a piss without committee approval now?" He didn't wait for a response before he turned and left the compartment.

Silence reigned for a beat or two.

"Twenty bucks says he's going to jerk off with Lucy," Gajeel said suddenly.

"Hmm," Levy hummed. "On a train speeding toward her evil father's fortress to rescue her? I mean maybe...but, what the hell, I'll take that bet. I love me the slow ponies."

Erza and Mystogan just stared at them for a minute.

"I feel like we're missing something here…" Mystogan murmured to Erza. She nodded blankly in return.

Levy and Gajeel shrugged in unison with straight faces. "Bunny girl probably wants to shower," Gajeel explained, as though that explained everything. Levy nodded in agreement. " I mean, I would after a night like she's probably had."

"And?" Erza responded, still confused. She traded another look with Mystogan

"You guys haven't been bonded for very long have you?" Levy giggled at them, flickering her gaze over to Gajeel for a fraction of a second, while he tugged on his waistband and shifted slightly in his seat.

"Only a few days…" Erza said, still confused.

"Ah, so you're probably still in stage one, or...what did Ultear call it?" She turned to Gajeel again for confirmation. "First origin?" He shrugged. Why she thought he knew was beyond him. "I kind of forgot there was a first origin, to be honest. We sort of skipped that whole phase. Enjoy it while it lasts. It gets exponentially more...intimate after your second origin opens. If you're lucky, maybe you'll never have to deal with it," Levy explained as Gajeel grunted in what could have been agreement, dissent, or amusement.

Mystogan grunted back, automatically understanding whatever male sentiment the tattoo artist was expressing and returning his own opinions on the matter. Erza narrowed her eyes at both of them suspiciously and turned back to Levy.

"Second origin? How do you know all of this?" she asked calmly, though her stomach was jumping with butterflies. Natsu and Gray had explained the basics of the bonding to her, but she'd had no idea that details were even available. Now she was hungry to know as much as she could. "How many people has this actually happened to?!"

At which point Levy launched to an explanation involving Bisca's blog, Ultear's area of expertise, and the series of very particular events that had led to the opening of their second origins.

Meanwhile, Gajeel took a nap. Long train rides always made him a little queasy. If he could, he'd sleep through the whole damned experience. His phone lit up in his pocket, but didn't make a sound. Sometime during the various calls made in the middle of the night, he'd turned it to silent.

* * *

Erik hung up the phone at Black Steel when it went to Gajeel's voicemail message for the third time. He made a slightly panicked, but apologetic face at the customer across from him.

The cash register had decided it hated him. It was some new shit from Apple, tiny and white, but with an attitude problem that matched the stupid hipster programmers who had probably designed the damn thing. It took everything he had not to throw the hunk of consumerism across the room and shatter it into tiny plastic pieces. Briefly, he pictured himself going Office Space on the piece of equipment. It was a tempting image.

It was bad enough that Erik's second full day at Black Steel was suddenly a solo gig, with his fellow employees hopping a train together out of town at the crack of way-too-early-for-him-to-be-awake with just a last minute notification that he'd be on his own for Sunday. What made it worse was Gajeel screening his fucking calls. He wondered if it would be cool to take a swing at his boss. He had grown up in a boxing gym, so that'd be fine, right? Good, so that was the new plan the instant he got back.

"I'm sorry. We're experiencing some technical difficulties. Is there any way you have a checkbook on you?" Erik eventually blurted out as a last ditch effort.

The burly, leather-clad man across the counter just gave him a look like he'd just been asked for the name and vintage of a decent merlot. Right. No one carried around checkbooks anymore. _Mierda_. "Ok, how about this? I'll get your card number from you and run it when our system is back up and running, and email you a receipt? Sound good?"

"Sure, man, whatever."

Erik breathed a sigh of relief. One transaction down, four more for the day to go.

Unless he had walk-ins.

He tried dialing Gajeel's number again and rifled through the shelves under the counter for any sign of a user's manual or quick guide. Or Levy's phone number. She'd totally know how the damn thing worked.

In the meantime, he penned a quick note and ripped it out of his sketchbook that said, "Cash only, register out of order."

Only to discover that he couldn't find any tape.

"Maldita sea! FUCK TODAY!" he yelled at the still dark screen of the register, before stomping into the back room to find the rum. And hopefully some tape.

* * *

As Natsu stood naked in the bathroom of a moving train and decided it was time to re-examine his decision-making process.

The whole zany situation had started out making sense: he'd just planned to wait out her shower in the bathroom, ignoring the whole thing as best he could, where no one could see the soapy substances appearing and disappearing from his skin. Easy.

But then he had realized that once the soap had touched his clothes, it would stick around. Literally. So, he came up with an easy solution: take off his clothes. He could stand there for ten or so minutes, let the soap appear, disappear, put his clothes back on and he'd be clean and not wearing soapy clothes for the remainder of the nine hour train ride in discomfort. Simple.

And the plan was working swimmingly. He could almost ignore the feeling of water running over his skin while he played games on his phone (in Spanish, because fuck Siri!) to keep himself distracted. That's what phone games were invented for right? Distracting men from naked soapy women they were supernaturally bonded with? Sure. A drop of sweat ran down his face as he died in the game, and struggled to refocus on the tiny overpowered computer in his palm. Piece of cake

Until his hand was suddenly slicked over in soap and he dropped his phone in the sink.

Which is when his focus zeroed in on her hands skimming over her body and distraction was no longer a viable option. Giving in to temptation, he closed his eyes and breathed in deep, almost instantly falling into the embrace of her senses. The silky feeling of her skin underneath her soapy fingers, and the citrusy smell of her body wash were intoxicating. He would feel guilty, but Lucy was not playing fair. Didn't she realize what she was putting him through?

He groaned deeply when she slid a sudsy layer over her breasts. And then felt her pause in her ministrations.

"N-natsu? Is that...you?" she whispered, and he heard it as though her lips were pressed against his ear. His eyes drifted open, unseeing pupils blown wide as he looked through her eyes, revealing that she was serendipitously looking down at herself. He had instantly felt himself go erect at the view, barely resisting the urge to rub one out on the spot. Because that was just all kinds of perverted. And she'd totally know the minute he did it.

Which brought him into the sweet hell he now experienced. Focused on trying not to think about his not so little problem, he immediately answered her with a strained,

"Yeah?"

"HOLY SHIT I CAN HEAR YOU TALKING TO ME!" she screamed, jerking him out of his haze and snapping their connection. He shook himself and frantically thought of boner killing things (dead kittens, terrorism, Droy in a speedo, etc). When certain parts of him had shut the fuck up and calmed down a bit, he'd tentatively reached out through their connection again, hearing Lucy's voice as though off in the distance, but steadily getting louder until it was like she was back next to his ear.

"...no, I wasn't shouting for your help you idiots! You kidnapped me! Why would I even want your help!? I, uh, saw a spider and it startled me! Which was no reason for you all to barge in on me in the shower! Now, leave, perverts!" Natsu grinned at her tone on the last sentence. She sounded like royalty ordering her subjects around.

"Lady Lucy, your father requests your presence at lunch in a few hours..."

"Yeah, Aquarius already told me." Silence reigned for a loaded moment. "So GET OUT!"

Natsu opened his eyes cautiously to see a gaggle of black-clad men and a couple women, looking at every part of Lucy but her face. He could feel her arms clutching a towel around her, and knew that it wasn't covering much. One of their faces sparked something in him, like someone he knew from somewhere...he just couldn't place him.

But the hungry look on all the male faces was all too familiar.

Molten anger bubbled up his esophagus, and what could almost be described as a growl ripped from his throat. The moment it did, the group in black reacted as though they had heard him. Or Lucy did something equally terrifying, because the fuckers were suddenly falling all over themselves to get away from her. Natsu's lips twisted into a grim smile and a single thought dominated his mind.

 _MINE._

And then a moment later he was shaking himself and trying to figure out where the hell that feral feeling had come from. It reminded him of when he had flashbacks. The bad kind. Like he wasn't in control of himself.

But he didn't have time to think about it. A knock on the door had him scrambling to put on his clothes and grabbing his soapy phone out of the sink with a paper towel before he could muse in the nude on his brain's odd behavior any further. Unlocking the door, he pushed past a black-haired guy who quirked an eyebrow at him, but didn't say anything as he took up residence in the train's now unoccupied, and oddly citrus-scented, lavatory.

Natsu pulled at his scarf, loosening it from its hasty stranglehold on his throat as he made his way back to their compartment, thumbing the lighter they wouldn't let him play with on the train.

What the fuck had happened to him back there? He'd never been the jealous type, but something about the way those people, particularly the men, had been eyeing _his_ girlfriend had stirred a feeling of almost the level of homicidal rage in him. That shit was _not_ okay. No matter how much he liked her, he was pretty sure wanting to kill someone for looking at his girlfriend in a towel was a helluva long way from normal. His hands trembled as he walked down the train cars, clenching them into fists until they stopped. Maybe he needed a group session as much as Erza did.

"There he is! Let's just see then." Levy's words jolted Natsu out of his thoughts just as he reached their compartment. Gray and Loke had made it back, and everyone held a styrofoam cup of what he assumed was coffee as they stared intently at him, as though they were waiting for him to grab a hat and cane and start dancing with cartoon penguins.

The pinkette's eyebrows furrowed and he glared back at them. He did not need their shit right now. He silently stuck a hand out to Gray, who held two cups, assuming one was his promised coffee.

"Ha! Toldya. Look at how upset and tense he still is! Pay up!" Levy chirped, extending hands in either direction. As one, the rest of the car groaned and threw money her way.

"Huh?" Natsu said. It was clear he was missing something. He took a sip of his coffee and shot a glare at Gray, who smirked back. Barely resisting the urge to spit take all over his roommate, he took another sip of the frigid liquid, belatedly noticing the ice cubes floating on the surface. He chewed on one of the ice cubes and let the grinding crunch soothe away some of the tension in his shoulders. Lucy had enough to deal with at the moment without explaining the bruises that would show up if he started a fight right then.

"Doesn't matter. How's Lu doing?" the tinier of the blunettes continued as she picked up Jewel notes and rolled them into a tidy bundle.

"Surrounded by horny assholes, apparently," Natsu grumbled as he took his seat, glaring at the assembled force and chewed on another ice cube. It woke him up better than the shitty coffee did at least. "How long until we get there?"

"By my count, another eight hours at least. Better get comfortable." Erza was taking her own advice, curling up in her seat to lean gingerly on her boyfriend and take a nap. She offered the pinkette the seat to her other side, but Natsu declined in favor of the floor, where he dropped down and started doing push-ups.

Fuck. They were only an hour into the trip and he was already getting restless. Train trips always gave him cabin fever. And occasionally motion sickness. He had Dramamine in his bag if he needed it, but the shit made him crazy sleepy, so he was holding off until the last possible second. He was hoping the exercise would chill the hum in his blood telling him to move. Or grind Gray's nose into the scuffed metal floor of the train car.

A gasp and several whispers floated through the open door to their compartment, but he ignored them, practicing focusing on Lucy while he levered himself up and back down again. It was harder to concentrate on the hazy feeling while he was moving and his blood was pumping faster, but he eventually tuned-out the rhythms of his own body in favor of hers, matching his movements in time to her heartbeats. Slowly but surely, he felt making that connection grow easier. It was like working out the rest of his body; as long as he kept pushing himself, there was always more he was capable of. He pumped out a few more reps, while watching Lucy brush her hair through her eyes. The soothing feeling of her brush dragging across his scalp almost made it possible to ignore the hopelessness buried deep under the cold glint of her eyes.

The itch started returning as he mastered regular push-ups/Lucy-gazing, so he pulled one arm behind his back and did a dozen or so one-armed push-ups instead before the sound of the compartment door slamming closed silencing a chorus of disappointed 'aw's pulled him out of his Lucy-trance.

"Hussysluts," Levy muttered as she went back to her seat.

"What was that all about?" he asked, switching arms for another dozen push-ups. Returning to the trance while doing push-ups and talking to someone seemed like the next step up.

"Oh, just the crowd of fucking panty-droppers drooling over your half-assed exercise routine. I'm pretty sure they were dripping on the floor." Gajeel snorted without looking up from his sketchbook. He'd abandoned sleep when Natsu returned and was busy sketching out some new tattoo ideas for Levy, the most recent a series of runes in Ancient Fiorian she'd told him meant the equivalent of 'less is more'. "I'd love to see what Bunny-Girl'd do to 'em if she was here." The ex-boxer grinned remembering the moves the blonde had pulled on Orga at Metallicana's.

"I think that's a slightly more colorful description than was necessary, Gajeel," Erza scolded sleepily from Mystogan's shoulder.

"But accurate," argued Loke, putting his two cents in as he finished off his coffee. He gingerly pushed his glasses a little further up his nose and settled his ankle over the opposite knee, the picture of the dating expert he was (if the massive bandage on his face hadn't ruined the image). "They were losing their shit over cotton candy's work out. What I'd give for that kind of babe-pulling power." He sighed as he gazed longingly into the blank air in front of him. No one really wondered what he was imagining.

"Really? All you _need_ to give is 2-3 hours a day of aerobic exercise and weight lifting," Gray suggested with a smirk, flexing his own ab muscles which were exposed by the open shirt he'd unbuttoned at some point during the trip. Levy hummed lightly in agreement, prompting a dark look from her broad-shouldered soulmate in Gray's direction. Loke winced at the thought of that much exercise.

"Nope. Not worth it. I'll just use your pulling power, Gray. Those abs have got enough for the both of us."

Gray and Loke traded a casual fist bump as they went back to scrolling through Reddit posts and checking social networking pages on their phones, respectively.

"You two are incorrigible," Levy chided, picking up the thick volume of ancient Greek rhetoric she was reading and settling more comfortably into her seat next to Gajeel.

Gray caught himself sneaking stealthy glances at the couple, trying to figure out what it was that gave off that inexplicable 'couple'-vibe they had. They weren't even really touching.

But he eventually figured it out. They weren't hanging all over each other, but they moved in sync. Whenever Levy shifted to get more comfortable in the stiff seats, so did Gajeel. Usually at exactly the same time. It wasn't a reaction to the other, but more like a perfect synchronicity of action and awareness. As though Levy's discomfort made Gajeel uncomfortable too. They were perfectly tuned-in to each other. The little niggle of jealousy that Gray had come to recognize around Natsu and Lucy bubbled up in him. They all made being in a serious relationship with someone look so easy. But then, he supposed that's what it was supposed to look like when it was 'meant to be'. It was such a practical version of the concept, in comparison to the vomit-inducing sugary infatuation the phrase usually summoned.

Erza was making similar observations about the couple, leaning a little more into Mystogan subconsciously as she watched the seemingly mismatched couple. In response, he shrugged off her head on his shoulder so he could extricate his arm and sling it around her, settling her a little closer against him, with her head resting lightly on his chest. For a moment, she couldn't hear anything but the pounding of her own heart as his hot hand settled just above her waist, his palm blazing through her gauzy cotton button-up. She spent several moments willing the heat filling her cheeks away.

Eventually, she relaxed into his hold, venturing out with her other hand to draw feather-light circles on the denim of his jeans, just above his knee. The touch caused him to stiffen up for a heartbeat, but he relaxed again almost instantly, capturing her hand with his free one and mimicking the circles she'd been drawing on her palm instead. His thumb at her waist rubbed small soothing circles to match, until the two of them nodded off, leaning on one another.

* * *

Lucy stared with dead eyes at the beautiful selection of sandwiches laid out on the sideboard in the second floor formal dining room of Heartfilia Estate (not to be confused with the first floor formal dining room or the first floor informal dining room; the damn place had too many fucking dining rooms), all of them something that required a trained chef or a degree in gastronomy to fully understand. What she wouldn't do for a simple ham and cheese melt.

Or, fine. A croque madame. If she was going to be forced to eat gourmet food that doubled as an endangered species list, the least they could do was throw in a French classic. She tried hard to focus on her frustration over the sandwich selection. Anything to keep herself from remembering who currently shared the expensive manufactured air of the room with her.

She finally picked up a little sandwich that had been cut out and carefully stacked in the shape of a heart. From its scent, it was a pretty safe bet, some kind of cheese and jam, basically. She moved on to a crudité dish of heirloom veggies and a pretzel bun shaped like a swan. Her father's personal chefs had way too much time on their hands.

She picked up a second bun. Stupid wastes of time or not, they looked and smelled delicious.

"Lucy, _sweetheart_ , one bun is more than enough for lunch."

Lucy's spine stiffened at his words, her fingers losing their grip on the bun and letting it drop back to go stale with its fellow edible bird friends. A shiver of terror that only _his_ voice could induce in her shocked her body. Her fingers reflexively tightened on the gold-rimmed china plate that held her lunch. Old reflexes kicked in, causing her numb tongue to utter familiar words before she could actively think.

"Yes, Father." Her heart jackhammered in her chest, shooting little burst of adrenaline that told her to run. To run far, and run fast. And never look back.

But she was currently suffering the results of trying to run.

"Have a seat."

"Yes, Father." She turned automatically towards the table, back ramrod straight and trembling. She chose a seat near the middle of the table, setting her plate down tentatively, knowing he wouldn't allow her the safety of a table between them, but unable to willingly force herself a step closer and hoping he would let it slide. Her fingers hadn't even left the dish before his deceptively warm sounding voice spoke again.

"Closer, Lucy."

"Yes, Father." Like a rusty automaton she lifted her plate again, taking what appeared to be sure steps, her face blank and serene, while her stomach churned. She set her plate where he indicated and carefully settled herself in the high-backed chair in front of it, maneuvering the heavily embellished knee-length skirt of the designer dress she was wearing.

The high neckline felt like she had a shackle chained to her neck, but she didn't pull at it. Ladies didn't fidget with expensive clothing. Especially clothing that cost more than three months of her apartment's rent. Lucy didn't know who physically purchased and delivered the clothes that showed up in her closet. Probably Miss Aquarius. She'd never bothered asking. It didn't really matter. It was under _his_ orders either way.

"There. I knew getting you into some decent clothes would make all the difference. You finally look like a Heartfilia again."

His words rained down on her, finding the cracks in her almost impenetrable facade. Memories ricocheted between her temples in a dizzying ode to all things Heartfilia.

 _Your mother always wore the most cutting edge styles. As a Heartfilia, you are expected to do the same._

 _Thankfully you were born with the Heartfilia nose. I understand the Lobster girl has just had hers 'done'. Where's the family pride? Although, with a family like theirs, what's to be proud of?_

 _I don't care what other little girls get to do. You're not other little girls. You're a Heartfilia._

 _Tears will not change my decision. You will stay precisely where you are until you can behave as a Heartfilia should._

Lucy's heart shrank in on itself, unwillingly settling back into the little filigreed box she mentally kept it in for so many years. Now it seemed that it had grown too big; too unwilling to fit. But with her father's next words it shrank that last little bit and the mental lid that protected her innermost feelings from the outside world slid into place.

"The trash you were wearing before has been disposed of. You may pick out a few things from the new Spring lines, but the clothing in your closet will be adequate until then, I think."

A hole opened up in her stomach black hole and started eating her from the inside out. At least, that's what it felt like. That was the outfit she wore for her very first real date. And Natsu had really liked it. The look in his eyes had been everything she'd hoped for.

But it was her father's last nonchalant statement that filled her with horror. Some small part of her, after finding he knew of her escape from the beginning, hoped he would let her go back. It would be...less in so many way, knowing she was watched all the time, but at least she'd still have her friends. However, his words made it clear he had no intention of humoring her a second time. She was trapped here. Indefinitely, if he had his way.

"Yes...Father," she forced out, almost gasping for breath at the pain ripping through her. She didn't know feelings could hurt this much. Maybe she'd never had feelings big enough to be torn to shreds before.

"Now eat something and then we will proceed to the study to discuss what you will do to make up your absence to the Konzern."

Numbly, she reached out and picked up the frippery of a sandwich, taking a bite, but hardly tasting the delicate cheese and fruit combination. Her mouth was too dry, turning the food in her mouth to a choking mass. Still she chewed and forced it down.

It was what was expected.

"I'm sorry, I didn't hear you respond Lucy. You must speak up."

Terror spiked her heartbeat again, the steel in his tone alerting her to her mistake.

"Yes Father," she blurted out quickly, straightening her spine from where it had gone slack in despair.

"See? There. That's how a proper lady behaves at the table. And here I was, worried you would have forgotten how to behave properly. How fortunate that we do not have to revisit your shame and help you remember who you really are."

"Yes Father," she gasped out. Lucy was frozen in place, her vision turning black around the edges as she forgot to breathe. The double meaning of his words was not lost on her. Her fingers curled, unbidden, into her palms, nails biting into her skin as the pain anchored her as it had so many times before. It had been so long since those days. But some fears, some terrors so firmly rooted in the darkness, could never be fully forgotten.

She knew it would happen sometime. Defiance wasn't tolerated, and she'd committed the ultimate act of defiance.

She would be punished for it. But she wouldn't know when. It was part of the punishment, to always expect, but never know for sure in order to fully prepare herself for it.

And the agony of waiting had begun for her again.

"Now, those friends of yours...they could use some discipline. It's a shame the world has not provided it for them yet. They would be all the better for it, don't you think?"

"Yes, Father."

In one succinct statement he'd thrown her weakness out to the forefront and exploited it. Heartfilias were ruthless.

 _It's a shame the world has not provided it for them. Yet._

It didn't matter how many times she escaped from him, or where she ran, he'd always have the upper hand on her. Her posture relaxed an inch, imperceptible to anyone else, but a sign of utter defeat to anyone who'd studied her as long as Jude Heartfilia. She struggled not to cry, or scream, or smash her fine china luncheon plate against the gilded wallpaper. She gathered up those _weak_ emotional responses and fed them to the black hole in her stomach.

It surprised her how much harder it was than she remembered it being to suppress those urges.

Before she'd left home, ignoring the little voice inside of her that told her her world was nothing but a high-ceilinged, well-furnished prison was like a word whispered from the Cheshire cat: something she yearned to realize for herself, but also something draped in mystery; an idea as dangerous as it was fleeting and unattainable.

Now, it was like being told she could no longer breathe oxygen. Or drink water. The deprivation of her freedom was suffocating, sucking away at her determination and will to fight.

Or, it would have. She was inches from crumbling.

Until she felt a pair of strong arms wrap around her, cradling her against a firm body. And then another pair from behind her, and another, and another, until she was enveloped in warmth. The tiny little box of hope she'd stashed away like Pandora was shining a single ray of bright light into the darkness, providing a lifeline to an almost smothered corner of her heart. She could feel her heartbeat slowing back to normal, her mind freeing itself from the panic clouding it.

And like a bolt of lightning, a solitary train of thought jolted through her as the child she used to be reminded her of something very important. The one thing that could make a difference. The one thing she could arm herself with.

 _Daddy isn't good. He isn't honest. He's done_ bad _things. We_ remember _him doing bad things. What are the chances he isn't still doing bad things? Illegal things? Things that he doesn't want people to know?_

Lucy followed the thought to its conclusion, swiftly spinning a plan centered on finding herself a golden ticket out of her father's unrelenting control. That golden ticket the answer to a simple question:

 _What evidence had he left lying around in his lavish fortress?_

And safe inside her mind's filigreed box, just a little too small to hold it, her heart told her it was time to start making plans.

* * *

"Can we let go yet? This is just getting weird…" Loke ventured, wiggling a little from his place between Gray and Gajeel.

"No!"

"Shut Up!"

"Suck it up!"

"Not yet!"

Four voices rang out at the same time, fierce in their refusal to let go. Natsu, Levy, Gajeel, and Gray all glared at Loke from their places in the massive group hug. Loke swiftly shut up, as ordered, and decided to let someone else be the first one to break-up the love fest.

Erza and Mystogan kept their places silently, eyes wide, eventually finding each other. Each had seen Natsu and Gray go through a lot of shit together, growing up, or in the frat, respectively, but neither had seen them agree on anything so quickly. Ever.

A single thought ran through their heads.

 _I have got to meet this girl._

* * *

After another twenty minutes of being hugged (just to be safe), several hundred push-ups, at least as many crunches, a rousing 17 rounds of the Post-It game and two crappy meals later, Natsu was done with trains. Seriously. He was never getting on a train again.

"Only an hour until we get there," Erza reported to the limp bodies lying around her on every surface of the compartment in defeat. The intrepid redhead seemed to be the only passenger not suffering from a massive case of cabin fever, merely returning to her romance novel and ignoring the groans of protest from her companions.

How could eight hours of travel time seem to take up so many days?!

Levy, laying across the luggage rack above them tried to remember when she had last set foot on solid ground, and found she couldn't. Normally she could pass dozens of hours quickly with a good book, but the constant rocking motion of the train made even reading an unenjoyable pastime.

Just as she was considering flinging herself off the luggage rack to end it all (or at least prompt an emergency ride to the nearest hospital which would provide a change of scenery, if nothing else), she felt something vibrate in the bag next to her head. If it hadn't been directly next to her ear, she never would have heard it over the cacophony of the train.

Turning slightly in the cramped space, she saw that her own messenger bag was the culprit. She'd forgotten that she'd shoved her phone into the bag when she'd discovered her current outfit had no pockets. She wiggled the phone from the bag and checked the screen, a missed call message taking up the majority of the screen.

Correction. 33 missed call messages.

"Shit," she muttered softly, swiping into her phone to see who had been trying to call her all this time, her eyebrows rising when she saw they were almost all from one location. "Uh, Gajeel? Has Erik tried calling you?"

"Yeah. I think he's called a couple of times. I'll call him back later."

"Um...maybe you should call him back now. He found my phone number I left on the rum. And he called me 30 times…"

Gajeel busted out laughing. "Jesus he's higher strung than I thought! I called all of our appointments before we left this morning and let them know the new guy'd be taking care of them and to give him a break. They're all repeat customers. And we never get walk-ins on Sunday. Erik's got a way with ink, but he's a cocky son-of-a-bitch. I'm just getting a little payback for some of the shit he pulled on me in high school."

Levy hummed in response, finally noticing the collection of texts that accompanied the calls.

 _ **Where the fuck are you guys?!**_

 _ **Levy?**_

 _ **The cash register won't turn on.**_

 _ **Where's the tape?**_

 _ **Seriously, why won't you or Gajeel answer your fucking phones?!**_

 _ **There's a fucking motorcycle festival in Magnolia this weekend?! Have you even heard of Ride Fiore?! Did you know about this?**_

 _ **That's it. I'm drinking all your rum.**_

 _ **Tell your boyfriend he's a dick.**_

 _ **And I'm taking all the cash from the fucking 32 bikers I worked on today and blowing it on hookers and cocaine. You're fucking welcome. I'm taking next Sunday off.**_

She swiped out of her texts and clicked on her voicemail, seeing five messages there too. The first couple were polite if harried, but the others eventually devolved into almost unintelligible Puerto Rican Spanish.

"Hey, Gajeel? Can I see your phone?" Levy called, dropping an arm blindly off the luggage rack for him to place it in. The nauseated iron dragon of a man swiped his phone open and handed it to her without argument. The less he had to deal with at the moment, the better.

She went to open up his messaging app only for the phone to light up, informing her silently that "Cobra" was calling. She accepted the call and was met by a flurry of cursing in Spanish before the caller realized she had actually answered.

"¡Coño! ¡Contesta el maldito telephono hijo de mierda! "

Clearing her throat, Levy responded in her best imitation of a snooty secretary.

""Perdona, el Sr. Redfox no esta disponible. ¿Quieres dejar un mensaje?"

"Que mierda es esto? Levy? **Now** you answer his fucking phone? The store is finally fucking closed! Do you have any idea how fucking crazy it was today?! Especially without a working FUCKING register!?"

"Well, um, all's well that ends well?" Levy ventured with a wince.

"Fuck that. When are you guys coming back?"

"No idea. Though chances are good you'll be on your own tomorrow again…"

"No way. Just close the store or something. If I have to do this again, I'm gonna have a fucking panic attack. Or destroy that stupid register."

"Hey! Don't take it out on The Slut! It's not her fault that you don't know what buttons to push!"

"You named the cash register, The Slut? Seriously?"

"Well, normally, she's easy and she takes it all day long like a champ. What else would I call her? The Hooker? Just doesn't have the same ring to it..."

Erik finally broke down into uncontrollable laughter, his ridiculous day catching up with him. After several moments of hysteria, he gathered himself back together and returned to their conversation. "Ok, fine. The Slut it is. Just tell me how to turn her on and I'll call her whatever you want."

"There's a heat activated spot on the back that you have to run your finger over."

"So The Slut has a spot that turns her on?" Erik managed to get out between snickers.

"Yep. You just gotta touch her right!" Levy giggled back.

"Fucking whore will learn who's boss tomorrow."

"Gotta keep your pimp hand strong."

"I kinda get why you named her The Slut."

"Right?!"

"She and I'll hold down the fort for now, but try to get back as soon as you guys can. The town is crawling with bikers and I can only churn out so many commemorative tattoos at a time. As it is, I've already got five more booked for tomorrow. And that's before any more walk-ins."

"We'll do our best. Thanks Erik. We both really appreciate it!"

"Uh-uh. You're forgiven, but your fucker of a boyfriend's got another thing coming to him."

"I will inform Mr. Redfox of your challenge."

"Gracias, seniorita."

"De nada. Adios."

Levy hung up the phone and handed it down to Gajeel. Only to notice that the room full of people were staring at her like she had suddenly turned into Mirajane Strauss and propositioned Natsu of all people.

"What, a girl can't make sexual jokes about a cash register?" she snapped, with a sparkle in her eye. "Fucking chauvinists."

There was a beat of silence before Natsu turned to Gajeel.

"So, how long has Levy been a lesbian? We could hook her up with Lisanna if your whole soulmate thing doesn't work out..."

The resulting fistfight that followed made the last hour of the trip really fly by.

* * *

 **First, guest questions:**

 **Kairo1412- Are the other FT members going to help?-Not on this one. I'm slowly pulling them together that way a bit, and I suspect the frat will end up adopting Lucy as one of their own before this story is completed, but for this particular mission, the team has been assembled...for now. Who knows where they'll drag me when I least expect it?!**

 **Guest- Oh man. Assassination classroom favorite?! How the fuck do I even begin to decide? Seriously. I would have said Karma, before the last five episodes or so. And of course, I really REALLY love Nagisa. But those are the obvious favs, so I'll delve a little deeper for you. Yuzuki Fuwa is a definite fav. Not only was she voiced in the dub by the same VA as Levy, which automatically makes me bond with her, she also gets the great deductive reasoning bits and detective work. Though, honestly, I can find something I love about most of the characters. That show/manga (I assume, I haven't started it yet, but will ASAP) is REALLY well written. Every character feels unique and developed. Which is INCREDIBLE with a primary cast that large. Even FT tends to have some flat characters thrown in a lot of the time for the outskirts of the group, but this show touches on LITERALLY every character, and makes in personal. It's what makes the ending so damned powerful. It's easily in my top ten now. If not top five.**

 **And now, your friendly neighborhood list of references! I left some out, but really, does anyone need me to tell them what the Cheshire cat is from? GOOD.**

 **Machiavellian** -referring to Niccolo Machiavelli, the 15th Century Italian politician/philosopher/historian/writer who is famous for the way his beautifully twisty brain works, often employing tactics that were considered deceiful and dishonest...though exceptionally clever.

" **going Office Space on the piece of equipment"** -referring to the scene in the movie Office Space where the three main characters take a constantly malfunctioning printer to a field and beat the shit out of it with baseball bats, etc.

 **Mierda** -Spanish for "shit/fuck"

 **Maldita sea!** -the Spanish equivalent of "Damn it!"

" **hard-on that rivaled Ron Burgundy'"s** -reference to a scene in Anchorman, starring Will Farrell

" **as though they were waiting for him to grab a hat and cane and start dancing with cartoon penguins"** -yep, your eyes do not deceive you, that's a reference to Mary Poppins. No shame.

 **"¡Coño! ¡Contesta el maldito telephono hijo de mierda! "** -Exactly translated means: "Pussy! Answer the damn telephone son of a fuck/shit!"; The colloquialism means: "Fuck! Answer the damn telephone son of a fuck/shit!"

 **"Perdona, el Sr. Redfox no esta disponible. ¿Quieres dejar un mensaje?"** _-_ "Apologies, Mr. Redfox is not available. Do you want to leave a message?"

 **-the glorious Spanish translations have been graciously provided by Grimnack, who found time in a** _ **hurricane**_ **to help me out. (THANK YOU SO MUCH AGAIN FOR YOUR HELP!)**

 **And yeah, that was another Hangover reference thrown in there at the end. I will prevail! If only because I'm shelling out twice the wordcount! Hehe. Your move Shedauwz.**


	35. Counterattack in the Middle of the Night

**Soooo...my beta says this chapter is unnecessary...I disagree...thoughts? Wait, no, I don't care. Already written. Calling it a win. It's a two parter btw. It just won't let me make the chapter title long enough to put part one. Stupid website. ENJOY!**

 **Oh, and I published a little one shot I wrote a bit ago. Check it out if you're into inserts into canon. Oh hell, check out all my one shots. They're lonely. They need company.**

* * *

The sun was painting the sky with vibrant pink and orange when Lucy held her breath and tried the doorknob again.

Yep, still locked.

 _Damn._

While gathering her courage and deciding to find dirt on her father and take him down had given her purpose, if she couldn't get out of her room, then her plan was pretty damn useless. She'd been trying to find a way to get to her father's study all evening, but with the oddly timed board meeting he had her go to, the second lavish meal, and the house arrest, she'd been unsuccessful so far. Natsu would be there soon, and she hadn't even been able to gain enough freedom to search the house. The resolve keeping her going wavered and her forehead fell against the door with a thump.

 _What now?_

As though in answer to her question, the lock on her bedroom door clicked, spurring her to lunge backwards. It swung open swiftly, narrowly missing her head, to reveal two women in expensive-looking black pantsuits, each sporting an exceptional amount of cleavage and a gun.

"Did you need something?" the younger green-haired woman deadpanned. Her face remained stoic as her eyes flickered momentarily around the empty room before returning to Lucy, looking more bored than anything else. She couldn't be much older than Lucy, but something about her spoke of confidence. Lucy was positive she knew how to use the firearm in her shoulder holster. The other woman, had already turned back to face the empty hall, her long pale pink ponytail the only part of her in motion, still swinging from her movement, almost brushing the gun she kept at the small of her back. She wore exceptionally high-heels, yet stood solidly.

Lucy felt a shiver run down her spine. Their stillness spoke volumes. Everything about them screamed training and discipline.

Well, everything but the cleavage. That just screamed 'open for business'...the _hussysluts_.

"Uh, nope, I was just wondering, uh... where my father is…?" Lucy hedged. It wasn't like she could straight-up say she wanted to leave her room to search for evidence that she could blackmail her father with, but she cringed at her lame attempt at an excuse. She used to be much better at lying. Yet, no interest or skepticism crossed the blasé visage of the young woman in front of her.

"Mr. Heartfilia is unavailable. You can speak to him in the morning. Go back to bed." The woman's short turquoise bob fluttered in the gust of air created as she closed the door again, leaving Lucy dejected in the dark.

Taking a moment to regroup, she felt a squeeze to her hand and smiled. Ever since the hug he'd managed to arrange during lunch, Natsu'd been sneaking subtle comforting touches to her when she was down, as though he could share her emotions now too.

 _Wait, is that possible?_ These days it was hard to believe that anything involving the bond wasn't.

Shaking off the thought for a more appropriate time, she spun on her heel and examined her lush prison. The door was a no-go. So how else could she get to her father's study?

The blonde walked over to one of the almost floor to ceiling windows and stared out into the grounds. She couldn't get out either of the massive picture windows. At least, she couldn't without breaking them; they were two solid panes of glass apiece that weren't made to open. But there was one window that did…

Lucy did an about-face, heading into the bathroom that connected to her bedroom to complete her suite of rooms. There it was, just as she remembered: a small, older, unobtrusive-looking window. And her ticket out.

The Heartfilia Manor had been built more than a hundred years ago, and though Lucy's grandparents had replaced most of the ancient windows with new ones before she was even born, some of the smaller, out of the way, fenestrations had been deemed suitable for use and escaped replacement. The age-rippled glass of the window was held in place with uncountable layers of paint, and hadn't been opened since Lucy had lived there, but still, a glimmer of possibility gleamed on the little opening.

Or maybe that was just the moon. The buxom blonde paused in her examination of the wooden frame to admire the full moon outside it. At least she wouldn't need to track down a flashlight. Which was good, because she was almost positive her room didn't contain one. The gods were on her side. And everyone knew they favored the brave, the bold, and the completely freaking nuts.

Lucy turned the stiff brass locking mechanism of the window and gave it an experimental push. Unsurprisingly, the thing didn't budge.

Gritting her teeth, Lucy stalked over to the long vanity containing her sink and every beauty product her captors had deemed necessary during her incarceration. Pulling a drawer open, she sifted through the modern torture devices of womanhood until she found something that might do.

The sharp metal nail file flashed in the light streaming through her salvation into the dark bathroom as she began chipping away at the paint seaming the window to the sill. It came away in brittle flakes. With a grin, she doubled her efforts. With any luck, she'd be out within the hour.

* * *

Natsu paced the field, flicking his lighter on and off and trying to ignore the adrenaline flooding his system. He didn't know if it was Lucy's or his at this point, but it was making him itch somewhere he couldn't scratch.

He tensed as Gray jogged back toward them, accepting a bottle of water and catching his breath. Natsu ground his teeth. He should have been the one on surveillance, he was the only one here with any real combat experience. If that dick screwed this up, he'd never forgive him.

As though Gray could sense Natsu's animosity, he turned to glare at the pinkette, taking another swig of water. They locked eyes in a battle of wills that Gray eventually broke, sighing as he tossed the bottle back to Erza and settled into the stirring circle surrounding a bare spot on the ground. Natsu stayed where he was for a minute, shifting his eyes to the sky and inhaling deeply, trying to calm himself the fuck down a little. Lucy needed a little time anyway, they couldn't just barge in and grab her right now either way. He thought back to their written conversation a couple of hours ago, as they both waited for dark to descend, her in her bedroom, him sitting in the high grass of the Heartfilia property; so close, yet so far away.

 _I think I can find something on my dad, I just need to get out of my room somehow so I can look._

 **I'm not leaving you in there longer than I have to! you're fucking terrified!**

 _I can handle it. Just give me a day._

 **no Luce. we're here to get you, let me come get you.**

 _It won't matter if you get me and I have nothing to keep my father from dragging me back. I need the time._

 **til dark then. we're coming when its dark whether you're ready or not, so hurry up and get what you need. he wanted you for something, right? that's what Z-man said. I don't plan on waiting around here to find out what was so important he had to kidnap you!**

 _...ok. Contact me when you're in the house. I'll meet you wherever you are if I can. Give me as much time as you can._

Natsu's jaw clenched thinking about the situation he found himself in. He still thought it would be quicker and easier for him to sneak in alone, climb the house, pull her out a window, throw her over his shoulder and hightail it back to Magnolia. It was a house, not a fortress. This whole thing was overkill. Creepy or not, Jude was a businessman, not a warlord.

Eventually, at a look from Erza, he crouched down with the rest of them and then shifted so his shadow didn't block the moonlight shining on the hand-drawn map spread on the ground in the middle of their circle. The sun had just dipped below the horizon and the tall grass of the field they crouched in swayed in the night wind, brushing against his thighs.

 _What a waste of space,_ he thought, remembering the miles of open, empty fields they had tramped through to get to their current position. But the air through the grass and the nearby trees was peaceful, the cool autumn air was fresh and bracing as it hit his lungs, and the sky was almost solid with stars. There were definitely worse places to mount a rescue. He tilted his head back and took in the unbelievable blanket of diamonds above him. Something told him Lucy would love it.

The itch flared up again and his leg bounced uncontrollably. He wanted to move, to go get Lucy and get the fuck home already. All this planning seemed like a colossal waste of time to him. Didn't they realize that this would all go to shit the minute it started? That's just how combat of any kind worked.

Natsu switched to bouncing on the other leg and refocused on the map in front of him as Levy smoothed it over the bare spot of ground they'd found. She clicked on a penlight and illuminated the map a bit better.

"Ok, Gray, what did you find out?" the little blunette asked, turning to the Croatian sitting cross-legged beside her. He reached out an arm to point at several areas of the extensive line drawing. Levy had done a serious amount of research with her plan to break Lucy out the first time. That map for freaking insane.

"Well, that bastard's house is huge, and it's not going to be easy. There are four guards patrolling the perimeter of the house and grounds. A thin guy on the back door, a big guy in the back gardens, a small woman at the front gate, and a guy in a suit guarding the main front entrance. Since the others are walking patterns, and in combat gear, I assume he's in charge or something. He's just planted at the door. All the lights are off on the upper floors of the house where Lucy said the bedrooms are. There are security lights posted every twenty feet or so, so unless we do something about those, we're gonna lose the element of surprise. There are a couple of larger trees up next to the house, but no landscaping that could offer us any cover past the garden. And, like I said, there's a guy out there making sure we can't use it. They've all got guns and walkies, well, except the dude in the suit. He doesn't seem to have a gun, but I'm betting he's got a weapon of some kind on him."

Silence fell for a moment after Gray's report. Suddenly, the whole situation was feeling a hell of a lot more real for them all.

"So what's the plan?" Erza eventually queried, looking between Natsu and Levy, who was jerked out of her thoughts by the redhead's clipped tone. She refocused on her fellow female in the mission and nodded to her.

"Right. As I see it, the only chance we've got is to take them all out at the same time, or at least engage them at the same time. If we don't, they'll call for back-up and overwhelm us, so the first priority is keep them from signalling on their radios. We're lucky they're not using earpieces or that bit would be a lot harder. Second priority is eliminating the firearms. The last thing any of us needs is to get shot. Since none of the guards outside were Zancrow," she paused to look at Gray again, who nodded, "we can assume there are at least three more inside the house, probably more. Four is doable, seven-plus would be suicide, even with Erza, Gajeel, Gray and Natsu's skills, so _stealth_ is key." Levy paused to throw a glance at Natsu. She felt out of place plotting them out. Sure, she had a plan, but she felt woefully inadequate when it came to violence. But, at continued silence from Natsu and a nod from Erza, she continued.

"Ok, here's how it's gonna go down. Natsu and Gray, you're taking the back garden. Though he's the biggest guy, between the two of you, you should have the skills to take him down pretty quickly." _And Gray will keep Natsu from leaping out in a ball of flames and glory,_ she thought to herself. "Gajeel, you've got the guy on the back door. Once I cut the power here," she pointed to a small box on the map that no one else had noticed, "you shouldn't have any trouble sneaking up on him." Gajeel nodded grimly and patted the long hard object in the mostly empty duffel beside him. It wouldn't be a problem if he had anything to say about it. "Loke, you're on the front gate."

"Uh, alone? Did I mention I have virtually no combat training?" he said nervously. This whole rescue mission was turning out to be a lot more than he thought he'd signed up for.

"If everything goes to plan, you won't need to fight anyone. We just need you to keep her distracted enough not to notice what's going on around the house. I don't care what you do with her, but just keep her away from the house as long as possible."

Loke thought it over and eventually smiled a little. "Got it. I think I can handle that." Carefully, he reached up and peeled off the white bandage over his nose, revealing a slightly swollen, but normal-colored nose. Natsu's eyes flickered to it, then returned and narrowed.

"Shouldn't that still be all bruise-y and shit?" he asked suspiciously, reaching out to try and poke the healing appendage. Loke pulled away quickly.

"It's called makeup, you idiot. It still hurts like a bitch, so don't go fucking poking it! If you hadn't broken it in the first place, it wouldn't even be an issue!"

"If you hadn't talked about moving in on Lucy I wouldn't have broken your fucking face!" Natsu's blood pounded in his ears. He'd had just about enough of the perv.

"Boys, we don't have time for your bickering," Erza said calmly. Both boys immediately slumped over in response, shrinking away from the Titania; Loke in terror, Natsu in angry petulance. "Now, Levy, where do you want me?" She pulled a switchblade out of her boot and started playing with it absentmindedly, her full focus on their little blunette strategist. Levy took a slow breath and continued, her voice a little less certain after the boys' fight, but building to her usual confidence when Gajeel's hand settled on her shoulder.

"You and Mystogan are going to take the leader on the front door. Once Loke has the guard on the gate distracted, you're going to sneak in and lure the front door guard off the porch. I'm not sure how yet, but you're the most skilled fighter we have." Levy paused, expecting argument from the boys, but getting none. "So, you get the biggest bad, and Mystogan has the least combat experience next to Loke, so he's with you." _And he'll keep you from drawing too much attention to yourselves in the meantime...hopefully._ She met Mystogan's knowing eyes and saw a slight smile curl up one side of his mouth. She subtly nodded back at him.

Erza nodded decisively, missing the entire exchange. "I will keep him safe, and destroy the guard on the front door," she declared. No one doubted her.

"Ok, so we're only going to have a small window of time after I kill the power before the backup generators come on. Five minutes tops. And the walkies obviously have their own power supply, so someone calling for reinforcements is still a very real threat."

"Hey guys, I'm just gonna ask the question that no one has yet. Is all of this really necessary? Can't we just take out one guard and get in that way, grab Lucy and get back out again?" Loke's question was met with shaking heads, but it was Natsu who spoke up to explain it.

"The more of these guys we take out now, while we've got the element of surprise, the better. There is bound to be at least one guard on Lucy inside, and it's not like pulling her out of this place will solve her daddy issues. They'll be coming after us. The more crippled their organization the better. It will give us time to get the hell out of Acalypha so we can find somewhere to lay low for a bit." Natsu looked at the ground as he basically parroted what Lucy had said.

"But doesn't that mean they'll come after us, even if they can't find her? What's stopping them from using us to get her back?" Loke asked, persistent. He was risking life and limb here. He needed to know there was a plan to keep them safe afterward.

Levy shifted and looked at the ground for a moment. "Well, honestly, that all depends on Lu. She needs time to access her memories and find something we can use to make Jude back off. At least, that was the plan before she was taken…"

"She's planning to search Jude's stuff here before we go. She hopes she can find something that will get him to back off." Natsu didn't sound happy about it. And he wasn't, but something about the way Loke was talking had gotten through his anger at the circumstances. The ginger was shaking like a leaf. And he had the easier role to fill. They shouldn't have even brought him...but he'd volunteered to come, and there was no going back now. They'd need every hand on deck when shit hit the fan. Which it inevitably would.

 _Why the hell am I doing this again?_ Loke thought to himself, panic setting in below his ribs, steadily forcing the air from his lungs until they ached. A hand came down on his shoulder.

"If you play your cards right, they won't even know you're with us. As far as they know, you're just some lost guy looking for directions or whatever. You've got this." Natsu's words, though tense, had an odd effect on the playboy, his heart rate slowing and his breath evening out. He just sounded so...sure of himself. Like they couldn't fail. Loke looked over at the pinkette, seeing determination shine through the tense set of his eyes. It was a side of Natsu that he'd never really seen before, for once, completely serious and supremely confident. Not for the first time, he took a moment to thank the heavens Natsu had retired from the dating scene when he did. There was something so magnetic about him, it was hard not to get drawn in. Even sitting in a field, pissed as hell, and jumpy as shit, there was still something about him that made you want to impress him. Loke's life was a lot easier without that kind of competition.

"Alright, so does anyone have any brilliant ideas regarding the guns? That's the one part of this plan that just doesn't make sense. How the hell are we supposed to take them down without getting fucking shot? They're trained professionals," Gray spoke up. They all looked at Levy.

She sat in silence, panic setting in as she ran through every scenario she could think of. They were woefully under-armed for this, even with the stuff they'd managed to bring with them.

"I can help with that," Natsu said confidently, rummaging in the old army duffel he'd brought with him from Magnolia. It was packed pretty full. His hand closed around a box and he drew it swiftly out, holding it out to the group.

Everyone looked at him expectantly with disbelief and hope.

Which swiftly faded to confusion and disappointment

"Uh, Natsu, why are you holding a tiara that says 'Princess'?"

Natsu seemed to realize what he was actually holding for the first time, which was in fact a clear plastic box containing a pink, sparkly tiara.

"Dammit Lisanna! Not fucking funny!" He turned back around, tossing the box into the air for Erza to reach out and grab, an odd look of greed flashing over her otherwise stoic face. She casually took the tiara out of the box and stuck it into her own bag while Natsu pulled out another box, this one closer resembling a gun case. He popped it open and pulled out a black handgun and two feathered darts.

"Holy shit, you have a tranquilizer gun?! Where did you get that?" Gray asked excitedly, grabbing the gun and expertly looking it over. He checked to see if it was loaded and looked down the sight. "Oh yeah, this will help a lot! Let's just tranq 'em all!" Gray had taken marksmanship in high school and won a tournament or two. He felt a hell of a lot more comfortable with a gun of

"Nope, Lisanna could only get her hands on a couple of the darts, so that's a no-go," Natsu's muffled voice answered as he searched in his bag again. "She, uh, 'borrowed' it from the vet program. They only use it when they study large animals, and they aren't using it this semester, so they haven't restocked on darts again yet. But I've got these too. I, uh, sort of forgot about them with all the drama on the train.." He carefully placed a mesh bag of small round objects, varying in size, onto the map. His tone was lighter than before by a small margin, the tension of the scene broken by Lisanna's prank.

"What are those?" Loke asked, leaning forward to see better.

"Is that a lingerie bag?" Levy asked quizzically as she leaned forward too. The guys all turned to look at her in silent bewilderment.

"What the fuck is a lingerie bag? Someone left it in the laundry room at the frat ages ago. It's a really good size for carrying around explosives." Natsu said with a grim smile. Everyone except Natsu and Erza immediately threw themselves backward away from the unobtrusive bag on the ground, leaving Natsu looking around at them. "What? They're totally safe. I mean, unless they catch on fire. Or get shot. Or you light one of the wicks." The pinkette unzipped the mesh bag and grabbed one of the little black balls, showing them where a white wick quite comically protruded from the top.

"Are you fucking kidding me? Why did you make bombs that look like something Wily Coyote would use?!" Gray replied, still laying back on his elbows away from the bag of cartoony spheres. He'd somehow lost his shirt. Not that he noticed.

"Because it takes them a little while to burn down the wicks and it's funny to watch people walk up to look at 'em." Natsu's smile grew. They all looked at him like he was psychotic for a minute. Which, to be fair, he wasn't doing a great job of dissuading.

Erza gave him a stern look. "Natsu. Exactly how many people have you blown up lately?"

"What? No one! Half of them are smoke bombs! That's what I usually use 'em for. Makes being a ninja way easier." The group breathed a sigh of relief and sat back up. "But this time I made a few with some kick too. Those bastards are professionals. They won't hold back, so neither should we. Plus, I threw in a couple of fireworks. Thought it couldn't hurt to have a distraction." His friends, again minus Erza, leaned away and took cover again. Erza just smiled at Natsu.

"Excellent thinking Natsu. These will come in handy," she said, putting her switchblade away in her boot and starting to check that her various weapons were within reach and ready for combat, the piece de resistance being a katana that lay across her lap, but would soon be strapped to her hip. Getting it on the train had been a bitch. Gray checked his own knife, a massive blade used for hunting strapped to the small of his back, realizing in the process he had removed his shirt at some point. He glanced around for it while unsnapping the strap that held the knife in place. He wished he'd been able to get his hands on gun, but the knife was better than nothing.

Eventually Levy steeled herself and gingerly picked up the bag, examining its contents. "Well, I can't say I'm discouraged by this turn of events. But this does change the plan quite a bit…"

Natsu snorted softly at that. Everything changed the plan. They'd see soon enough.

Mystogan reached out and took the bag from her, staring closely at the nearest one through the mesh. Erza stilled, watching him out of the corner of her eye until he handed the bag carefully back to Natsu. "How many of each do you have?" he asked thoughtfully.

"Well, you can tell the difference by their size. The smallest ones are the smoke bombs, the middle ones are the firework shells, and the biggest ones will explode, catching pretty much anything in a three meter radius on fire. I didn't put any shrapnel or projectiles into them, so they're less likely to kill anyone, but they've got enough punch to do some serious damage at point blank range. Granted, so will the firework shells. They've just got more of a direction to them, yeah?" As he talked, he pulled each sphere from the bag, placed them into rough groups. There were five smoke bombs, six fireworks, and three explosives laid out. Mystogan narrowed his eyes.

"I think I've got an idea." The group gave the stoic blunette their attention, Gray abandoning the search for his missing shirt. "Have any of you ever used a water balloon slingshot?"

Natsu, Erza, Gray and Gajeel all nodded, grins on their faces. They exchanged a look that made it very clear their experience with the projectile weapon was a shared one. Levy frowned, anticipating where he was going with his question.

"There are plenty of trees within range to use, but we don't have a slingshot with us. Or anything to use to make one," she said with a hint of disappointment. It would have been an easy thing to obtain before they left if Natsu had just bothered to tell everyone what he was bringing with him. Stupid Natsu.

"Actually, all we really need is a decent stretch of elastic and fabric to hold the projectile…" Something about the way that he said it was...off. Almost guilty. Levy's eyebrows furrowed.

"Yeah, but where the hell are we going to get elastic? It will take too long to send someone back to town, and I don't know about you, but unless Natsu's magical bag can cough some up, we're shit out of luck. It's a good idea, but it's too late." Even as she discounted the idea, her eyes roamed the group, praying futilely for an elastic waistband or two they could dismantle. Unfortunately Natsu was the only one in sweats, and his were clearly of the drawstring variety.

Meanwhile, in almost perfect synchronicity, all the male eyes of the group fell to either Levy or Erza's chests and then hastily looked away. Then the guys traded meaningful looks, eventually pressuring Gajeel with their eyes to explain their solution to his girlfriend.

"Uh, Shrimp?" He reached out and into the collar of her t-shirt, snapping her bra strap.

"Ow! What the hell was that for?! My bra straps are not-oh." Levy stopped herself as she finally got it.

Mystogan cleared his throat, carefully avoiding looking at Erza's chest. "My brother and I stole a couple of our mom's bras to make one once. They're actually quite effective. We will need at least two to get any distance though…" His eyes drifted back over to Erza's chest, looking away again almost immediately.

"Well, it's not like I need it anyway…" Levy joked uncomfortable as she unhooked her bra and awkwardly pulled her arms out of the straps, eventually pulling it out her sleeve, tossing it into the center of their circle, and crossing her arms protectively over her chest. She traded embarrassed glances with Erza, who was frozen in place.

"I can't fight without a bra on," she eventually admitted, her arms crossing protectively over her chest, like the guys were going to try and take her brassiere by force. "They don't...stay put. They get in the way. If I'm taking on the boss, then I don't need a handicap! We're talking life and death here. One mistake and I'm dead."

"Hey, could you use bandages? Like you did for that play in middle school where you played the prince? It doesn't look pretty, but it gets the job done. You could move around fine," Gray offered.

Erza's eyes brightened at the thought. "Yeah, that could work. But where are we going to get that many bandages?" They all turned to look at Natsu and his enormous bag. He reluctantly reached into the bag again.

"What? You just _assume_ I've got-" Natsu cut himself off as his rummaging hand pulled an Ace wrap out of his bag. "Well, fuck. I feel like Mary Poppins…"

"Are you fucking KIDDING me?!" Levy shrieked. "You had that the whole time? We can just use _that_ to make the slingshot, идиот такъв!" She reached for her undergarment, but Mystogan pulled it away with an apologetic look.

"Your bra will make a great holder for the incendiary devices though. This should give us some decent distance if we double it a couple of times…" Mystogan trailed off as he took the rolled up bandage and started doing calculations in his head, oblivious to his fellow blunette pouting at him. Erza breathed a silent sigh of relief and dropped her arms again.

"Well, fine. Not like it really matters…" Levy frowned down at her chest and then looked away. A pair of arms wound around her waist and she jumped.

"Shrimp, bras are overrated," her soulmate murmured in her ear. She hadn't even noticed him sneaking up behind her. She let herself relax back into him for a moment, taking the moment of peace he was offering before the storm that would inevitably come. "And I'll show you why when this is all over…"

Levy felt a zip of heat shoot through her and she turned her head to smile at him, ending up getting kissed instead. It was a sweet moment, just one of the many Gajeel slipped into their lives when she was least expecting it. She broke the kiss a moment later, catching her breath a bit. Her adrenaline was pumping, but her earlier apprehension had subsided a bit. Gajeel always had a weird effect on her.

"We should get going," she sighed.

"Yup. Let's get to work Shorty. We're wasting moonlight," he agreed, pulling away from her.

"HEY! I've gotten used to Shrimp, but _Shorty_ is TOO FAR, you ass!"

* * *

Lucy tried the window again, almost squealing in delight when there was a dry crackle and the rest of the paint in her way crumbled away, allowing the pane to open a few inches. Another minute of shoving and shimmying left a hole big enough for her to crawl through and the crisp night breeze wafting in at her. She took a minute just to breathe it in. It smelled like freedom.

She quickly ran back for the desk chair in her room and placed it in the bathtub. It wasn't the most secure as a stepladder, but it would have to do. Balancing on the unstable piece of furniture, she stuck the top half of her body out the window and made the mistake of looking down.

 _Knowing_ that she was on the second floor and _seeing_ it were two different stories. Apparently, two very _tall_ stories.

Her head spun as she swallowed hard and looked up and out into the rolling hills of the Heartfilia Estate. It had never been a particularly comforting sight before; more akin to dangling steak in front of a starving man.

But she was wasting time. She knew her friends were coming, sooner as opposed to later, and if she didn't find something on her dad by then, they would all be in danger. Their plan hung on the string of fate, and there was a candle burning beneath it. Time was more than just a factor, and she didn't have any to waste on fear.

Steeling herself, she looked down again, this time looking at the wall below her, finding what she was looking for in the cool light of the moon: a stone ledge, about four feet below her window. Four feet. That was all that stood between her and her goals. Well, that and the twenty foot drop below that. Not for the first time, Lucy internally criticized her ancestors. Who needed twenty foot ceilings in their ballrooms? Who even needed ballrooms?! Or third floors? She'd taken them for granted most of her life, but returning home from her cozy apartment had more than convinced her of the wastefulness of her former life.

Pulling her upper body back in through the window, she stretched her back out and took a deep breath. Pushing down her terror, she held her weight on the sill of the solid wooden window and put one leg through. The other was a little more difficult, but soon she was sitting in the window, her legs dangling in open air.

 _Now for the scary part,_ she thought to herself as she shifted her butt forward just a hair.

But that hair was just enough. The slick material of her nightgown slipped over the edge and she turned in the air, frantically grabbing at anything she could get her hands on. She felt one bare foot catch the edge of the ledge but slide off, the second missing entirely. For one terrifying millisecond, she was suspended in air, twenty feet above the ground with nothing to ground her. And then her hands clamped down on the window sill and her body swung down hard with the help of gravity, her ankles hitting the ledge hard while her breasts collided with the rough-hewn masonry of the wall. Lucy winced at the pain, but held on, catching her breath and pulling her legs up to the safety of the ledge.

In hindsight, not changing out of her nightgown was really stupid.

She didn't know how long she stayed there, legs shaking in terror at what had almost happened, trying desperately to get herself moving. It could have been hours, though it was more likely a handful of minutes. Out of reflex she felt for her connection with Natsu, searching for the peace and comfort he offered her. It took the space of a moment for his heartbeat to pound in her chest and cool air to rasp in her throat as he jogged over an open space in the night. That was what reminded her to start moving.

They were coming. She didn't have time for fear.

The blonde carefully stood to her full height and turned, so her back was to the building. She didn't look down again, but turned her head to the left instead, gauging how far she had to go. There were tall windows all the way down the side of the building, but they were like her bedroom windows, and didn't open. There was another old bathroom window about ¾ of the way down the wall, but chances were it was painted shut on the inside and locked.

Suddenly her plan wasn't seeming like the best idea.

But, it was the only one she had, so she forced her feet to move and started moving down the wall. Inching closer each second to her only hope.

* * *

Levy stuck an earbud in her right ear and held the microphone on her phone closer to her mouth while the connected left headphone swung wildly.

"Check one, Cyan is online." Responses crackled one after another as each of her teammates checked-in with her as they each finished merging onto her call.

"Check two, Pink is online," Natsu chirped quietly as he jogged toward the wall surrounding the back garden.

"Check three, Orange is online," Loke murmured, already in position and waiting for his cue. He strolled leisurely about half a mile down the road from the driveway entrance to the estate.

"Check four, Red is online," Erza stated clearly, nudging the man next to her, hidden in the shadows cast by the trees surrounding them. Mystogan tied off the final adjustment to the makeshift slingshot he was installing and grabbed his phone from her, popping in his own earbud and immediately murmuring: "Check five, Blue is online."

"Check six, Black is online." Gajeel barked out his mic check and stuck his phone back in the armband he used to hold it when he worked out. Then he picked up speed, jogging next to Natsu & Gray. Once the lights went out (and Natsu and Gray distracted the guard in the garden) he'd be running in to take out the man on the back door to the house.

"Check seven, Gray is online," Gray finished with amusement in his voice. Hiding in plain sight was just his style. He'd insisted on calling himself Gray, since Black was taken. Most of the party rolled their eyes, but remained silent.

"Alright, that's everyone. I'm heading to the power station now. Maintain positions and await my signal." With that, Levy tucked her phone into the pocket of her shorts, closed her laptop and started walking. Luckily, they'd stopped to plan not too far from her destination, so she didn't need to run all-out to get there. She reached up and adjusted the black beanie that had her vibrant hair tucked inside, making sure she didn't feel any poking out to give her away. Loke had really come through in a pinch for them, managing to scrounge enough black hats for the brighter-haired members of their team out of his extensive closet before they left.

Levy sent a little thank you to the gods for his help. So far he'd proved to be a valuable asset to the mission, even if his motives confused her. He'd never even met Lucy, and yet seemed almost smitten with her already, devoted to the point of self-sacrifice. When this was all over, she was going to have to follow up on why he'd agreed to help in the first place.

For now, she had a job to do.

Breaking into a hunched over run when her destination came into view, Levy switched her brain into go mode. When she got within twenty feet of the low square building, she dropped to the ground, grabbing her binoculars and scanning the surrounding area. She had a good view of the door, which seemed to be unguarded, but she got up and circled the building to check the other side anyway.

 _Better safe than sorry._

Thankfully, the building was deserted. The blunette made her way quickly to the door then, unsurprisingly finding it locked. A little smile quirked up the side of her mouth and she reached into the hands-free belt satchel (no it was not a fanny pack, whatever Gajeel had to say about it) at her hip. She found what she was looking for quickly and her smile spread with her glee. Levy'd been looking for a reason to test out her new lockpicks ever since she'd gotten them for Christmas from her parents. Nothing was a more welcome present than an opportunity to learn a dying art. Particularly a badass useful one like lock picking.

She heard her teammates quietly confirming they were all in position as she carefully selected the standard L-shaped torsion wrench and hook pick to start, inserting the wrench into the lock and pulling it as far to the side it would go. Then, keeping rotational tension on that she inserted her hook pick and got to work feeling for the first tumbler.

Twelve minutes, six tumblers, and four different picks later, the tension against her wrench released and with a careful turn, the lock slid open. She pulled her phone out of her pocket and spoke into the end,

"I'm in. Orange and Gray, go."

Levy checked her surroundings again and opened the door, slipping in and shutting it out of habit behind her.

Only to be met by the intervalled beeping of an alarm system waiting to be disarmed.

 _Well, shit._

Cursing to herself in her head, her heart beating wildly, Levy flipped on the light switch and scanned the small room, mostly full of noisy generators, but also containing what was obviously a control panel.

Not wasting time, she pulled one of Natsu's more explosive bombs from her sack and nestled it into the console, putting another on an important looking part of the electronic equipment. Then she lit the fuses and turned to run, just as the alarm started blaring loudly around her.

She sprinted across the small space, heading straight for the exit. Reaching the door, she grabbed the handle and turned.

But the mechanism only turned a fraction of an inch before stopping, not allowing her the full rotation needed to open the obstacle in front of her and make her escape.

She pulled harder on the door, frantically jerking on the doorknob in a state of near-paralyzing terror.

Why had she closed the door behind her in the first place?!

Why hadn't she left it open?!

Was she really going to die or be seriously injured over such a stupid mistake?!

The wicks sizzled behind her, throwing theatrical sparks as the countdown to the tiny comical black bombs burned merrily away. She shook the door again, her eyes on the wicks, calculating how much time she had left.

 _A minute, maybe two_? Tops.

The alarm was blaring so loudly she couldn't think. Panic swamped her senses, blurring her vision and causing her breaths to be fast and shallow.

How had the door even locked itself again? Somehow, it must have. There was no one else here.

She mentally slapped herself. That didn't matter. She struggled to focus her mind. The one thing that she could always fall back on.

What mattered was what she was going to do about it. She didn't have time to pick it again. No fucking way. She just wasn't that fast. Her eyes finally drifted down to the doorknob, feeling like they were moving in a dream world where everything took twice as long as she needed it to, and she released her breath in a rush.

It had a tiny knob on the end of it. A manual way to set the door to lock automatically when the door closed.

Not wasting another precious second, Levy's fingers scrambled at the little knob.

* * *

" _I'm in. Orange and Gray, go."_

That was the signal. Loke pulled the earbud from his ear and shoved it into his pocket with his phone as he stumbled over to the gate, giving it a quick and noisy shake.

It took only a moment to feel the cold steel of a gun barrel pressed against the back of his neck.

"Don't move. You're trespassing on private property. I have every right to shoot you where you stand," a high pitched feminine voice said from behind him. Swallowing the bile that crept up his throat at the feeling of chilled metal at his nape, he delivered his lines, definitely not needing to fake the panic in his voice, though almost forgetting to slur his words.

"Hey! Whoathere! I'm jus' a littlebit tipshy? Need to call an Uber and my phone'sh dead, 'kay?! Pleash don't shoot me!" The last few words came out more clearly in his panic, but the ruse worked, the woman behind him taking the weapon from his neck and gripping his arm firmly to spin him around.

Loke found himself looking down at the woman with a hold on his arm, a smirk on her face as she gave him the once over, holstering her weapon again.

"How'd you get out here?" she questioned, unexpectedly, more warmth than suspicion in her tone. Loke's eyes widened a bit, taking her in.

She was young. Or at least looked young. It was so hard to tell with Asian women sometimes. They could look fifteen for seventy years and then suddenly turn into wise old grandmothers overnight, so they always made him a little nervous (sleeping around got a lot riskier when you couldn't tell if your date was above the age of consent just by looking). But by the way the small woman was undressing him with her eyes, he doubted she as young as she looked. Or all that innocent. He was suddenly feeling unbelievably lucky.

He cracked his lips in a rakish smile and replied, "There'sh a helluva party down the road a few milesh." He accompanied the sentence with a point in the wrong direction. Then, making a show of confusion, he pointed the right direction instead. Levy had assured him that the closest house was that direction, less than five miles away. Thankfully, Heartfilia Manor and the neighboring land owner had built their homes near the edges of their lots instead of the center. The story was at least in the realm of possibility. He crossed his fingers that he wasn't the first houseguest to wander this way.

His luck won out, as the (possibly) young woman's shoulders relaxed and a look of playful admonishment replaced her wary look. "Another straggler? You'd think they'd be decent at keeping their house guests on their property by now, but I guess not."

She sidled forward a bit, trapping him against the gate. Loke grinned down at her, letting his hands skim her waist, carefully avoiding the holster at her belt. He couldn't be luckier. He'd been assigned a kindred spirit. Careful to breathe a little in her face with the whiskey breath from the shot he'd just taken, he leaned forward and whispered in her ear.

"You're hot. Wanna fuck?"

Sure, it was blunt, and he'd been planning a different approach, but reading her behavior with him, he immediately knew her type. Direct was the quickest way to results with a fellow sexual deviant. She shivered under his fingers and whispered back.

"You're cute. Why not?" She grabbed him by the hand then, dragging him over toward the little guardhouse she'd been occupying until he'd stumbled up. Only then did Loke begin to think about how much time their encounter had taken. The lights were set to go out any second.

As he passed through the door, he flicked the light switch off, immediately making his move. He pushed the woman against the wall with his body and kissed her fiercely. She responded enthusiastically with a weirdly girly giggle, combing her fingers into his hair. The light of the single large monitor screen lighting the room flickered, reminding Loke once again that he only had so much time to complete his mission.

He picked her up, surprised to find her small frame actually had the weight of muscle to it, and slammed her down on the desk, making a point to bump into the power button for the monitor when he did, the different camera-views winking out to darkness.

There, now when the blackout came, she'd be less likely to even notice.

With that thought flooding him with relief, he got back to work at what he did best: seducing the pants off a woman.

* * *

" _I'm in. Orange and Gray, go."_

Gray raised the pistol in his hands and nodded to Natsu, on the ground below his perch in a tree, just inside the wall of the garden. His roommate nodded back, barely visible in his dark clothing and hat in the shadows. He inched slowly forward, staying surprisingly quiet, for him, as he crept through the underbrush toward the guard pacing back and forth on the narrow walkway of the perfectly manicured, symmetrical, French garden that took up the first third of the enclosed space.

The man seemed bored, fingering the contrasting white straps of his unusual shoulder holster, and making Natsu's job easier by hooting out owl calls into the night, assumedly some kind of bird aficionado. And a bored one at that.

Gray looked down the barrel of the tranq gun, lining up the sights with his prey's neck. It had been a while since he'd fired a gun, but his muscles remembered for him. Exhaling slowly, he firmly squeezed the trigger, preparing for a much stronger kickback than what he got. The tranq gun also barely made any noise, the soft rush of air down the short barrel followed shortly by the sound of the dart hitting wood.

More precisely, the tree just in front of his intended victim. Who was touching his neck where the dart had grazed him with one hand and reaching for his radio with the other.

 _Shitshitshitshitshitshitshitshitshit…_

A steady stream of profanity flowed through Gray's mind as he hurriedly reloaded his gun and lined up another shot, frantically waiting for the man to still again as he walked closer to the tree and plucked out the first bright colored dart. The man leaned forward, bringing the walkie to his mouth.

"Hey, F here, I could use some back-up out in the garden. I thin-" The large man was cut off by Gray's second round of ammunition finding its mark. The man dropped the walkie talkie in surprise and reached up to his neck with one hand, his other landing on his gun as he spun, looking for his enemy.

Which was when Natsu sprang from the nearby bushes of the wilder English garden section of the garden that bordered the neat, almost compulsive lines of the French, and tackled him to the ground.

Immediately sitting up and planting a knee securely on the wrist to the hand that held a very serious-looking handgun, the pink-haired long-time boxer aimed a solid right hook at the man's head, only to miss as the burly opponent beneath him pulled the dart from his neck and dodged. He tugged on his captured wrist and grunted, the gun clattering to the pavement as his fingers went numb. Feeling the weapon leave his grasp, he used his free hand to throw his own punch at Natsu. The pinkette dodged at the last minute, rolling off of him and grabbing the gun, bringing it up to aim at his quarry in seconds.

Which was when a faint boom was heard in the distance, and everything went dark.

* * *

" _I'm in. Orange and Gray, go."_

Gajeel nodded to himself as he heard his girlfriend give the first signal, leaning nonchalantly against the garden wall in the shadow of Gray's tree. He watched the other black-haired man raise his gun and fire, silently cursing to himself when the shot went awry. He tensed, ready to step in, especially when the large guard spoke into his walkie, but relaxed a bit when the second dart hit home.

His relief was short lived, however, as the blaring of an alarm flooded his ears and his head turned frantically to take in his surroundings; trying to figure out where the noise was coming from. His gaze darted back up to Gray, as the rest of his muscles tensed automatically in response to the stimulus. His hand tightened around the bar of steel in his fist. But the other man seemed calm, if still riveted by the fight between Natsu and the guard. Gray lifted his phone and spoke into it, but Gajeel couldn't hear what he said over the whining sound. However, Gray didn't seem to notice the noise and just kept talking, like he couldn't hear it.

But how was that possible?

Gajeel's attention darted back to the two men grappling on the ground. Neither of them seemed to notice the sound either. Which meant….

All of a sudden, the sound stopped and he felt a wave of heat blistering against his back. The lights winked out, plunging everything into darkness as the sound of flames consuming fuel roared in his ears.

 _Levy!_

* * *

Lucy sidled carefully down the wall.

It was slow going, but she was almost to the corner. She'd passed the windows of several rooms, all thankfully empty of people with sheer curtains drawn across them, but unusable for her needs. So, she kept going. Her goal was to get to the side of the house with the old servants' quarters. The windows were smaller there, but new. Hopefully there'd be one member of her father's household that enjoyed a calming breeze in early fall whose window she could commandeer.

She got to the corner and stopped to catch her breath, sagging back against the wall behind her and trying not to feel the abrasions on the bottom of her feet from her earlier almost fall.

She could deal with a little discomfort and pain. She'd done it countless times, for much less worthy causes.

Lucy eyed the corner, knowing she would have to turn around and hug the wall to get around it. The thought made her head spin dizzily. But, she had no choice. It spurred her on again as it had so far. She gripped the nearest window ledge and clung to it with her fingertips as she carefully and slowly maneuvered her hips, almost wider than the ledge itself, 180 degrees until she was facing the wall again.

The heiress-turned-intrepid-heroine shuffled closer to the corner, peeking around under the carvings projecting from the corner and seeing a few windows alight on the the new wall. The nearest one had the light angled out and down enough that she could see it hit the edge of her future path.

But, more importantly, it was open.

Thanking every god she could think of, Lucy reached up and over, balancing precariously against her chest for a breathless moment as her fingers searched for crevices in the stone carving _just_ too far above her head. Steeling herself, she rose up on her toes, finally getting a grasp on something solid. Feeling a little more secure, she lifted her foot and edged it around the corner, but lost the ledge under her foot almost immediately.

She looked down again at the little stream of light that showed her the way and lifted her foot in the open air again to try and reach it. Her toes barely touching the stone.

Then, with a quiet buzz of electricity, no louder than the short hum an old television made when you turned it on or off, the light guiding her winked out suddenly.

With every light on the property.

Lucy's foot missed the ledge and she swung wildly from the carvings as the tips of her toes struggled to find the ledge again.

She regained her balance and reached out an arm, desperately trying to reach the edge of the now dark window. But her fingers were mere inches away from reaching.

Lucy's heart pounded in her chest and her ears as she gauged the distance she still had to go. So few inches.

A huge part of her mind screamed at her to stay where she was. To give up. To go back the way she'd come and accept her fate. Nothing was worth dying over. And a fall from this height could be a death sentence.

But, her salvation was so close. She stared into the darkness, her eyes blinded by the sudden absence of light in front of her. She could visualize exactly where the window should be, where the light had just been, but couldn't see the real thing.

In her mind's eye, the window taunted her.

So Lucy straddled the corner, uncurling her trembling fingers from the carving above her and dropped down onto her heels for only a wobbly moment before bending her knees and leaping in the direction of the window.

* * *

 **Yes, I'm evil. Yes, you should know this by now. Obviously.**

 **For some reason, not feeling too chatty...and there weren't really many references this time around, but here's a translation, and try not to kill me until next week!**

идиот такъв!- _-_ Bulgarian for "You idiot!" as provided by jemana, who is helping me out with Bulgarian translations


	36. Counterattack Later in the Night (P2)

**Alright! Ready to find out what happened to all of our juicy cliffhangers?**

 **Enjoy! Oh, and of course write me a review that will turn into a conversation about something awesome and random...like how delicious grapefruit is to exactly half the population of the world, or why you haven't put on that one pair of fuzzy socks you own in years. Yeah, those things.**

 **But not those things.**

 **You get me.**

 **Also, random comment: HOLY SHIT THIS CHAPTER IS INTERCONNECTED IN TOO MANY PLACES. Like SHIT. It is hard to write that many soul-bonded pairs engaging in fights in that many different locations. SO MUCH TO PAY ATTENTION TO. If you notice something that doesn't jive, PLEASE tell me. I think I caught them all, but damn. Seriously. My brain's all twisty now.**

 **Ok, now you can read the chapter. It's finally ripe. *wipes brow* Man, stalling is hard.**

* * *

The cool night air surrounded Lucy completely, suspending her in the air for one peaceful millisecond before she slammed into the windowsill she'd been aiming for.

The impact temporarily numbed her forearms, sending spikes of pain into her fingers. Her grip wavered and she started slipping, her feet sliding off the ledge once more. Her big brown eyes shot wide with panic staring into the darkness in front of her and a small strangled noise escaped her throat in her panic.

Just as she was about to slide completely off the window sill, she stretched out her hand into the void in one last ditch effort to save herself...and met soft flesh where she expected bruising wood and stone. Another hand came out of the window, barely visible in the dark, grasping her wrist. With a grunt of effort, and help from Lucy's recovering legs, her body was pulled in through the window by her surprise savior.

They stood together in the darkness for a minute, both breathing hard as they recovered. Lucy wished they were on the other side of the house, where the moon was shining brightly. As it was, she might as well have been standing in a windowless room. She couldn't see a thing.

The sound of objects being shuffled around put her on edge as her savior moved about the room. It became obvious what he was doing when a small light sparked to life from a flashlight in his hands, illuminating the face of a middle-aged man with bright red dyed hair braided into cornrows.

"Cancer! Oh, thank the gods it's you," Lucy exclaimed, relaxing immediately. All of her energy left her as she collapsed onto the Heartfilia manor's sous chef's narrow bed. The fit man in front of her gave her a small smile.

"Miss Lucy, I've known you since you was a baby, I think it's probably alright to start callin' me by Jonah, yeah?" His slight Southern American accent gave him a unique drawl that Lucy had never heard from anyone else. His relaxed way of speaking had calmed her down more than once over the years, though seeing him in his blue striped pajamas instead of his crisp black chef's coat was a bit jarring. But his eyes sharpened in disapproval the next moment. "Now, ya wanna tell me what you was doing out on that ledge in the dark in your nightclothes? You coulda been real hurt if you'da fell!"

Lucy ducked her head a bit. "I know. But I've got to get to my father's study. Tonight."

Jonah Cancer raised an eyebrow at her and crossed his arms over his broad chest. "And the hallways uh y'all's house was out uh order?" he said sarcastically. Lucy gave him a look.

"Yeah, the two armed women guarding my locked door broke them," she fired back. Cancer's shoulders fell at that. He'd hoped his employer was treating his daughter like a human being again, since she'd come back, but it looked like he hadn't changed after all. Layla'd be ashamed. She might have been a bit ruthless when it came to business, but her family had meant everything to her. Still, that was no excuse for a teen-aged girl to be prowling dangerous routes in the dark of night during a blackout.

"Well, Miss Lucy, if it's like that, I'd say ya better take the back way then." He turned with his flashlight, but stopped himself, turning back almost immediately with a scrutinizing look. "But first, put on some pants! Y'aren't decent to be seen right now!" He opened up a drawer and tossed her a pair of pajama pants that matched his, though red with stripes to his blue. She hurriedly pulled on the pants high on her waist, drawing the drawstrings tight and cuffing the bottoms. Cancer nodded in approval and turned back to the second door in his room. He opened it and shone his flashlight into the plain white plastered corridor. It was a far cry from the lavish carpet and molding of the estate's main halls, but it brought a flood of much warmer memories. Lucy had spent most free moments in her childhood running around in the servant's passages of the house. Before her father had amped-up her schooling and Aquarius had begun to accompany her everywhere. Then she'd had to leave the humble maze behind.

Suddenly the air was knocked out of her and Lucy felt like a huge weight was pushing her down. She sagged slightly, leaning against the door jamb as she took as silent a breath as she could.

The blonde fervently hoped Natsu was okay, whatever he was doing.

"Alright Babygirl, you know where you're headed?" Cancer passed her the flashlight and searched her eyes with a concerned expression. Her breathing was more like gasping for a few breaths. "Are you okay? Did you hurt yourself on the window?"

"No. I'm fine. And I think I remember." Lucy looked up at the maker of the best fried chicken she'd ever had and would ever have again and gave him a small smile. "Thank you Cancer."

He reached out an arm and brought her in for a hug like he had when she'd thanked him for sneaking her pastries as a child. "I told ya, call me Jonah."

Lucy chuckled. "Sorry, to me you'll always be Cancer. Jonah's what Mama called you. I haven't done anything to really earn that privilege." She paused, her eyes automatically flitting to the dark window. She couldn't see anything, but somewhere out there was her mother's grave. A pang of guilt went through her that she wouldn't get a chance to pay her respects this trip.

 _But Mama would understand, right?_

As though in answer to her thought, a great boom and sparkling crackle lit the air as a firework went off. Lucy and her confidante both rushed to the window and looked out, seeing the tail end of the sparks dissolving.

"What the hell's happenin' out there?"

"My friends are here to rescue me. Cancer, thanks so much, but I've got to run. I'm on a clock." Lucy turned back to the open doorway and was almost gone when she stopped and turned back. "Bring Mama some flowers for me?"

The red-cornrowed man nodded silently watching the spitting image of Layla Heartfilia the first time he'd seen her close the door softly behind her. He couldn't help but smile. It was nice that she had friends now.

Another firework went off outside his window.

Even if they were completely nuts.

* * *

Natsu cursed under his breath. How the hell could a man who'd been shot with a tranquilizer move that fucking quickly?

One second, the little lights outlining the paths in the garden had illuminated him on the ground, the next the lights were gone, the moon had inconveniently gone behind the only fucking cloud in the sky, and a sudden pain and numbness in his arms had caused him to drop the fucking gun, prompting the man on the ground in front of him to spring back up.

Now voices were whispering in his ear through his earbuds, so he pulled the earbud out and blocked it all out. He shook out his arms and widened his stance. A moment of inattention was all it would take to end his life. He knew that all too well.

Natsu could still see the outline of the man in front of him, but his movements were more like a blur. Until the moon came back, he was at a definite disadvantage. Luckily, his instincts kicked in the next moment to barely avoid the foot that came at his face, falling backward, but springing back up on his hands the next instant to deliver a kick of his own. Which connected satisfyingly with his opponent's chest, knocking him onto his back.

Natsu leapt after him, losing years of rigorous boxing training for an instant as he instinctively scrambled to gain the upperhand in a fight to the death. The man rolled, barely getting his head out of the way of Natsu's descending knee. It slammed into the dirt instead, wedging into the soft ground and crushing a once robust flowering plant.

The guard kept on rolling, barely staying a second ahead of Natsu's attempts to grab him.

Natsu spat out another profanity and dove after him, landing on the man's back and getting a secure hold on his neck. His fingers scrambling at the pinkette's corded forearm. He kicked out with his heels, aiming for Natsu's shins. One connected, but he kept his grip stumbling backwards.

The guard took advantage of his misplaced footing and fell back on him, knocking them both to the ground and finally dislodging Natsu's grip. They both wheezed in breath as they got to their feet, hands automatically coming up to guard their faces.

At that moment, a firework went off on the other side of the house, distracting them all.

Then the guard blinked his eyes several times, shaking his head with a look of consternation, before keeling over sideways into a bush. The pinkette froze in place.

"Finally! Those darts sure take a long time to work!" Gray's words pulled Natsu's brain out of battle mode. He dropped his hands and rotated his shoulders, jumping in place a little to try and rid his body of the excess adrenaline flowing through it.

"No kidding. I'm starting to think they were expired or something," he replied, wrinkling his nose and walking cautiously over to the man lying on the ground. He picked up one arm and let it drop. Definitely unconscious then. "Come on, let's cuff him and get him hidden."

Gray started to walk over, his foot hitting something and kicking it a few feet. He bent over to pick it up and found a gun in his hand. Solemnly, he checked to make sure the weapon wasn't cocked and started to tuck it into his waistband, but had a better idea at the last minute.

"Give me his holster before you cuff him."

Natsu looked back at his roommate, one side of the pink-painted pair of handcuffs already locked around their opponent's wrist. He nodded grimly and unbuckled the white harness from around his shoulders, tossing it to Gray. His roommate pulled the earbud out of the way and buckled into the harness, popping the headphone back in. Natsu grabbed the earbud still swinging from the cord attached to his phone and did the same, the slight buzz of white noise the only thing coming through.

When Gray had the gun properly stowed, the two of them carried the man into the brush and cuffed him around a tree.

"Only Erza would have pink handcuffs," Gray commented as they got him into position.

"Better than Loke's."

"No shit."

They turned and started heading toward the house.

But just as they stepped from the brush, Natsu froze, a gun barrel in his face.

One moment of inattention was all it took.

* * *

Levy uncurled from her ball on the ground and tried to regulate her breathing. She looked back at what remained of the building behind her. There wasn't much left to it. Natsu had grossly underplayed the amount of destruction his little bombs could enact.

And that had been too close for comfort; literally, the skin on her back felt puckered and itchy from the heat. She rolled over onto her back and just concentrated on breathing again for a moment. After a moment, she realized her earbud had fallen out of her ear and she plucked it from the dirt to put it back in. She was immediately met by whispered frantic words.

"Levy?! Are you ok? Levy! Answer me! Shit, what did you do-"

" _Cyan_ checking in. I'm ok, a little shaken, but ok. How's it going there?"

"Better now. Shut up and get away from the fire, they'll be sending someone soon probably."

"Aye sir," Levy sighed into the phone before dropping her hand back down to her side. He was right. Her part was mostly done, but she really should go back and stay with their bags at the rendezvous point. She groaned as she sat up, he muscles sorer than she expected. Action stars in the movies made it look so easy. Hitting the ground at a full run really took it out of her. She silently apologized to Gajeel in her head. The last thing he needed right now was muscle soreness. Another whisper came over the phone line, female this time.

"First shell is in the air!"

Just as Erza finished speaking, a firework exploded over the house. Levy grinned. So far, everything seemed to be working ok. Barely, in her case, but generally ok.

Then an unfamiliar voice with a heavy accent crackled into her earpiece.

"Well, is not this an interesting développement? We seem to have a little rat problem. Do yourselves a favor and vacate before we call the exterminators, s'il vous plait?"

Silence reigned for a moment before Natsu could be heard over the line.

"Who the fuck is that?"

"Oh, non non non! How rude les petits rats are! But since it would be equally rude to not introduce myself when prompted, you may call me Monsieur S for the short time you will be _guests_ of the Heartfilia estate."

Levy sprang to her feet and started sprinting back to where the group's bags were. She needed her laptop as soon as possible. She knew next to nothing about hacking, but she wasn't going to go down without a fight. With the right search parameters, she had to be able to find a way to boot the nosy French guy out of their call.

Right?

"I'm on it guys!" she panted as she ran. "For now go silent...unless...absolutely...necessary!" Levy clutched her phone in her hand and wheezed in another gasp of precious oxygen. She was seriously out of shape. Definitely time to hit the gym when this was all over.

But for now, she just had to get to her laptop.

* * *

Gajeel gritted his teeth and tried to ignore what was happening in his ear. Whatever shit this new player was laying down, Levy could handle it for the time being. He had his own part to play.

He silently crept down the wall of the house, thankful that the porch had a concrete base instead of wood, without the telltale creak. Sneaking up on the guard would be a breeze, especially in the dark.

The static of a radio update sounded from just around the corner and Gajeel paused to hear what they were saying about the blackout.

"Z to V. Something's wrong with the powerstation. H says be on high alert. S tapped into a call between at least four possible assailants…" The voice over the walkie was drowned out as a massive firework went off just over the yard to the far corner of the porch from Gajeel.

Taking his moment, he darted around the side and drew back the iron crowbar he'd brought for just this occasion and smacked the guard firmly in the back of the head with it as he looked at the firework. He went down like a rock, his loose, long black hair splaying out around him. Gajeel shouldered his weapon and looked around to make sure no one had seen him take down the guard. Then he checked his pulse, relieved to find it present and even. Heaving the lean man up onto one of his shoulders, he carried him off the porch, leaning him up against a tree in its shadow.

It was fortuitous that he hadn't moved a moment slower, however, because just as he got behind the tree and unloaded his burden, the back door burst open and a platinum blonde, middle-aged man strode out, taking the porch steps two at a time and making a beeline for the back garden. Gajeel angled his head toward his phone and muttered into it.

"Incoming Gray and Pink." Then, he pulled a pair of handcuffs from the back pocket of his black jeans and proceeded to cuff his prisoner to a section of fence near the tree he'd chosen. He double-checked that the cuffs were secure. They were.

Which was surprising considering they were lined in red fur. But, kinky as shit or not, Loke apparently didn't go for the cheap imitation stuff. He was pretty sure it was even real rabbit fur in the sturdy manacles. He removed twin guns from his opponent's belt holsters and, making sure the safety was on for each, he tucked them into the back of his belt. He wasn't the biggest fan of firearms, but Gray would probably want them.

Picking up the crowbar, Gajeel ran a hand fondly over the chipped paint and remembered Erik handing him the piece of metal after baseball practice years ago.

" _Listen, I have no idea what you need a weapon for, but this'll do the trick about 90% of the time," he said fondly, swinging it like a bat. "Just give it back, alright? My dad's gonna wonder where it went soon."_

He grinned and spun the handy length of metal expertly through his fingers before silently sneaking back toward the garden with it. Erik's dad never had gotten that crowbar back.

And about half the city of Magnolia had had to replace their mailboxes that year. Until Erza had figured out what trio of boys was destroying them.

Gajeel grinned. That had been a great year.

Suddenly he felt a familiar tingle on his arm. He stepped into the light of the moon and held out his arm to read what Levy had written to him.

He grinned at the message he'd received, tapped his nose three times, and turned around, heading back toward the house.

* * *

Erza was getting frustrated.

It seemed like no matter what Mystogan and she did, the man on the porch refused to investigate. They'd started with subtle noises, then whistles from their hiding place in a nearby thicket, but the man remained undeterred.

So they'd gone for the big guns and launched a firework shell right above him. They hadn't needed the slingshot for that, Mystogan's delinquent childhood and mastery of physics combining to aim Natsu's creation perfectly.

But still, nothing.

Erza's blueberry boyfriend could feel her frustration. She practically wiggled with the urge to get up and engage the enemy. He rested a hand on her arm, silently signaling her to wait. As far as he could see, they only had a couple more options. He selected another round black sphere from the pile beside him and lit the wick. Angling the makeshift slingshot carefully, he sent the ball flying. It arched through the air, landing smack dab in front of the porch, beginning to smoke almost as soon as it landed.

Luckily, the wind worked for them and blew the rather large cloud of smoke onto the covered porch and raspy coughing could be heard as a the stoic figure finally moved away from the front door and down the steps, bloodshot eyes scanning the area in between coughs.

And Erza was off like a shot, flipping open two of her switchblades as she sprinted toward the man on the grass. He turned to face her almost immediately, pulling a set of exceptionally sharp looking knives from the inside of his suit jacket and preparing for a head on assault.

But it never came. Instead of engaging him directly, Erza darted around him, reaching out with one arm as she passed in an attempt to slice through the muscle on his bicep. He blocked the strike easily and immediately spun to pursue her trail around the corner of the house.

The minute they both disappeared from view, Mystogan relaxed a little, but couldn't look away from where they'd vanished. Erza was an amazing fighter. She'd shown him that on multiple occasions. But she was going up against a trained professional. Anything could happen.

At which point a small woman wearing nothing but a men's dress shirt burst onto the scene brandishing her firearm. Close behind, pulling his jeans back on, Loke stumbled after her.

"What's going on?" Mystogan could hear his comrade even from where he was. He sounded convincingly confused, and maybe a little drunk. It made the blunette wonder if the guard had had a bottle of something herself or if Loke were just that good an actor.

"Nothing I can't handle gorgeoush," the small woman slurred back at him. "Go back and wait for me!" She turned back to the ginger and grinned. She seemed to forget what she was doing when she saw him standing there shirtless with his jeans undone. Loke smoldered back at her, stalking proudly forward like a lion ready to pounce on his prey.

The woman seemed frozen in her tracks, mesmerized by his movements. Loke made it to her and leaned in, nibbling on her ear and murmuring into her ear. His eyes were hazy as they scanned the edges of the yard, eventually finding Mystogan's. He winked and grabbed a handful of his new lady friend's ass, covered only by his shirt. The gun fell from her fingertips and she jumped on the ginger, his hands barely coming up in time to catch her.

The next thing a stunned and slightly embarrassed Mystogan knew, Loke was carrying his mark back to the guardhouse. He whistled low in appreciation. It wasn't the first time the super senior frat brother had seen his junior housemate in action, but it was certainly the most impressive. The ginger could complain about not having the muscles that Gray or Natsu did, but underneath the false humility, his charm was a true power to be reckoned with.

Mystogan didn't blame Natsu for feeling threatened by the redhead's sudden fascination with his girlfriend, bonded or not. If Loke had shown any genuine interest in Erza romantically, he'd have done more than punch him in the nose. Women had a way of losing their common sense around the playboy. It was almost spooky.

At the thought of Erza, his gaze shot back to the corner where she'd disappeared with the suited man.

Still nothing.

So he waited.

Semi-patiently.

* * *

Levy read swiftly, scrolling down the forum she'd found at max speed. Thank god her mobile hotspot still had data on it for the month. There had to be a way to kick the obnoxious Frenchman out of their fucking phone call. There had to be.

And yet, without more experience, she was starting to think maybe there wasn't. At least on her end. Which meant she needed an inside man. Grabbing a pen from her bag, she scribbled out a message to her soulmate on her forearm. An outflowing of condescending French spilled into her ear as she started to type.

 _I need you to take this guy out from the inside. He's monitoring our call, and we need that line of communication open. He'll be somewhere with light. He'd have to be to have the power to tap our lines. Check the basement for a backup generator maybe. It will be a lot harder to find him after the power comes back on. So hurry. Be careful._

She held her breath and waited, feeling their special signal of acknowledgement as he tapped his nose three times a moment later. Levy grinned. No matter how great Frenchie was, there was no way he could hack a soulbond.

"Vous les Fioréens, vous êtes tous les mêmes. Porcs ignorants. Qu'est-ce que je donnerais pour un adversaire digne de moi. Quelle perte de temps ridicule." The man on the phone line clearly believed that no one would understand what he was saying, merely insulting everyone there to pass the time. The pompous jackass.

Levy seethed. How dare he assume she was ignorant. And after a moment of silence, she couldn't hold it in anymore.

"On t'a bercé trop près du mur ? Le seul cochon ignorant ici, c'est toi. Ton employeur est un connard abject."

Silence fell again, before a delighted condescending chuckle echoed over the line again.

"Quelle surprise! Le rat parle après tout. Dis-moi rat, qu'est-ce que tu fais ici ?"

"Hélas, les rats ne s'expliquent pas devant les porcs. En particulier devant les porcs ignorants." She sniffed as she said it. Honestly, the nerve of that asshole.

The man's condescending tone continued however. "Je me suis peut-être trompé. Ce rat a des airs de lion."

"Non, ne fais pas semblant d'être intelligent maintenant. Je te préfère en cochon," she spat back. She finally seemed to rile him. His tone was harsher, still superior, but with an edge of annoyance in his reply.

"Ou peut-être pas un lion, mais quelque chose de plus petit et plus rusé. Es-tu une belette, ma chère ? Ou peut-être un serpent dans l'herbe ?"

"Si tu dois me coller une étiquette, dis que je suis un hibou : rapide, intelligent et imprévisible." She lightened her tone this time, going for aloof.

He seemed to actually think about that one. Eventually replying in an absentminded mumble. "Non non Non. Je connais un hibou, et tu n'es pas comme lui. Il lui manque ton... attitude."

A trickle of fear made its way down her spine. She didn't like him giving serious thought to what her personality was actually like. Though, she did want to distract him long enough for Gajeel to find him. So she said the first offensive thing that came to mind in a conversation with a douchy Frenchman: "Eh bien, ta mère était un hamster et ton père sentait les baies de sureau!"

"... c'était déplacé, mademoiselle."

All of a sudden, another voice broke into the conversation.

"Will you two shut the fuck up or get off the line? Some of us are trying to fucking concentrate!"

"Well, isn't he rude…" the Frenchman mumbled over the line, in English this time.

"No kidding," Levy responded in kind. "Some people have no respect for the nuance of a proper conversation between enemies, Monsieur S."

"Exactement, mademoiselle Cyan."

As one a chorus of voices responded.

"SHUT UP!"

* * *

Gajeel hadn't encountered any issues getting into the house. Apparently once he got passed the back door guard, it was a piece of conveniently bite-sized cake.

The halls were deserted. He wasn't sure if it was because it was night, or because the house was too fucking huge to shelter so few people, but there didn't seem to be a flurry of activity that the power had gone out. Whatever the cause, his presence being discovered didn't seem to be an issue.

No, what was really presenting a problem was figuring out where the fuck to check. Telling him to follow the light was all well and good, but he couldn't see through walls. Or sniff out his prey.

Thankfully, he could see pretty well in the dark, but hell, he hadn't even been able to find a staircase to the basement level yet. If there even was one. Eventually, when he'd wandered most of the first floor without finding a soul, he doubled back to the grand staircase and started up to the next level.

Mostly because it was the only option.

The stairs creaked under his heavy boots and he cringed. Hopefully there were just as few people on the second floor.

As he walked, he listened to Levy and the guy he was looking for banter at each other in some other language. It was just getting _really_ annoying when Natsu broke first and yelled at them to shut up already.

He stopped in place at the end of one hallway, trying to decide which corridor to check next when they started talking again. He couldn't think with their yammering, love of his life or not.

"Shut up!" he growled, hearing several others do the same. But he didn't pay attention to what happened next, because a wall panel right next to him popped open and Lucy fucking Heartfilia herself stuck her head out and looked at him with big eyes, lit up by a flashlight in her hand.

"Gajeel!? Is that you?" she hissed.

"Bunny girl? Whatcha doin' in the wall?!" he shaded his eyes from the suddenly bright beam. Shit. There went his decent night vision for the foreseeable future.

"Staying hidden! Get in here!" Lucy grabbed him by the arm and dragged him through the panel, and into what turned out to be a smaller hallway next to the larger one. What the fuck? Did rich people's hallways need their own fucking smaller hallways now?! He tried to stand all the way up and bumped his head on the ceiling.

Much smaller hallways apparently. What a fucking waste of money.

Lucy's next whispered words shook him out of his thoughts. "Where's everyone else? What are you doing in here?"

"Mystogan is on slingshot duty, Erza, Gray, and Natsu are taking care of the guards, Loke's probably fucking someone, and Levy's arguing with some foreign guy. I'm trying to find him so he'll quit crashing our call and let us get on with the damn rescue."

Lucy just stared at him for a second.

"What? Ya confused about something?" he asked after a second, frustrated. He was trying not to take it out on her, but he did not have time for stupid questions. And the indecipherable conversation in his ear had started up again. Fuck. He just wanted to find the dumbass he assumed was flirting with his girlfriend and knock him satisfyingly unconscious.

"So many things. But they can wait."

Gajeel just shrugged. Someone else could explain it all better to her later.

"Alright Blondie, I need to find the backup generator for this heap of bricks. How do I get to the basement?"

"We don't have one."

"Seriously?! You've got two hallways going the same places, but no basement? What kind of fucking house is this?!"

"An expensive one. Built on bedrock," she replied shortly, starting off down the hallway again, Gajeel following behind. "But you don't want the backup generator, you want the…" Lucy seemed to choke on the word as it came out "p-panic room." He chose to ignore her weird inflection for the moment.

"What? Like in the movie?"

"Uh, maybe? I don't think I've seen that movie."

"Of _course_ you haven't. Come over and we'll watch it the next time Levy barricades herself in the library for an unnecessary research paper," Gajeel grumbled.

"Sounds like a plan. You know, if I manage to escape this hell in one piece that is."

An awkward gap in the conversation hung in the air, the soft patter of their footsteps and the faint sound of snappy French coming from Gajeel's earbud the only sounds in the narrow space.

"So, this panic room, where is it? And why am I looking for it?"

"It's on this floor, but through my father's bedroom. If the power is out and some guy is still doing something with electronics, he's got to be there. It has a separate power supply from the rest of the house. And, conveniently, that's where I'm going now too. If my father is hiding any hard copies of evidence against him, they'll be there."

"Ok. Makes sense to me. But how are we gonna get in? If it's like the movie, then it's made to withstand whatever until the police come right?"

"Well, yeah. It's got walls a foot-and-a-half thick and a biometric lock. Makes it pretty much impenetrable." She sounded faint at the last word. Almost like she was...afraid. Gajeel's brow furrowed. Something wasn't right here. "My fingerprints and retina are keyed into the lock though. I can get _in_ no problem."

"Then what's got you shakin' in your boots?" He wasn't being metaphorical and shit, Lucy had actually started trembling and her steps had slowed to a stop. Okay sorta metaphorical: she wasn't wearing boots, or even shoes.

Actually her whole outfit was pretty odd now that he noticed it. He shrugged it off. Fashion was a mystery to him.

"Getting in isn't the problem. Getting _out_ on the other hand…" Lucy trailed off into a whisper. She had been trying not to think about it. She'd been hoping she'd be lucky and her father's computer in his study would hold what she was looking for. But with the power gone, _that place_ was her only option.

An ironic final check in the game her father had been playing with her life. She had one shot at avoiding checkmate, but it was like marching a pawn right up to his queen and expecting him to just move out of the way so that her little pawn could bring her own queen back to life. A Hail Mary of Hail Marys…

"No problem. We just won't get shut in then." Gajeel hefted the crowbar he carried onto his shoulder and rested a heavy hand on her head, ruffling her hair. But then he tried to stand up again, forgetting the low ceiling and bumped his head again, plaster dust falling into his hair. He growled to himself about idiots who spent money on the wrong shit.

His actions seemed to knock Lucy out of whatever shit she was trapped in and she stumbled forward once more, navigating expertly through the secret corridors of her previous home.

Gajeel followed. Whatever was up with Lucy and this panic room, he hoped she got it figured out pretty damn quick.

* * *

"Who are you and why are you here?"

Natsu narrowed his eyes and stared down the barrel of the gun pointed at his head. In some small part of his mind, he realized now was a pretty reasonable time to start freaking out, but he just couldn't seem to work up the panic. He'd been in tighter spots. So he went with his instincts. "None of your fucking business."

The man holding the gun on him said something else then, but he couldn't hear it over the voices chattering in his ear in a language he didn't understand. Holding one hand up in surrender to the guy in front of him, he carefully grabbed his phone from his pocket and yelled into the end.

"Will you two shut the fuck up or get off the line? Some of us are trying to fucking concentrate!"

The chatter stopped replaced by subdued complaining. Natsu ripped the earbud from his ear again. "Gray, can you tell me if something important happens, I can't deal with that shit right now."

"Sure." His roommate stood behind him stiffly. Gray didn't do well when guns were pointed at people he cared about. He'd gotten better at not freaking out around them - it was why he'd taken marksmanship in the first place - but it was taking everything he had to let Natsu handle this with a gun pointed at his head. If only he'd been a little more observant, he'd be the one's holding a gun on someone; which he would much prefer to be the case.

"Ok, so now that you kids have straightened out your plan, please answer my godsdamned question or I'll just shoot you and find out later." The new guard glared at the dark-haired, shirtless man and the shorter black clad one with his head covered by a black stocking cap. He narrowed his eyes as the shorter one stared him down.

Both boys were too young for this kind of life. Yet, neither flinched as he cocked the gun. Odd. And something about the shorter one was familiar. That look in his eye reminded him of…wait. There was no way... "Take off your hat."

Both of the intruders looked confused for a minute, but still refused to do it. Though something else had entered the shorter one's eyes. Mutual recognition. Like they were thinking the same thing.

They'd met before.

Then a light lit up the shorter one's eyes and a grin spread across his face. Without hesitation, he pulled off his hat.

"What the fuck are you-" Gray started.

"Don't worry about it. It's fine," Natsu cut him off.

The man holding the gun knew him the minute he saw the pink hair. Only Igneel's son would be stupid enough to stare down a gunman to hide his distinctive hair. He immediately uncocked his weapon and holstered it with a grin of his own. "Natsu Dragneel! What the hell are you doing way out here?! I haven't seen you since you were this high!" He made a gesture around the area of his chest and reached out to him.

The pinkette grinned back and offered a hand, surprised to be pulled into a hug instead. "You should talk! I'm here to rescue my girlfriend. What are you doing with a group of thugs like this? I thought you were still with the unit."

The blonde man's grin dropped a bit at that, rubbing a hand over his white-blonde hair to vent his embarrassment. "Dishonorable discharge I'm afraid."

Natsu became solemn and said nothing for a moment, recognition dawning eventually.

"Skiadrum?"

"Yeah. Couldn't be helped. We both knew we'd be found out eventually."

"So is ol' Skia joined up with this gang too?"

"Naw. He's home with the boys. Decided it was a good time to get out of the game. But you know me. Fighting's in my blood. Like Igneel's. And I gotta pay the bills somehow."

"Oh yeah, saw Sting a few weeks ago. You know he's going to my school now?"

"No shit. Huh. I had no idea you were at MU now. Wait, you said you were here for your girlfriend? Does that mean you're dating the Heartfilia brat?"

Natsu immediately dropped his smile and growled deep in his throat. "Her name's Lucy."

The blonde man held up his hands in mock surrender, eyebrows mimicking them. "Lucy then."

"Hey, speaking of Lucy, why don't we go finish the fucking job we came for maybe?" Gray snapped. He didn't know what exactly was going on between Natsu and the merc in front of them, but he got the gist. Natsu jumped as though he'd forgotten Gray was even there.

"Oh, hey Gray, this is Weisslogia! He was in dad's unit in the army. And he's one of Sting and Rogue's dads. What are the chances?!"

"Great. Nice. Pleasure to meet you," Gray deadpanned at the merc, who waved in a way that made him look a ridiculous amount like his son. He turned back to Natsu. "Now, do you maybe wanna go rescue your soulmate from her psycho father now, kreten? Or should I just go do it for you while you catch up with your dad's war buddy?"

Natsu frowned at his friend, but said nothing. The douche had a point. He'd gotten distracted.

"Soulmate? What, are you guys engaged or something?" Weisslogia joked.

"It's a long story. I'll tell you later. For now, we've gotta get Lucy away from Jude Heartfilia. Think you can give us a hand?"

Igneel's old sergeant stared seriously into the eyes of his commander's son and saw the same raw determination staring back at him he'd seen on countless missions. He tried to think of what Igneel would do in his situation. Weisslogia'd been payed to provide a service, and in his code of honor that meant something.

But family always came first. And Igneel had been like a brother to him.

So it wasn't really a question.

His mouth curved up into the hint of a smile and he offered a lazy salute. "Alright kid. Let's go get your girl."

* * *

 **Look Mom! No cliffhangers! See, I can finish a chapter without leaving someone in mortal peril! Mostly...Erza's a bit of a mystery after all...hehe**

 **Here's the French conversation between Levy and S (who is definitely Sol, if some of you haven't figured that out yet…) (translation provided by blargolp btw, so a big thanks for your help!)(ok, now I'm just adding parenthesis because I can…):**

 **Sol: You Fioreans are all the same. Ignorant swine. What I would give for a worthy opponent. This is a ridiculous waste of my time.**

 **Levy: Was your cradle rocked too close to the wall? The only ignorant pig here is you. Your employer is an evil prick.**

 **Sol: What a surprise! The rat speaks after all. Tell me rat, why are you here?**

 **Levy: Alas, rats do not explain themselves to swine. Particularly ignorant swine.**

 **Sol: Perhaps I was mistaken. This rat shows signs of being a lion.**

 **Levy: No, don't pretend to be intelligent now. I like you better as a pig.**

 **Sol: Or perhaps not a lion, but something smaller and craftier. Are you a weasel, my dear? Or maybe a snake in the grass?**

 **Levy: If you must label me, then call me an owl: swift, clever, and least expected.**

 **Sol: No, no, no. I know an owl, and you are not like him. He lacks your...attitude.**

 **Levy: Well, your mother was a hamster and your father smelt of elderberries! [Reference to Monty Python in the Holy Grail, in case you're not familiar and just think I'm nuts...]  
**

 **Sol: ...that was uncalled for miss.**

 **References (no, not those things new employers insist on getting and then rarely bother calling, the fun ones!):**

 **Kreten** -still means idiot in Croatian

 **Panic Room** -movie starring Jodie Foster and pre-twilight Kristen Stewart in which people break into their new house to get at a stolen fortune and they have to take refuge in the safe room, which would be find except Kristen Stewart is diabetic and needs her insulin! *cue dramatic music* Actually a pretty solid movie. For something starring Kristen Stewart.

 **And for those wondering who is who in the enemy camp, and haven't picked up on the little subtle things I've been trying to drop every chance I get without being super obvious, here's a quick cheater guide:**

 **Jude's alphabet mercenaries (in alphabetical order for shits and giggles):**

 **B** - _ **Brandish**_ (One of Zeref's Spriggan 12 in canon)-guarding Lucy

 **F** - _ **Fukuro**_ (owl man, one of Trinity Raven in the Tower of Heaven Arc in canon)-in the back garden, knocked out by Gray and Natsu

 **H** -has not yet appeared in person, so will not be revealed at this time, though I think you could probably guess it **(ssssshhhhhh let me pretend to be mysterious!)**

 **I** - _ **Ikaruga**_ (kimono-wearing, one of Trinity Raven in the Tower of Heaven Arc in canon)-guarding Lucy

 **J** - _ **Jacob**_ (one of Zeref's Spriggan 12 in canon)-on the front door, fighting Erza

 **L** - _ **Lamy**_ (a mass produced Etherious demon member of Tartaros in canon)-at the front gate

 **S** - _ **Sol**_ (Earth element of the Element Four from Phantom Lord in canon)-head of tech, currently stationed in the panic room

 **V** - _ **Vidaldus**_ (hair rocker, one of Trinity Raven in the Tower of Heaven Arc in canon)-at the back door, knocked out by Gajeel

 **W** - _ **Weisslogia**_ (White Dragon father of Sting in canon)-backup called to the back garden

 **Z** - _ **Zancrow**_ (one of Grimoire Heart's Seven Kin in canon)


	37. Battlefield

**1400 REVIEWS! You guys are amazing! I can't believe this story hit that many reviews before chapter 40! I'm soooooo sooooooooooo lucky to have awesome readers like you guys. I'll keep writing as long as you guys keep reading and reviewing! Deal? GOOD.**

 **Now, enjoy some kickass fucking awesome Erza.**

* * *

Erza's first priority was getting Jacob away from the front door. And after several failed attempts to get him to abandon his post, the relief that came for her when he finally stepped off the stairs of the wraparound veranda was euphoric.

She took immediate action, darting forward out of the brush and flipping open the switchblade in her hand as she ran. The cool air of the night slid over her exposed face and upper chest like a caress and the deep calm she always sought before a fight settled over her.

Her adversary prepared for a head-on assault, readying himself, though not yet going for a weapon. Erza resisted the urge to engage him right then and there, darting past him with a swipe at his arm to show she was serious, and to lead him away from the building's entrance. Her mission was more than just engaging the enemy. If the guard from the front gate saw them fighting, that could snowball into a much bigger problem.

The man in the suit took the bait; she could hear the swish of the grass against his boots as she dashed around the side of the house at a sprint to gain some much needed ground.

Erza used her lead to turn toward her opponent, switchblade at the ready, stance stable. Sometime in their jaunt through the yard he had armed himself with two very serious looking combat knives, larger than any she'd seen before. They actually could have been hunting knives. Her eyebrow went up at that. Was this guy skilled? Or just wanting to look that way? It was a lot harder to handle a knife like that. His heavy five o'clock shadow had her leaning toward the latter.

The man halted several feet from her, but did not take his own stance. Instead he spoke to her.

"Please, take a moment and catch your breath. You wanted my attention, and you have earned at least that, however annoyingly."

"Why would you do that?" she retorted, still poised for battle.

"It is the honorable way to fight. You led us to a space where we can properly fight, and engaged me honorably head on, so I will allow you to a moment of preparation before I defeat you."

Erza cautiously took the opportunity he presented, with a polite nod of acknowledgement, and unclipped her katana from its place on her belt. The porch surrounding the house was a few feet off the ground, but the railing was held up by large wooden Xs, so she found a part of the diagonal that was the right height and, loosening her sword in its saya, she leaned it where it would be easy to grab, should she need it. When it became obvious that he was keeping to his word, she took the time to shake out her arms and adjust the tightness of the straps on her gloves, stabbing her open switchblade into the wood of the railing while she did so. She refused to give up any advantage he foolishly gave her.

Seeing that Erza was taking his words to heart, the man removed his own suit jacket to reveal a deep purple fitted turtleneck and waited patiently, both his blades held comfortably in a forward grip, his arms relaxed. Each of his blades were at least nine inches long; almost twice the length of Erza's switchblades. He took a moment to stretch his neck as she stretched out her hands and reclaimed her switchblade, looping her pinkie through the ring on the end.

Finally, she grabbed another switchblade from her cleavage, exposed by the low neckline of a triangle cut-out in her otherwise completely black-clad body. She tripped the catch to release the blade and adjusted it into a reverse grip, retaking her stance with a nod of appreciation and respect at her opponent.

His gaze darted to her not inconsiderable cleavage with a wrinkle of his nose, and he nodded back, flipping one of his blades to a reverse grip as well, sinking into a fighting crouch.

They both seemed to realize that their stance was identical at the same moment. A small smile slid onto Erza's face.

They preferred the same knife fighting style. Perhaps they were more similar than she had first believed. Polite, prepared, honorable. Between that and the stance they had mirrored in each other, she would bet that he too believed in the ways of bushido she so loved. Her gaze glanced over her katana with speculation. She didn't see a sword on him, but that didn't mean he wasn't trained with one. Her greatest asset may have just become a liability.

Their eyes met, their breathing synced, and the fight began.

Erza made the first move, darting forward quickly to take a decisive mid-section side-swipe at her opponent.

He somersaulted under her swipe, regaining his feet, and came at her spinning low in a crouch, arms flung wide. His knives slashed at her with each turn, forcing her to retreat several steps to avoid being minced. Her foot slid on the slightly damp grass and he took advantage of it, rising to his full height, lifting both of his knives, and bringing them down at her with full force.

Erza blocked the strike with her switchblades, the force of his attack reverberating through the bones of her arms. He was incredibly strong.

But so was she.

Her adversary immediately pulled back and struck low again, slashing inward from the sides with his knives, going for her legs. Erza leapt above them, using her vertical momentum to strike down with one of her blades from above. The man managed to block her attack just above his piercing gaze. He leaned into her blade, attempting to leverage her back, but found staunch resistance instead.

Erza felt the increased pressure and leaned forward, using the moment with his knives engaged elsewhere to kick the stooped man in the chest. He fell back, but rolled backward into a standing position again, wasting no time as he lunged forward, lashing out in a quick sequence of slashes from each side.

He was relentless as he attacked in earnest now, barely giving her a moment to breathe. Erza blocked half of his blows, dodging the others. She had to duck and roll under a particularly wide slash, but ended up behind her enemy. She slashed at him with the weapon in her left hand, passing a hair's breadth above him as he dropped into yet another backwards somersault. She was starting to think he just woke up and somersaulted out of bed every morning. He was beginning to feel predictable.

She didn't expect his kick at the end of the roll though, and it met her chest solidly, forcing her onto her back. Swiftly taking in air to replace the breath he'd knocked from her lungs, she sprang back up and countered her opponent's next series of slashes.

Erza was just growing used to his style, meeting his strike for strike, when he switched it up, stabbing down with his reverse-gripped blade instead of slashing. She stepped back and caught the downward movement with her crossed switchblades, his larger weapon notching one of her knife blades and effectively locking them together.

She dodged as his other knife slashed from the side, leaning against their locked guards at an odd angle. With a metallic crack, the notched blade snapped right off the hilt of her knife. With no time to grab one of her other concealed weapons, she immediately dropped the now useless hunk of metal, adjusting her stance to that of a single blade defense.

The trained assassin she fought barely give her a moment to breathe, following up on his advantage with another series of slashes from each side, alternating with breathless speed. Erza jumped backward to buy herself some time and space, but found herself backed up against the porch, the concrete platform hitting just below her waist. He stabbed at her again and she sidestepped, grabbing his wrist with her free hand.

The sharp edge in his other hand came at her, attempting to force her to release him, but she blocked the incoming attack with her blade before counterbalancing herself with the arm she held as she twisted, kicking him in the hip and then chest. She let go of his arm at the last minute to send him stumbling backward, buying her a moment of time to maneuver.

Erza leaned back under the massive 'X' of the porch railing and pulled herself through, kicking out with one leg as her opponent moved to follow, catching him solidly on the jaw and forcing him back for another crucial moment.

With one final heave, she made it onto the veranda and regained her feet, pulling another switchblade out of the strap at her waist and flipping it open. Her opponent followed her, leaping up onto the edge of the porch on the outside of the railing, clutching the wood to keep his balance. Erza sprang back into action, executing a series of stabs on the railing trying to force the hand that steadied him, still grasping his knife, off the railing. His other hand worked double time to block the stabbing cuts that he couldn't avoid.

Eventually, he leaned forward, releasing both hands and slashing out at Erza to force her backwards. She stepped back to avoid his strike, the edge of his knife whistling past within inches of her throat. Her adversary took the moment to roll over the railing on his back, landing on his feet, ready to take on Erza's next attack.

They paused there together, both breathing deeply, but not yet panting. Erza felt a trickle of sweat roll down her temple and made a mental note to wipe the drip the first opportunity she got. The last thing she needed was sweat blinding her at the worst possible moment.

But she didn't have time to do more than shake off the moisture, because he came at her again, spreading his arms wide and lunging forward. He cut inward from both sides, one high, one low, going for the kill.

Erza jumped into the air, going horizontal in a practiced move a high-jumper would be jealous of as she managed to barely dodge both blades. One caught the end of her black stocking cap, however, ripping it from her head. Her long red ponytail swung out, twirling around her as she spun and landed flat against the concrete porch floor, catching herself on her forearms. She hastily rolled away from her opponent. He pursued her until she reached out a hand and grabbed his ankle, yanking it out from under him and sending him sprawling.

She quickly found her feet and leapt at him again, gaining momentum for another downward swing of her knife. The combination of the unshaven whiskers along his jaw and his fall into the shadowed area of the porch combined to cover his face in darkness as he managed to achieve a sitting position just in time to block her swing with both knives, twisting them violently to snap another of her switchblades. His eyes seemed to glow out of the blackness, the pale sheen of his receding hairline the only other area of his face distinguishable. Those eyes told the story of a man who had seen his fair share of death and wasn't afraid to face it.

Erza gritted her teeth and lashed out with her remaining blade. He blocked her wild attack easily and returned with a vertical strike, aiming to slit her from nose to navel.

She dodged, but the blade caught the fabric of her shirt, slicing through it easily and exposing her bra. She threw herself further back, rolling to gain some distance between them. A nasty red scratch appeared down her torso, raw, but only beginning to bead with blood. Quickly, she shrugged the now useless garment off of her shoulders, returning her gaze to her opponent.

She did not expect to find her fierce adversary averting his eyes from her body, prepared for attack in a defensive stance, but not venturing to attack her in her moment of weakness. One of her eyebrows raised at the uncharacteristic reluctance to attack. Perhaps his morality was to thank?

Both of their breaths came in heavy pants now. Erza adopted a similar defensive stance and held it, just catching her breath, naked blade in her hand, the other clenching and unclenching as she tried to shake the vibration of her blade snapping out of her hand.

She was going to need to commission a new arsenal at this rate. Maybe her opponent would share his supplier's name. He seemed to have excellent taste in steel. She saw her remaining intact blade out of the corner of her eye and frowned. Was arming herself another switchblade even worth it? He could see the strap holding half a dozen around her waist now, and she had others in her pockets. And strapped around her calf. And in her boots. But her opponent had proven his ability was more than an accident. He could very effectively snap them apart one by one, so why waste the steel?

Which left her with one option. Precious seconds ticked by as they stayed frozen in place, waiting for the other to make the first move.

Having made her decision, Erza saw no reason to wait. It just wasn't her style. In a burst of speed that belied her labored breathing, she dropped her remaining blade and darted to the railing. Jacob reacted to her movement and moved to meet her, a mere second behind.

The almost topless redhead leaned over the railing, wincing as her wound met peeling paint. She grasped the handle of her katana in one hand and its saya in the other, and drew it in a clean motion, just in time to block the downward swing of her opponent's double knives.

This time, his blades collided with her sword without so much as scratching it. The rippling pattern of the steel, folded countless times and tempered in an irregular flame pattern, more than stood a chance against his previously superior weapons.

With a fierce grin, she attacked in earnest then, flicking her sword around her enemy in a graceful but deadly dance. Erza always felt at ease with a sword in her hand. Finally gaining the upper hand, she disarmed him of first one blade then the other.

He turned and ran then, with Erza in pursuit, but threw her off as he used his forward momentum to jump, boosting off the railing with one foot and grabbing a support beam above him to swing himself around and back into Erza.

The hit connected, knocking her back. Her elbow hit the concrete, instantly numbing her arm and jarring her sword from where she gripped it. A small cry of surprise left her at the sensation just before the full weight of his body landed on her and they rolled, each trying to gain the upper hand in an inelegant grapple.

After several minutes of struggle, he ended up on top, holding down Erza's arms and straddling her torso, locking her knees in place with his own ankles. She squirmed under his weight, yelling in frustration as she tried to free herself and reach one of her knives, to no avail.

The man towering over her transferred her wrists to one hand and reached back into his boot to grab another knife, smaller but just as sharp.

The light of the moon streaming in under the cover of the porch glinted off the knife, flashing the cool light into Erza's eyes as he moved to hold it hovering over her neck. Her struggling actions stilled, hyper-aware of how easily he could take her life, should he so choose.

"Who are you, and what are you doing here, Red? Who are you working for? Why am I forced to put down a true warrior such as yourself?" Jacob accompanied his words by flipping her ponytail away from her sweaty chest with the knife he held. He seemed to notice for the second time that her upper half was uncovered except for her black racerback lingerie, dragging his eyes back to her face as he got slightly flustered.

Erza stared back, admitting nothing. Her heart pounded in her ears as she faced what could be the instrument of her death.

That is, until she saw a flash of movement out of the corner of her eye. Quickly changing tactics, she glared at her opponent and spoke.

"I'm here for Lucy. That's all. She's a friend and I've come to bring her home. I will fight anyone who stands in the way of that goal," her fiery words captured his entire attention. He stared down into her eyes speculatively.

"My employer wants his little girl to stay where she is, and you are trespassing on private property carrying an arsenal of weapons." He leaned back, drawing his blade with him in order to deliver what she assumed would be a lethal strike, and froze as her katana's blade snaked its way across his throat, resting lightly against his carotid. Careful not to move, his eyes rolled sidewise to take in the figure of a man outlined by the moon, his eyes the only part of him showing, with a hat and mask covering his face, and dark clothing concealing the rest of him. The figure spoke in a deep, even tone, but an undercurrent of powerful, barely-chained anger was simmering just below the surface of his words.

"Drop the knife and get off of her."

* * *

Lucy pulled up short, causing Gajeel to run into her back and bite his tongue simultaneously.

"Hey! A little warning wou-"

He was cut off by Lucy's hand slamming over his mouth, her eyes warning him to shut the fuck up before she kicked him to the moon and back. His eyes narrowed as he ran the injured appendage over the inside of his teeth, but he nodded nonetheless.

The petite blonde spun back around and gestured to a door beside her. It took him a moment to understand what she was getting at, but eventually he also heard the muffled sound of voices on the other side of the door. Facing each other, Gajeel and Lucy placed their ears against the door and held their breath.

"...unacceptable Hades! What am I paying you and your team for if you are unable to protect me and my _property_ from a simple home invasion?" Lucy swallowed hard at the first voice, her heart racing through its beats like it was keeping time with an overeager high school marching band without a drum major: unsteady and rushed.

 _Gotta be her shitty dad_ , Gajeel thought, picking up on the emphasis the cold voice put on his 'property'. Was he referring to _Lucy_? His own fucking daughter?! His jaw clenched at the thought and his grip tightened on the crowbar clutched in his fist. Sure, his dad hadn't been father of the year, by any means, but compared to what he'd heard of Lucy's poor excuse for a parent, his old man had been a fucking saint. The man on the other side of the door deserved a good knee-capping.

"Mr. Heartfilia, explosives are hardly a regular part of a simple home invasion. And I must insist you refer to me by 'H' while there are an unknown number of hostiles present on the grounds." The second voice was condescending while somehow remaining submissive. Jude didn't seem to pick up on the tremor of annoyance hiding in Hades' even tone though. _And who the fuck named their kid Hades? That's just asking for him to turn out a fucking psychopath!_ Gajeel rolled his eyes at the thought. He shouldn't be surprised. Idiots named their kids all sorts of stupid shit.

"Unknown?! I didn't have those idiotic looking solar-powered security cameras installed in my wife's ancestral home, at _your_ insistence, for you to tell me there are an 'unknown number of hostiles'!"

"Agent L is non-responsive. And the power in the gatehouse takes a moment to flip to the backup solar power. We believe she has been taken out and the gatehouse is occupied by one of theirs. I do not have a spare operative to retake the location as of this moment. Not with two of my best people babysitting your precious _property._ "

Lucy flinched at the word.

Definitely referring to her then.

"I have no doubt she is the reason for this attack. It is vital that her new _friends_ are not able to drag her back to that wretched town. Your best agents will remain with her."

"If these attackers are your daughter's friends, why don't you get her to tell you who the hell they are and what their plan is? She's nothing but belligerent to anyone but you, so go ask her yourself."

"Don't take that tone with me. And if you haven't anyone to send after your guard dog on the gate, then go yourself."

"I am needed here to coordinate the defense."

"Then what's the discount Poirot over there for?!"

A voice with a thick French accent piped up. "Non,non,non! How dare you! Poirot is a Belgian! Un Belge! I am a Frenchman born and bred Monsieur Heartfilia, merci beaucoup!"

"Oh shut up S. I'm fed up with all of you. H, retake that guardhouse, or find a new job, I don't care how. I want to know who exactly is going to pay for this inconvenient disruption. Just get it done H. I'm going to have a word with my daughter." There were padded footsteps and the sound of a door slamming before the voices of H and S resurfaced, quieter than before. Gajeel and Lucy automatically leaned heavier on the door to catch what they said, as though that would make any difference.

"What's your plan then, _patron_?"

"I'm going to check on L. Just do your job and take out their communications. You were recommended for your tech skills, but so far, you're nothing but a disappointment. When Z gets back from wherever the hell he wandered off to this time, tell him to keep an eye on Heartfilia. I'm not so sure this is all about his daughter. Something isn't sitting right." A door slammed directly after that, leaving one man by Gajeel's count left, muttering to himself.

"Imbéciles. C'est la dernière fois que je fais une faveur à José"

Lucy and Gajeel locked eyes. Now was their chance. Ever so quietly, Lucy reached for the knob, turning it cautiously and leaning into it.

But nothing happened.

She pushed harder, the knob in her hand clicking softly against the lock holding it closed. She looked up, frantically at her companion, gesturing that the door wouldn't open.

The wild-haired tattoo artist adjusted the headband keeping his mane out of his eyes and hefted his crowbar with a smirk in the light cast by her flashlight. It was a look that would scare the shit out of anyone with sense.

The involuntary heiress grinned viciously back.

* * *

"Ok, so how many are we talking then?" Natsu whispered from his place behind Weisslogia. Gray slipped across the hallway they'd just passed and fell into place behind Natsu. The muscular blonde man who'd led them into the manor hummed to himself as he counted, ticking them off on his fingers.

"Hmmm, we've got B, F, H, I, J, L, S, V, Z and myself. But you took out Fukuro, and Vidaldus wasn't on the back door anymore, so I assume they're both out of the equation, which leaves 7 left to deal with, not counting me of course." He put down three fingers.

"We've got someone on the guard at the front gate, and Erza's probably giving the dude on the front door a run for his money by now, so that's down to five. Where is everybody else? This place is fucking deserted."

"The servants will all be in bed for the night, so it's just us security staff up and around. Heartfilia's got Ikaruga and Brandish guarding your girlfriend's door, and Sol's up in the safe room, 'cause it's got power. Hades and Mr. Heartfilia are with him. Last I knew Zancrow was guarding Jude, but he's got a tendency to disappear at inopportune moments, so he could really be anywhere, which is why we're keeping a low profile. I'd prefer to avoid letting them know I've gone traitor in case I need to get us out of a sticky spot."

Both of his male companions nodded in acknowledgement, before Gray turned to Natsu.

"So, Lucy first, I assume?"

The pinkette scratched under the edge of the hat he'd pulled back over his distinctive hair and nodded.

"Yeah, as much as I'd love to let her dad know exactly what I think of what he's doin' to Luce, she's the first priority. We've got to get her out of here. Her heart's been going a mile a minute since we got on the train. She's scared of something here pretty bad."

Gray just nodded. He figured as much. Weisslogia frowned, confused.

"How the hell do you know what her heartbeat is like? Is that some sort of new Apple watch feature or something?"

"Something like that. I'll explain it later."

"Ok...well, the ladies guarding your girl are two of the best fighters I've ever seen. And they're armed. We're gonna need a plan."

"Well, there's always plan T!" Natsu chirped out with a grin. Gray groaned.

"Plan Take-'em-by-force is not an actual plan you incendiary idiot."

"Psh. Hasn't failed us yet."

"Yet being the key word."

"Bite me, ice dick."

"Make me, mozak plamena."

"Stop insulting me with words I don't understand!"

Weisslogia's wheezing, as he attempted to keep his laughter in, finally reached them and they paused in their bickering to look at him incredulously. The older man took a minute to get himself under control.

"Oh man, kid, you haven't changed at all. Still the little shit Igneel just had to take home all those years ago," the newest participant of Operation True Freedom finally offered in explanation.

"Hey, who ya callin' a little shit, you limp-dicked geezer?!"

" _You_ , dumbass. Because you _were_ a little shit," Gray shot back on Weisslogia's behalf.

"You asking to get punched in the dick?"

"You asking to get punched in Lucy's ovaries?"

"What the hell does that even mean?!" Weisslogia felt like he was in a foreign country. Nothing they were saying made any sense.

"Don't worry about it!" both boys fired back. He held up his hands in surrender.

"Ok, fine. But as amusing as is to listen to you two throw nonsense at each other, we've got a damsel in distress to rescue."

They all sobered up at that, falling back in line to follow Igneel's old friend through the vast hallways of Heartfilia Manor, with only an occasional shoulder shove to express their general lack of appreciation for the other's opinions.

One such shove sent Gray into a small door in the wall that popped open to reveal a small, whitewashed corridor. Natsu stopped to glare at Gray (even though it was really more his fault) and Weisslogia went another ten feet or so before figuring out they were no longer behind him. Looking back, he found the two boys walking through a doorway blackened against the comparatively light hallway, lit by the tall windows. Cursing, he turned back.

"Dammit, where the hell do you think you're going?"

"Hey Weiss, what the hell _is_ this?" Natsu's voice echoed a little against the hard bare plaster of the seemingly endless hallway. Weisslogia shone his flashlight down one side of the hallway.

"Servants' passages. The house is riddled with 'em."

"Soooo….why aren't we using them?" Gray asked, his eyebrows scrunching up as he looked suspiciously at their guide. He fingered the collar of his shirt absentmindedly.

"Because they're really hard to navigate. I've never been in them myself, but a couple of the guys got lost once. Took them beating on the walls for us to know where they were and have one of the staff go to fetch 'em. We don't have the kind of time to risk it."

Natsu eyed the passage again, but stepped out and closed the door behind him. "Yeah. Too bad we can't use 'em though. A secret passage would be pretty handy about now."

Gray nodded in agreement. He wondered if Lucy knew her way through them. Maybe they could use them to make their escape.

As they all set off down the more richly furnished passages again, the noirette couldn't help but get distracted by the splendor surrounding them. His companions didn't seem to notice, the blonde assumedly used to it, and the pinkette pretty dense to status and wealth in general, but Gray found himself a little overwhelmed by it. His fingers unbuttoned and re-buttoned the flaps on his cargo pants, trying to resist the urge to rid himself of the clothing that was starting to itch. His therapist had told him time and again that it was a psychosomatic symptom, but the result was the same: when he was nervous, excited, or upset, he lived in a hair shirt of his own making. He really hoped they could get Lucy with a minimal amount of trouble and get out of there. That would definitely be the best case scenario….

But a part of him was also revved up at the thought of a decent fight.

His fidgeting hand went to the gun holstered under his arm, the feel of the cool metal calming him a bit. An even smaller part of him looked forward to an opportunity to pump some lead into one of these bastards.

Which scared the shit out of him. That was something he never thought he'd find exciting. Not after what happened to his parents...

"Dude, you okay?" Natsu's whisper broke him out of his thoughts, the pinkette leaning into his line of sight to look him in the eye. He blinked, realizing he'd pulled the gun out and stood looking down at it in his hands. He swiftly re-holstered the weapon, cleared his throat and nodded.

"Yeah, let's just get this over with, yeah?"

"Yeah. Let's go get Lucy and get the fuck outta here."

Gray looked at the pinkette, noting the gleam of defiance in his eye. He sighed.

Natsu had had the same look in his eye when he'd found Lisanna bruised and bloody after a run-in with bullies. He'd been suspended for beating up the culprits and burning all their clothes in a bonfire in front of the high school.

And he'd had the look again when he'd overheard one of the other frats on campus were hazing their pledges in humiliating and dangerous ways. He'd gotten that glint in his eye right before he'd blown up their door and gotten into a fistfight with their president.

It was actually kind of a miracle he'd managed to get through school so far without getting expelled now that Gray thought about it.

"Before or after you kick the shit out of her dad and/or burn his house down?" Gray intoned wearily, rubbing the bridge of his nose. Weisslogia stood by eyes wide. Natsu's face got hyper serious then, no twinkle of mirth evident in his eyes as he answered his best friend.

"After. Definitely after."

Gray sighed again. Some things never changed.

He really hoped Lucy wasn't attached to her family's house. Because it'd be a miracle if it was unscathed come morning.

* * *

Jacob, or as his crew called him, 'J', hesitated, katana held to his throat as he gauged whether or not he could bury his knife in the newcomer's chest before his opponent was able to act. He kept one hand wrapped securely around the wrists of the beautiful redhead and his grip tightened on the knife in his other.

As though the man in black could sense what he was thinking, the blade pressed more firmly against the skin of his throat, causing tiny beads of blood to well up where it had broken the skin. He hadn't even felt the sting of the cut until the blood was already trickling in a rivulet down to his collarbone.

It wouldn't take much more pressure for a blade that sharp to reach his carotid and bleed him out in minutes. If that happened, there wasn't an ambulance in existence that was fast enough to make it all the way out to the estate in time to save him.

 _Well-played._

Jacob dropped his knife, raising his hands in the air and backing away from Erza as he stood. Unfortunately, the distance he'd been hoping to buy himself by surrendering never appeared. The cold steel of Red's katana followed his slow ascent perfectly, not giving him the moment of hesitation he'd been hoping to capitalize on. His eyes stayed on the masked man as Erza got to her feet. The mysterious third party held the sword expertly, as though he had been born to it.

But it turns out Jacob was watching the wrong target, because the next moment, the buxom redhead drew back her fist and punched him solidly in the stomach, somehow, knocking him unconscious instantly. By punching him in the _stomach_. Because she's Erza. And the rules of physiology don't apply to her. Apparently.

Mystogan lowered the katana and turned to his redheaded girlfriend, eyes sweeping over her for signs of injury. His eyes lingered on the exposed skin of her torso and the blood that had already clotted and dried there. He handed her the katana, stripped off the hoodie he wore, and offered the article of clothing to her.

She took it with a nod, sheathing her sword and reattaching it to her belt before donning the garment. It was a little big for her everywhere but the chest, but it was warm with his body heat (and, she found, with a covert sniff, it smelled just like him).

Erza glanced up at him and smiled, a little zip of appreciation going through her at seeing his exceptionally fit arms exposed by the fitted black tank top now exposed. There was something weirdly sexy about seeing his arms without being able to see most of his face, the muffler/hat combo he was wearing covering all but a slit of space for his eyes.

Her soulmate had pulled a set of black handcuffs from his pocket and started cuffing the unconscious man in front of them, dragging him back into the shadows of the house, and hooking the radio to his own belt. Erza stood watching him, stretching out her limbs like she'd just been through a particularly enjoyable workout. When he was done and had rejoined her, she asked the question that had been ruminating in her head since he'd shown up.

"How long have you been studying swordplay?"

"Who says I have?" he replied, turning to stare out into the moonlit yard. A bat took off from one tree flying to another and he followed the movement with his eyes. The quiet wildlife surrounding the house seemed unaware of the violence going on within.

" _I_ do," she said stubbornly, confident in what she'd seen. He sighed.

"I haven't really. Swords were never my thing. I learned a little when I was choosing a weapon. I vastly prefer a quarterstaff. That was all years ago though. I haven't touched a weapon since I graduated high school. Just didn't have the time." Erza noticed he said it stiffly, as though the topic made him uncomfortable.

And it did.

Mystogan stood there for a beat more, waiting to see if she would question him anymore. He could tell she was dying to ask, but silently prayed to every god he could name that she wouldn't. He wasn't ready for her to know about that part of him. And like everything involving Jellal, it was bound to upset her somehow. Especially if she learned that _he_ was the real swordsman of the family.

As though his prayers were answered, she dropped the subject, stooping to pick up the intact switchblade she'd dropped, clicking back into its harmless state and tucking it into one of the pockets at the small of her back. She stood next to him again, silent, before reaching out and offering him her hand.

Like some kind of apology for even asking the question. Like somehow...she already knew.

And who knew? Maybe the weird bond between them meant she somehow did. No matter what she really meant behind it, Mystogan took her offering thankfully and brought it up to his lips, kissing the soft skin on the back of her hand. It contrasted so sharply with the callused palm of a fighter that met his own.

"Let's go," he murmured against her skin, and she nodded, leading him cautiously around the porch to the front of the house. While they went, she pulled her phone out and put the earbud back in her ear. Mystogan stopped her from speaking though, explaining about the hacker Levy had been arguing with.

"How are we supposed to communicate with everyone then?" she asked, instantly annoyed. The blunette shrugged in response, amused that the redhead could amp up her temper so quickly.

"Beats me. What do you think we should do now? Go for Natsu's girl or see who needs backup?"

Erza's gaze vacillated between the door to the house and the path through the trees that lead to the guardhouse at the gate. Her heart wanted to dash right in and find Lucy, but her head told her the boring path was where she was needed. It was her duty.

"Let's check on Loke. If the 7-way phone call is unusable, then he could be in trouble and no one would know."

"Well, er….actually, I'm pretty sure he's got it under control." Mystogan tried not to think about the scene he'd witnessed exhibiting the ginger's magnetic sexual charisma. It felt like a violation of his privacy or something. Which was stupid considering the circumstances. "He, um, _clearly_ had it well in hand right after you ran off."

Erza's eyebrows went up, but she didn't comment. Maybe she hadn't been giving the playboy enough credit... "Ok, so, into the house to regroup with Natsu and Gray then? Or Gajeel? Who shall we go rescue?!" She tried to keep the excitement out of her voice. Erza loved saving people.

Mystogan decided not to rain on Erza's parade and tell her that none of those people probably needed rescuing, instead going with the safe and responsible choice. How had he ended up the safe and responsible one of the group? He felt about a million years old all of a sudden.

"Why don't we patrol the grounds and take out anyone who leaves the house? We don't want the other side to discover their guards have been taken out and secure the exits with all of us inside."

Erza visibly deflated and wrinkled her nose, but nodded. "You're right." She tried to keep the disappointment out of her voice. "If Loke's got the gate covered, let's start double checking on the garden and back of the house."

Together, they left the porch and blended into the trees around the edges of the immediate lawn area.

* * *

With the crack of splintering wood, Gajeel and Lucy busted through the locked door into her father's bedroom, Gajeel wielding his crowbar like he was ready to bash in some heads, and Lucy double-fisting it with the twin guns he'd taken off the guard at the back door in the most badass bust-in since Connor and Murphy MacManus fell through the ceiling guns ablazing (A love of the movie The Boondock Saints was a point on which Lucy and Gajeel could always agree).

They immediately turned toward where Lucy said the panic room entrance would be, stopping in their tracks when they saw a thin bespectacled man with deep green hair and a small mustache frozen in the act of biting into a Cheeto as he balanced on the back legs of an antique dining room chair, surrounded by steel and light. His fingers and mustache were almost completely orange with a dusting of cheese powder, the tiny grains floating down from his facial hair like dust motes in sunlight.

The room crashers and the French techie just stared at each other for what felt like an eternity. Neither could tell who was more shocking to the other; the wiry hacker, mouth hanging open to reveal a gelatinous blob of processed orange chum waiting to be swallowed as he swayed on the abused and creaking wooden legs of a chair that had probably been made by the family of a revolutionary hero in the 18th Century; or the wild-black-haired behemoth halted mid-swing with a chipped-up beast of a crowbar and his petite blonde sidekick holding a pair of almost comically large guns straight-armed in front of her as though she were preparing for a Lara Croft meets Clint Eastwood-worthy Mexican standoff, wearing much too large red striped pajama pants and a wispy pink silk nightgown.

Then a rickety leg of Monsieur S's chair snapped beneath him and the bubble of stillness popped.

Gajeel and Lucy jolted forward as the man in the panic room scrambled to get to his feet and reach the button that would send a solid three inches of steel and bulletproof glass out of the wall to seal him in and secure his safety. Time seemed to go in double time as Gajeel raced ahead of Lucy, holding his crowbar out in front of him as he ran. Lucy ran for the bedroom door, locking it and shoving a chair under the doorknob for good measure.

Monsieur S was on his feet and hitting the button just as Gajeel slid the length of metal into the way of the barrier. The hydraulic door started to close and met the crowbar with a screech, locking into place with the crowbar cutting the entrance in two. The whole configuration shifted with another screech, and Gajeel withdrew his arm, in case the door would win the battle of strength instead of his weapon of choice.

But it held.

The thin man on the other side of the doorway froze, wide-eyed and panicking.

"Come on Lucy, let's get that information you need," Gajeel growled with glee over the success of their stunt. That really shouldn't have worked. Like at all.

He turned, grinning, expecting to find Lucy right behind him, but was stunned to see her once again adopting her pose from the end of The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly from more than a dozen feet away, staring into the opened door, and shaking. "Oi, Bunny Girl, we don't have time for this! Get your head in the game!"

His snappy remark seemed to at least get her attention as her eyes shifted from the propped open doorway to her best friend's boyfriend.

But she still didn't move.

Carefully, Gajeel moved so that his body blocked both her view of the panic room and Sol's escape route and took one of the guns from her trembling hand. Her eyes met his and pleaded with him. Something was completely terrifying her about that room, but he just didn't have the time to coax it out of her. He'd taken long enough already, which became clear when the man behind him started speaking.

"Emergency assistance requested! Panic room compro-"

The Frenchman's call into his walkie talkie was cut short by Gajeel grabbing the device through the doorway and crushing it under his boot. Then he leveled the gun he'd taken from Lucy at the panicking panic room occupant.

"Alright, we were gonna do this the easy way, but since you've gone and done somethin' _unbelievably_ fucking stupid, we're gonna have to go with the hard way." Gajeel kept his eyes and gun trained on his target as he carefully and quickly stepped under the crowbar wedged across the doorway. Once inside the room, he hit the button on the wall that Sol had hit to close the door, hoping it would open it wide again.

It didn't. Gajeel cursed internally. Why couldn't anything just be fucking easy for once!? He moved closer to the green-haired techie, placing the barrel of the gun carefully against his temple, keeping his finger far from the trigger. Gajeel had no intention of becoming an accidental murderer. But the smaller man in front of him didn't know that.

"Reopen the door shithead."

"Well, name calling is simply unnecessary Monsieur…?" he trailed off, seemingly unfazed by having a gun to his head.

Except there was a slight bend of his body away from the gun. Gajeel grinned and leaned with him, forcing him to bend more.

"You can call me Mr. Black. Now, _please,_ fucking open the door before I shoot your ear off, Mr. Shithead."

With a little more grumbling, the Frenchman leaned carefully over the keyboard in front of him and entered a code. The door slid back open, the crowbar dropping to the ground with a clank. With that issue resolved, Gajeel forced Monsieur Fancypants further into the room and away from the door mechanism, talking back over his shoulder at Lucy. He stooped down to pick up his crowbar, setting it on the desktop inside the room.

"Listen Lucy, I don't know what your deal is with this room, but you gotta get over it. Because there are definitely guys coming to respond to his call. We've got access to your shitty dad's personal files, and a computer expert who can find what you're looking for held at gunpoint in a room that can't be entered easily once locked. You're not gonna get a chance like this again. So, get over your shit for the ten seconds it will take to get your ass in here! You can break down and cry or whatever when we're safe." Just as he was finishing his little speech, they heard someone trying the bedroom door. "Come on! It's now or live under his thumb the rest of your life! Make up your fucking mind!"

Lucy stared at him through the doorway. It was so close.

Too close.

Too easy, but too hard.

She didn't want to go there. She never wanted to see the inside of that room again. She never wanted to relive what he'd put her through. What she'd seen.

What she'd _done._

It was all her fault.

But Gajeel was right. She didn't have a choice. Someone was coming. She had to be brave. She had to buck up. Her old security guard Stier's voice rang in her ears then, like it had every time she'd fallen down and skinned her knees.

" _Buck up Buttercup!_ "

Ten seconds. All she needed was ten seconds. Her heart jack-hammered, her vision tunneled. All she could see was the entrance to that room.

A gunshot went off outside the room and the door moved an inch or two inward, catching on the chair.

Lucy took off like a shot dashing into her den of nightmares just as the door burst open.

Gajeel hit the button and the heavy metal door slammed shut behind her.

* * *

 **Ok, so I was REALLY trying to get to Natsu's next bit in this chapter, but I'm pushing my deadline and the upcoming fights will take me a while, so sorry for yet another chapter without that badass Natsu action I know we're all looking forward to. It should definitely be showing up next chapter! Aaaaaaand, sorry for the cliffhanger. I'm an addict. I'm basically enabling myself now.**

 **Disclaimer: I am NOT a fighting or weapons expert. However, I am aware that some of the things I do with fighting and weapons in this chapter are probably completely impossible. I can't say for sure, because things like "how easy is it to break a switchblade?" don't yield helpful Google results. So, for the purposes of this story, these fights happen in the equivalent of a movie universe; where mid-air fighting moves actually have force behind them, the properties of metals fluctuate to fit the scene, and crowbars serve whatever purpose the plot needs them to.**

 **I have to give credit to a fight scene from Bad Blood for the knife fight in this chapter. It started out very similar and evolved from there. If you want to see what my brain is envisioning for that fight, hop over to youtube and check out the Bad Blood knife fight.**

 **And now, vocab and references!**

 **Saya-** the scabbard of a Japanese sword

 **folded countless times and tempered in an irregular flame pattern** \- I recently attended a local panel put on by an amazing couple who run a dojo in Iowa. Anyway, they walked us through what the different patterns of tempering (the line down the steel that you see on katanas and other Japanese single-edged weapons) show. A straight line of tempering, created by spreading a specific mud over the edge of the steal while heating, is actually the weakest version of tempering. Tempering is used to harden the edge of a blade, so that it is less likely to break or crack under pressure. The more "breaks" in the pattern, the more opportunity to absorb that pressure without breaking. The wave pattern (the one that is an even, controlled wavy line like you'd find on a trig graph) is much stronger and a little easier to do than the strongest, which is the irregular flame pattern. This pattern is spiky and unmeasured, allowing lots of places for the steel to flex and absorb vibration and pressure. They brought with them a beautiful sword over 700 years old that had that pattern of tempering. Anyway...just me nerding out here, but HOW COOL IS SWORDSMITHING?! I wish I had the free time and funding to learn it!

" **Non,non,non! How dare you! Poirot is a Belgian! Un Belge! I am a Frenchman born and bred Monsieur Heartfilia, merci beaucoup!"** -This one's pretty self-explanatory, but he's basically saying, No,no,no! Then decamping Jude's reference to Agatha Christie's Poirot, a finicky Belgian detective who was often, to his annoyance, mistaken for a Frenchman, "Un Belge" is just "A Belgian" in French, and then ending somewhat offended and sarcastic with "Thank you very much!"

 **Patron** \- boss in French

 **"C'est la dernière fois que je fais une faveur à José"-** French for "This is the last time I do a favor for Jose." Special thanks to **blargolp** who checked the translation on this for me!

 **mozak plamena** -flame brain in Croatian

 **Noirette** -not technically recognized as an official word in the Oxford English Dictionary, but Urban Dictionary defines a noirette as a person with black hair, and I LOVE it, so I'm using it from now on. HUZZAH NEW WORDS!

" **when he was nervous, excited, or upset, he lived in a hair shirt of his own making"** \- a "hair shirt": a shirt made from coarse fabric or itchy animal hair, worn for the purposes of penance and mortification of the flesh. The use of a hair shirt in certain sects of Christianity as penance is thought to predate recorded history. In this context, Gray's mind subconsciously punishes him for the guilt he feels by making his clothes itch. I rather like this explanation for his stripping habit...it fits so beautifully with Gray's tendency to feel guilt for everyone who had sacrificed themselves for him in canon.

" **in the most badass bust-in since Connor and Murphy MacManus fell through the ceiling guns ablazing (A love of the movie The Boondock Saints was a point on which Lucy and Gajeel could always agree)."** -I'm referencing the epic moment in The Boondock Saints movie where the brothers are sneaking through the air vents going to kill a bunch of mob bosses and accidentally fall through the ceiling, getting tangled up in ropes and rotating upside down as they shoot all the bad guys. Obviously, this is not half that badass, but Lucy and Gajeel feel like it is. Because my headcanon says Stier (Taurus) totally would have shown young Lucy that movie. Even though it is definitely NOT kid friendly. But he's irresponsible and disrespectful in canon all the time, so I'm doing it.

" **Lara Croft meets Clint Eastwood-worthy Mexican standoff** "-Lara Croft obviously from Lara Croft the video game/movie franchise, and referring specifically to The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly when Clint Eastwood and his co-stars end up in the most famous Mexican standoff of all time. No idea why they call it a Mexican standoff. I assume it has something to do with Mexico. **EDIT: An Amber Pen went above and beyond in her review and looked it up! :** "someone on Urban Dictionary referenced a story from 19th century Mexico about two carriages who tried to pass through a narrow street at the same time going in opposite directions, and apparently they met in the middle but each refused to back their horses up to get out of the other's way for several days until authorities forced them both to back up." **So, there you have it folks. Just a big ol' game of chicken!  
**

" **her pose from the end of The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly"-** oh look! I actually explained it in the text for once! Go past me!

 **Phew. Long reference explanations this chapter. So much juicy knowledge! See y'all next week!**

 **Riot out.**


	38. Tears

**Sooo, this was not what I planned to write at all...BUT, I really like how it turned out…**

 **Let's be honest, is anyone actually surprised my brain went off the carefully marked path and dove off a cliff?**

 **Yeah, didn't think so.**

 **Anywho, the answers to your every question! (ok, not all of them, but some! SOME I SAY!)**

 **ENJOY!**

* * *

Lucy gasped for breath as she folded herself as small as she could get. Curled into a ball with her arms wrapped around her legs, she scrunched her eyes closed, trying her damnedest to forget where she was. Tears built up pressure behind her eyes, her throat clenching as she struggled to hold them in.

 _Findyourhappyplace._ _ _Findyourhappyplace.__ _Findyourhappyplace._

The internal chanting wasn't doing as much good as actually being able to think of a happy place would do, but anything was better than remembering...that.

" _You see now? Do you see what you made me do? This is all your fault Lucy. This is happening because of what you did."_ Lucy shook her head violently trying to fling away her father's voice to the recesses of her mind; somewhere she could forget for a while. She'd never really forget.

A large warm hand tentatively touched her back and she flinched. The hand left her back immediately, only to be replaced shortly after by firm hands gently pulling her hair back from where she'd ripped it out of her ponytail to be a flimsy shield from the world. She flinched back again, but carefully kept her eyes tightly shut as light fell on her lids.

"Oi, Blondie. We're safe. You can open your eyes." Gajeel's familiar low rumble helped drown out her father's words, though she could still hear them, faintly whispering to her. "They can't get in. We're shut in tight."

Instead of helping, his comment just reminded her where she was. Lucy gasped for breath, a sob escaping her as a few stubborn tears forced themselves from beneath her tense lids.

Suddenly she heard a familiar voice in her ear, barely above a whisper.

"Lucy…?"

Her eyes popped open, desperate to find the pinkette she could hear, forgetting in her panic that there was no way he could be here with her. What she saw instead was Gajeel, his eyebrows still furrowed in concern, but his eyes lightening with relief. He wasn't unwelcome, but he also wasn't who she really wanted to see.

"Natsu?" she whimpered desperately, praying fervently that he could hear her too.

"Blondie" "Lucy!" "He's not here." "What's wrong?!"

Gajeel and Natsu's words scrambled together for her as they both rushed to answer her. Her brain lagged, trying to sort out their words. They both kept talking, making it more difficult with every word.

"Just hang in there." "Luce! I'm coming okay?" "As soon as we get what we need you can leave ok?" "Whatever he's doing to you, I won't let him anymore!" "Lucy! You gotta snap out of it! I don't know what to tell him to look for!" "Wait, is that Gajeel with you?"

Eventually Lucy managed to shush them.

"Shhhh. Please, stop talking! Both of you…" Her voice came out in a tremulous whisper, but they fell silent immediately; Gajeel out of confusion more than anything else. He traded glances with the only other occupant of the room. The Frenchman looked back at him, just as bewildered.

However, just then, whoever they'd heard in the hall started banging on the door to the panic room. Gajeel quickly leveled the gun at the green-haired guy again. Sol raised his hands again and stepped carefully away from the computer, positioning himself on the opposite side of the room, keeping Gajeel between him and the keyboard. He nodded down at the girl curled up between them. The two locked gazes for another weighted moment before the noirette lowered the gun, turning back to his blonde companion. He ventured a comment in a tone he hoped came off as comforting. Helping people deal with feelings and such shit was not his thing.

"Lucy, Natsu is busy. He'll come get you later. For now, you need to-" Gajeel was cut off as a finger uncurled from Lucy's fist and landed over his lips. She stared him down, a hint of sanity peeking through the wild desperation in her eyes.

"Please be quiet. He's talking to me." Removing her hand from his mouth, she touched her ear instead. "Natsu? Where are you?"

"I'm on my way, Luce. Just hang on okay? I'll be there soon!"

A whoosh of air left her and her eyes closed again. She tried to calm her hammering heart, taking deep breaths and letting them go. "Okay. Please hurry."

"I will. I promise. Listen Luce-ah shit." Natsu cut off then, causing Lucy's eyes to fly open once more when she felt something collide with her cheekbone, pain blossoming almost instantly from the spot. She cried out, instinctively covering her face with one hand. Her eyes frantically spun, landing on Gajeel's again.

"You tellin' me you guys can _hear_ each other now?! Shit. Like this bonded thing needed to get any weirder...show me your face." Despite his harsh words, his fingers were gentle as he peeled back Lucy's hand, revealing a small cut and a bruise already beginning to swell on the apple of her cheek. "Yikes. He get hit by someone?"

"Qu'est-ce que c'est que ce bordel ?!" Lucy ignored the third member of the room, nodding, but Gajeel glared at him on her behalf.

"What the fuck did you just say?"

"Moi? Non, non, non! What is she saying? How is she talking to someone? No one is communicating over your phones. I would know!" The green-haired man adjusted his glasses and pointed to the computer sitting on the built-in counter that served as his desk.

"It's complicated and none of your fucking business, Frenchie. So why dontcha shut the fuck up and-" Gajeel cut off as a whimper escaped from Lucy. During his tirade, he'd stood up and moved away from her, unknowingly exposing the room behind him. Lucy had almost forgotten where she was, with her friend's broad shoulders to hide the view, and Natsu's pain to distract her.

She was assaulted by the view of the small room surrounding her. But instead of seeing the clinical white industrial tile and smooth steel of the room as it actually was, she saw the horrifying image that haunted her nightmares.

 _Red pooled on the tile, creeping infinitesimally closer to her trembling feet, bare against the cold floor._

 _Though the woman in front of her whimpered and cried out, Lucy could still hear the drip drop of the blood leaving her body. Like the leaky bathtub on the third floor. The one that Daddy didn't like. Drip, drip, drop._

 _Her eyes turned upward to her daddy's back at the fleeting thought, tears streaming from her eyes as she struggled not to cry out. She bit down on her lip as a strangled noise escaped her, despite her efforts at silence. A tear splashed to the floor, joining the rest of her own little pool of tears. She was trying not to cry. He'd told her not to. But she just couldn't stop. And because she couldn't stop, her daddy didn't either._

 _He took one look at her and struck out again, the metal baton in his hand connecting solidly and breaking ribs. The crunchy, squishy sound forced another tear from her eyes as his victim cried out in pain. Quickly, before her daddy could glance back, she wiped at her eyes and nose, trying to hide the signs of her tears. If she kept crying, he would never stop._

" _You see now? Do you see what you made me do? This is all your fault Lucy. This is happening because of what_ you _did. There are consequences when little girls don't do what they're told."_

" _I'm so...sorry…" Lucy hiccuped out. Her words just seemed to make him madder. His weapon whipped out again, striking the woman's knee. "No Lucy. Heartfilias aren't sorry. Heartfilias don't do things to be sorry for. They listen to their fathers. You listen to me and do what I say. This is only happening because you didn't do what you were told. Do you understand?"_

" _Yes, Daddy," she whispered, staring down at her perfectly painted toenails. Grammi had spent an hour helping her paint them the day before._

 _A firm hand gripped her chin, forcing her gaze toward the woman tied to the chair on the other side of the room. Lucy was pressed up against the steel door, frozen in her little flannel nightie where she'd ended up an hour ago as she tried to run from the room. She could barely see the big red button that she'd tried to press over and over out of the corner of her eye. It didn't open the door. Nothing opened the door._

 _Nothing but Daddy. He'd told her so._

 _She believed him._

" _No Lucy._ Look _at what you did. Look at the consequences of your actions. And you're too old to be calling me that. I'm your father, not your daddy."_

" _Okay Da-Father."_

 _At her quiet word he stalked back to the other side of the room, slapping the woman there across the face. She didn't respond, appearing to be asleep. Her daddy looked back at her and raised a hand to strike again, eyes on his daughter._

 _Lucy longed to look away, but was terrified of what else would happen if she did. Her eyes burned, but the tears had stopped. She stared wide-eyed ahead of her as she was told, barely daring to blink. Lucy focused in on her clothing, unable to bear seeing her puffy, unrecognizable face again. She could see where blood and sweat had darkened the fabric of the woman's dress. The dress was covered in little flowers that Lucy used to like counting while she was taking a bath. Back before she was big enough to bathe herself._

 _Little brown spots speckled across the shabby but neat white apron that covered most of the dress. Those little brown spots were from when she'd shown Lucy how to make chocolates for Valentine's day, and Lucy had dropped the bowl, breaking it and speckling them both in chocolate._

 _Her eyes drifted up to the woman's face, no longer twisted in pain, but not alight with energy and love as it normally was. Her usually neat bun had gone askew, chunks of hair falling down around her face and neck as the scrunchie Lucy had given her two Christmases ago clung halfheartedly to the remaining tresses. The turquoise locks swayed as breath left her mouth._

Grammi... _Lucy thought silently as her vision blurred with tears again._ You're the only one who really loves me and I did _this_ to you. I'm so, so sorry.

 _Tears leaked out of her eyes._

 _And her father began again._

* * *

Natsu stopped, struggling to swallow the pain in his throat and his chest. It felt like he couldn't breathe again.

"Lucy?" he gasped. His words finally alerted his companions to the fact he had halted several feet behind them. They swiftly turned back for him.

Gray said something, but he didn't hear it, focused on the familiar feminine voice whimpering his name in his ear. "Lucy! What's wrong?!" he exclaimed.

"Shit," Gray muttered, stalking forward down the hall to see if there was anyone nearby to hear his outburst. He got to the corner and glanced around it, quickly pulling his head back. There was a group of people down the next hall. They didn't seem to hear Natsu, but that didn't mean they wouldn't. He jogged quickly back to Natsu making gestures for him to quiet down.

Natsu lowered his voice, but kept talking. "Luce! I'm coming okay? Whatever he's doing to you, I won't let him anymore!" Suddenly, he heard another voice coming through. One he recognized. "Wait, is that Gajeel with you?"

Lucy shushed him then, and he shut up. Gray seized the moment.

"Will you be quiet? There are people just around the corner!" he hissed. Weisslogia got serious and went to check for himself. Coming back, he nodded.

"That's the girl's room. Jude just went in with Brandish. Let's go take out Ika while she's alone!"

Weiss turned and headed off at a jog, Gray and Natsu on his heels. As he followed them, Natsu could hear Lucy's voice in his ear again.

"Natsu? Where are you?"

"I'm on my way, Luce. Just hang on okay? I'll be there soon!"

"Okay. Please hurry." Gray and Weiss turned the corner ahead of him.

"I will. I promise. Listen Luce," Natsu turned the corner and came face to face with a pink-haired woman with dead eyes. "Ah shit." Her fist collided with his cheek in his moment of surprise, hurting a hell of a lot more than it should have. He ducked the second punch, catching a hand wearing brass knuckles.

Well that explained the gash on his cheek. With a silent apology to Lucy for the injury, he faked a swing with one hand while his leg darted out, sweeping the woman's legs from under her.

In the moment she was down, he scanned the hall, seeing Weiss and Gray getting up from where the woman had assaulted them in a path of destruction. Gray was scrambling to pick up a gun on the carpet a dozen or so feet away. Weiss held his arm awkwardly with his other hand, wincing in pain.

Looks like Plan T was gonna have to do.

Natsu's arm immediately came up to block the woman's next attack as he turned his focus back to her. She was exceptionally skilled, immediately going for his weak points. He blocked her attacks automatically: throat strike, kick to the knee, punch at his ribs. She was good.

But she wasn't as good as him.

His boxing training fell by the wayside again as childhood muscle memory took over. He grabbed her wrist on her next attempted punch and shoved his palm into the outside of her elbow with full force behind it. The other pinkette cried out as the delicate bones of her arm snapped. Despite the pain and uselessness of her right arm, the woman struck out, spinning her body to give the high kick to his head the greatest impact possible. Natsu merely fell forward under it, landing on his hands and spinning to deliver her a kick of his own. The blow knocked her over; she was unable to catch herself and hold her broken arm immobile at the same time.

Like a practiced break dancer, Natsu finished his spin and dropped his legs to the side, ending upright. The pink-haired mercenary stared up at him wide-eyed. It was like she was looking at a ghost. The way he moved…

Natsu turned away, looking to see Gray and Weiss waiting for him, each pointing a gun at the woman. Seeing they had it in hand, he starting toward the door she'd originally been guarding. Already moving on in his true quest.

"It can't be…" she gasped, staring at him as he walked away. "You're...you're from Pergrande aren't you? Where did you learn that?! Who taught you to move that way?" Her words halted his motion. He turned back to her with a cold, pitiless glint in his eyes.

"I learned it in hell. From the devil himself." Her pupils shrunk to dots as she trembled. One word dropped from her lips as she used her legs to push herself away from him.

"Zeref?"

Natsu followed her, shoving her with the sheer force of his presence until her back was against the wall and she had nowhere left to run. Then he leaned down over her and sneered into her face.

"If you knew him, then you know what I can do to you." He plucked the radio clipped to her waistband and chucked it as far as he could down the hall. It hit the far wall and broke into multiple pieces, scattering over the plush carpeting muted thumps. She winced as he leaned closer. "Don't move, and I won't come back and kill you."

Without waiting for a response, he turned and walked past his grim companions. They traded a look.

Gray was stunned. Even when his roommate had lashed out during a flashback, he seemed more afraid than anything else. And when he'd avenged his friends previously he'd been angry, but never to the point of inhumane action. Gray had never seen Natsu quite like this.

But Weisslogia had.

So many years ago, Igneel's sergeant had been a key member in the raiding party to take down the famous warlord, Brother Zeref, and he had seen Natsu in action before Zeref himself had attempted to take his life. Only someone of his level could have touched him. It had been a stroke of luck that Zeref turned on Natsu when he did, and been distracted, or the two of them could have taken out Unit 777 without breaking a sweat. The blonde soldier twitched as a shiver went down his spine and fell into step behind the lithe pinkette, stalking down the hall as though he was a lion pacing its territory. Gray followed, brow furrowed and firearm held high.

As Natsu reached for the door, he felt a wave of adrenaline hit him from Lucy. She was massively panicking again. It halted him in his tracks, breaking him out of the reckless mindset that he'd fallen back into. It gave him a moment of clarity to think through what he was about to do.

Instead of barging into the room guns blazing, so to speak, he pulled a round black object and his lighter out of his pocket. Breathing deeply, he closed his eyes, freezing in place.

He stayed there for several seconds, just...breathing. Gray cleared his throat.

"Hey...you gonna do something with that, or what?"

"Shut up freezer burn. I'm getting in touch with Luce…" he trailed off as he started the process again, finding it really difficult to maintain his hazy mindset when her whole body was screaming at him to run or beat the shit out of everything. Finally, he heard Gajeel and someone he didn't recognize arguing. He knew he was back in her head and he opened his eyes.

Everything was still black. He blinked, trying to quell his own panic at his sudden blindness. He tried again, with the same result. Closing his eyes one more time, he whispered under his breath.

"Come on Lucy. I need to see what's going on."

And he opened his eyes again.

Thankfully, he didn't see black. But he didn't see the steady images he was used to seeing either. Instead they came in flashes. Images of a woman in her thirties tied to a chair while a man stood over her, holding something.

Then, a split second image of blood on the floor. Another of a little girl's feet from above, looking down. Another of the man, who looked a lot like Lucy, getting in her face. But what struck him more than any of the images was that he could feel her crying.

Natsu blinked, bringing a hand up to his face to wipe away the tear he felt, but finding nothing. It startled him. Was she not crying after all? His question went unanswered as he was broken out of his moment of confusion by Gray's impatience.

"Natsu, hurry the fuck up. They could come out any minute. What are you doing!?"

Natsu glared at him, still distracted by the feeling of tears running down his face where there weren't any. Under his breath, he spoke to her.

"Lucy. Hold your breath and run for the door when I say, ok?"

He got no response. But somehow, he knew she heard him. It was subtle. As though her heart skipped a beat or something. All he knew, was that she had reacted to his voice and he'd felt it. Content that she'd have warning, he lit the little bomb-shaped object in his hand, opened the door a crack and threw it in, closing the door behind it.

He gestured his companions back away from the door and they all waited.

A few tense moments later, a man and a woman burst from the room, surrounded by a thick cloud of smoke. They coughed as the smoke unfurled around them in the dark hallway, smearing the distinct lines between person and house. Gray and Weisslogia stepped forward, guns leveled at them. The two eventually realized their predicament and raised their hands, glaring at Weisslogia. He glared back.

Natsu ignored them all, taking a deep breath and rushing into the smoke filled room, staying low. Lucy should have left the room first. Unless she was restrained somehow. He glanced around in a panic. He searched the room, confused when it looked nothing like the sleek tiled room he'd seen through her eyes.

 _Tile...the bathroom!_ He rushed for the only other door in the room, bursting in to find it disappointingly empty. And also not the room he'd been expecting.

And, most importantly, no Lucy.

An open window let in a breeze that began to clear the air, pulling wisps of smoke apart like foam on the sea. He stuck his head out the window, but, unsurprisingly, she wasn't there either.

So where was Lucy?!

Natsu hurried back through the room, coming back out into the hallway without so much as coughing. He knew how to handle his own smoke.

The pinkette looked more closely at the two people who had rushed from the room and growled deep in his throat when he saw the man from his vision, the one beating the woman in the chair. He rounded on him, grabbing the lapels of his suit and slamming him against the nearest wall.

"WHERE'S LUCY!?" he yelled in his face, causing the older man to glare defiantly back at him. Had Natsu been in the mood to pay attention, he'd have seen the smallest hint of uneasiness in his eyes.

"I'd like to know that myself. Now get off me, vermin," the man snapped back, eyes blazing with hatred.

Natsu didn't back down. "What do you mean, you'd like to know? You were just with her!"

"No, I wasn't. I haven't seen my daughter since dinner. As you should have noticed, her room is empty." His sharply clipped words had two effects on Natsu.

One, he realized that the man in front of him, while the same one from his Lucy-vision, was much older, beginning to gray at his temples and heftier around the middle. Which only served to confuse him further.

A two, he finally figured out who the guy was. Without another word, he drew back his fist and punched Jude Heartfilia squarely across the face. And then did it again for good measure.

* * *

"And Monsieur Heartfilia did all of that to his own daughter?!"

"Yeah. Plus whatever fucked up thing he did in this room that's got her practically fucking catatonic," Gajeel replied. He set Lucy down on the small cot the French guy had set up. Apparently the room was stocked with a shitload of useful stuff. He was seriously going to build one of these into his own house someday. Fuck, maybe he'd just live in a giant panic house. Gajeel smiled at the thought, but quickly lost his mirth at a small, almost childlike, sound from his girlfriend's best friend. The blonde curled up, trembling with her eyes closed.

Gajeel ran a hand through his hair and gazed helplessly down at her. He was pretty sure she was having a flashback. He'd tried to shake her out of it, but the motion had just resulted in her screaming bloody murder and still not waking up, so he had opted for the wait and see route.

And he felt pretty useless. Levy was so much better as stuff like this. He found a part of him aching to talk to her. It was weird for him, but soulmates did that kind of thing...right?

"The man is a monster." The green-haired man came to stand beside him. Gajeel reflexively leveled the gun at him again, but the lithe man waved it away as though it were an unneeded formality, instead of a steel killing machine. "There is no need for such things. No money is worth carrying out the wishes of a man who would betray so deeply un si cher enfant."

Gajeel didn't know exactly what the man said, but he got the gist of it. He lowered the gun, tucking it back into the back of his jeans. The cold steel sent a shiver down his spine. "You got kids?"

"Non," he replied quietly. "Not anymore. I had a daughter once. Ma petite Sonya."

Gajeel didn't reply, merely watching the man. The deep sadness in his eyes had taken over the glint of humor he otherwise wore like protective armor. It was like seeing through a chink in that armor to the deep river of melancholy beneath. There was something so familiar about it.

"Help us then. We're here to tear the bastard a new one and make sure he can never hurt her again. Sound like something you'd be interested in?"

The green haired man beside him straightened to his full height and looked Gajeel in the eye. The noirette was surprised to see that the tech specialist was almost as tall as he was when he chose to be. "Possibly. What can I do?" He maintained the seriousness of the previous moment, not a hint of mirth evident.

Gajeel smiled grimly at him. Jude had made a serious mistake hiring this guy. One that would bite him in the ass. "Lucy is positive her shitty dad is doing something illegal. And that there will be proof on that computer. Think you can find anything?"

"Absolument," the green-haired man replied, the twinkle returning to his eye in an instant. "If there is something to find, I will certainly find it, no matter how much digging it takes!" He dragged over a box of supplies to replace his broken chair and began typing. Seeming to remember something, he grabbed a headset off the counter-turned-desk and motioned to Gajeel, tapping his ear before speaking into the microphone. "Mademoiselle Cyan? Are you still there?"

Gajeel grinned and pulled his phone from his pocket, shoving an earbud into his ear.

"-course I'm still here! You've been ignoring me for long enough! You'll be sorry! You'll rue the day you ever-"

"Lev, it's cool, he's with us now." Gajeel cut off her adorable tirade, knowing that she would keep it up forever unless someone stopped her. There was a beat of silence. Then several voices chimed in all at once.

"What?!"

Gajeel sighed. Why was he always the only one who knew what the fuck was going on? A blessing and a curse. He guessed being awesome had to have its downsides too: more work for him. "Alright everybody, listen up. I'm in the panic room with Lucy and the guy who was jacking our call. Turns out Heartfilia's an ass to everyone, so he switched sides. He's looking for the dirt on Lucy's dad as we speak."

"Well alright then! Nice work honey!" Levy's appreciative tone didn't do anything to hurt his recently inflated ego. "Then everyone report in and let's see what we're working with!"

"Red reporting in. Blue and I are patrolling the grounds. Entrances appear to be secure. Prisoners still…" There was a pause in which it sounded like there was a bit of scuffle and then a solid thwack. Erza continued as though nothing had happened, "...unconscious."

"Hey, it's Gray. I'm with Pink and another turncoat, we'll call him White. Turns out he knew Pink's dad? Weisslogia."

"No shit, Weiss is here? Punch him in the knee for me will ya?" Gajeel barked out fondly.

"Huh?" Gray responded.

"He'll know what it means."

"Whatever. Point is, we've taken out some pink-haired-" There was muttering as Gray took the phone away from his mouth, then came back. "Eh, I guess her name is Ikaruga. Anyway, she's down, and so is the other woman guarding Lucy's room. Plus, we've got Jude."

"Wait, seriously? What's his status?" Levy closed the game of solitaire she'd been playing on her computer and opened up a document to start taking notes. Keeping track of seven-plus people's movements in one's head wasn't easy. Or necessary.

"Currently? Unconscious. Though he's lucky he's not dead. Pink decked him full force in the head. Twice. If he'd actually thought it through and punched him somewhere not completely made of protective bone, like his neck, he'd be long gone."

"Well...okay then…"

"Hey, Black, you said you've got eyes on Lucy right?" Gray deliberately said the line as though he were trying to get a point through to a distracted kindergartner eavesdropping on the call.

Or just Natsu.

The next moment there was a scuffle with a lot of yelled insults and Natsu piped in. "Where's Lucy?!"

Gray could be heard in the background yelling, "Hey! You have your own phone! Give it back!"

"Panic room. I'd give you directions, but I have no idea how we got here. Lucy got us through the secret passages." Gajeel shrugged. They could figure it out. He'd already done most of their work for them anyway.

There was another muttered conversation in the background and then Natsu was back. "Got it. Weiss, I mean White, knows the way. See you soon." They could all hear the electronic click of the phone hanging up.

"Shit! I didn't get the chance to tell him about the guy trying to get in!" As though Gajeel's words had summoned him, there were several large bangs against the door. Sol clicked into a minimized window on his monitor and an image of the room containing the door to the panic room came into view. A stocky guy with long blonde hair stood holding a gun pointed at the door.

Apparently the door was, in fact, bulletproof.

Another six or so gunshots went off as they watched the tiny image of the man empty his clip into the door, despite the ricocheting bullets whizzing past him.

"And, uh, apparently he's armed…" Gajeel finished lamely, glad there was a solid steel door between them and the nutjob outside. "And fucking nuts."

"I'll try and get ahold of Gray and Nats-uh, Pink!" Levy replied immediately.

But it turned out she didn't need to. Gunshots weren't exactly inconspicuous.

Gajeel and Sol watched open-mouthed as Natsu busted into the room, a gun in hand, and promptly shot the man in one of his kneecaps before the he had even registered he had company. Natsu followed it up by taking the gun he'd dropped and hitting him upside the head with it, effectively knocking Zancrow unconscious.

Then he kicked him in the ribs. Just for good measure.

Sol slowly turned to look at Gajeel, swallowing heavily. "He's on our side, right?"

Gajeel nodded. Fuck, if he didn't know Natsu, he'd be scared shitless too. The look on his old friend's face made it clear he'd lost whatever patience he possessed. Which wasn't much. His eyes almost glowed with anger. "Open the door. Now."

Sol hesitated, eyeing the pink-haired man on his screen, but he eventually typed in the code needed and the slightly dented door slid open.

The minute he saw Lucy through the open doorway, Natsu forgot everything else. He dropped the guns he was carrying and stepped into the room. He recognized it immediately. The white tile, the steel surfaces. The now broken chair lying on the floor. It was definitely the room he'd seen through Lucy.

But the dying woman wasn't there. The blood was gone, and there was no younger cousin or whatever of Jude Heartfilia torturing Lucy, a child, or anyone else.

Suddenly, he remembered the one moment that had seemed out of place, and he figured it out.

The kid's feet. Lucy hadn't been looking down at a kid's feet. Those had been _Lucy's_ feet. A much younger Lucy.

Somehow, he'd seen her flashback.

Natsu's eyes shot wide and he almost tripped in his haste to get Lucy the fuck out of there. He picked her up and carefully carried her through the doorway, running as far away from the tiled box of horrors as he could get.

He passed the unconscious Zancrow, bleeding all over the floor.

He passed Gray and Weiss as they stood guard outside the door. Gray started to call out to him and tried to follow, but the older man stopped him with a hand on his shoulder.

Natsu kept on running, looking for somewhere she would feel safe. Eventually, he tried a random door, kicking it open. Luckily, it looked like a guest room or something.

Carefully, Natsu sat on the edge of the bed and settled Lucy on his lap, finally feeling the burn in his arms from carrying her. She shivered, whimpering slightly.

It nearly broke his heart to hear it.

"Oh Weirdo, what did he do to you?" he whispered as he wrapped his arms around her and pulled her tight against his chest. He hugged her tightly, his lips pressed into her neck. One hand ran endless circles over her back, keeping her securely against him as he subconsciously rocked her. But she didn't respond to any of it.

He closed his eyes and fell in with her breathing. He buried his other hand in her hair and willed himself to see what she was seeing.

This time, he didn't even need to open his eyes. After just a moment of darkness he was there with her.

 _Jude wiped his hands on a fluffy white towel, staining the monogrammed cotton with Grammi's blood._

" _Now Lucy, whose fault was this?"_

" _Mine, Father." Her voice sounded unbelievably small, in volume and in spirit._

" _Exactly. And what will you do in the future to keep this from happening?"_

" _I'll be good Father."_

" _Excellent. Are you going to tell anyone about this?"_

" _No Father."_

" _Good. Now, go back to bed. Your new governess will be here bright and early tomorrow."_

" _Yes Father."_

 _With that Lucy/Natsu were finally released, feeling more like prisoners than ever and walked down the long hallway alone, making it all the way back to her bedroom before collapsing._

 _But she still didn't cry._

 _Instead, she lay awake all night, terrified of what would happen if she cried over what she'd done to her beloved Grammi. The only one left to care about her._

A tear slid down Natsu's cheek and dropped into Lucy's hair as an identical tear ran down Lucy's cheek and fell on him, caught in the well of his collarbone.

"It's not your fault," Natsu whispered sadly to the silence, brokenhearted on her behalf. "You didn't do anything wrong. You were just a kid doing what kids do. He's a monster Lucy. He doesn't deserve to have someone as wonderful as you. Please don't blame yourself. It's not your fault."

More tears spilled from his eyes, unbidden, but it took the sound of a sniffle from Lucy for him to understand that they weren't his.

"Lucy? Are you awake?" Natsu tried to pull away to look at her, but her arms clamped around him and she dove in even closer. After a moment of trying to pry her loose, he gave up and leaned back, taking her with him and rolling them onto their sides, so at least he wouldn't have to balance her on his lap anymore.

She went full-on koala bear in less than a second, wrapping all four limbs around him with almost suffocating force. "Hey, Luce," he whispered into her hair, his arms winding their way around her again. "I'm not going anywhere, ok? I just want to look at you. Please."

Finally, she eased her grip enough to pull her head up, a tear or two still streaming down her face and dripping off her chin. He reached up to brush them away, avoiding the cut on her cheek she'd gotten from him as his thumb swiped across her silky skin. It lingered there as he stared deeply into her eyes. They stayed that way for what felt like forever, but in truth lasted only seconds.

"Natsu?" she murmured.

"Yeah?" he whispered back, exhaustion filtering through him as his adrenaline rush faded. His eyes closed. Just for a moment.

"Take me home?"

He chuckled. "That's the plan."

"Good. And...Natsu?"

"Yeah?" he said again, his eyelids fluttering open to look at her. He was transfixed by the sudden warmth in her eyes. It heated him from his nose to his toes. She was about to say something important. Something he'd remember forever.

"I lo-"

Natsu leaned across the inches between them and pressed his lips to hers. Drawing back, he gave her a grin that reflected back all the warmth in her eyes.

"Me too."

* * *

 **Ok, so, a little shorter than normal, and no cliffhangers this chapter, but still one to go to finish up the arc. We've got a few loose ends you have noticed need tying…**

 **It's pretty much just French translations this chapter...gonna have to throw out some references again next chapter...lol**

" **Qu'est-ce que c'est que ce bordel ?!"** \- "What the hell is going on?!"

" **un si cher enfant"** -"a most precious child" roughly...

" **Ma petite Sonya"** \- "My little Sonya." If anyone is wondering where I got Sonya, she's a character in the FT movie Dragon Cry. I won't say anymore for those who haven't seen it, but for some reason, I could totally see Sol as her dad in my universe.

" **Absolument"** \- "absolutely"

(these beautiful translations were provided by Google and fixed by blargolp (AKA kickassfuckingawesome French translator. yep one word. no shame.)


	39. Won't Run Anymore

**Yep, the final chapter of this arc is FINALLY UP. This chapter just kept sucking. So I rewrote it...a couple times...and now it is presentable (13,000 words later...) and, dare I say, actually enjoyable to read? Here's hoping. *fingers crossed*  
**

 **Enjoy! And drop me a line. These sticky chapters leave me in crazy review withdrawal…**

* * *

Loke was pretty damn proud of himself.

He zipped up his trousers and snuck a peek at the time on his phone. The ginger had to hold in a gleeful smile when he saw that he'd managed to give his friends a solid hour of guard-free time without getting caught. Gathering up his shirt he pulled it on as he glanced at his fellow deviant from the corner of his eye. Her enthusiasm certainly hadn't hurt the situation. He almost felt a little bad for taking advantage of her while she was on the clock. Part of him hoped she wouldn't get in too much trouble for ignoring her duties.

But there was something that tickled at his instincts about her. Something not quite right. She had a sharp edge to her, under the girly giggles, and there was a light in her eyes that he felt he should be scared of….

Loke brushed off the feeling. It didn't matter what her deal was. He'd probably never see her again. Which was the way he liked it. They'd had a good time, and he'd done his bit in the rescue effort; he called that a solid win. Swiping into his phone the cocky redhead double checked to make sure their communication call hadn't dropped. It looked like it was still going strong.

Loke turned around, phone still in hand, to shoot his latest conquest a parting panty-dropping smile and froze.

Instead of a petite, attractive Asian woman, he found an angry, white-haired, man with an eyepatch over one eye, and a gun barrel staring him in the face.

"Ahhhhh! So..um...I'm lost? From a party up the road?" Loke managed to get out with an uneasy grin as he held his hands up in surrender, forgetting he still held his phone.

"And I'm Santa Claus," the man responded.

Loke almost pointed out that with his long white beard, and white hair, he did sort of look like Santa...if St. Nick was a commando. He didn't get the chance however, as his phone was plucked from his hand.

Loke watched in a rising panic as the man put an earbud to his ear and listened. Within seconds, his single domineering eyeball rolled back to focus on Loke. "Your phone suggests otherwise. L, tie him up, he's with the hostile incursion team."

A familiar voice came from behind the man, her pout evident in the tone. "Shoot. Are you sure Hades? Just when I find a decent playmate I have to tie him up!"

Despite his panic, Loke shot her a grin as she ducked under Hade's gun arm. "I have no objections to being tied up." Even under the threat of being shot in the head, the ginger couldn't resist a setup that good.

His admirer giggled and pouted again at Hades. "See?! He's perfect!"

"Do it L."

"But he's so cute! Why do you have to ruin all my fun, Hades?" she whined, like a teenaged girl being told she couldn't have her phone at the dinner table.

"L, I swear to God, if you don't use my code-name, I will lock you in a suitcase and ship you to Pergrande." The man was already exhibiting signs of being exasperated. Loke wondered how the hell these two had ended up on the same team. They couldn't be more different.

"It's not like that's even your real name though. It would be pretty ironic, you being a Catholic and all. But there's no way your parents named you Ha-" Lamy cut herself off as the man in question turned sharply to glare her into silence with his one good eye. She shrank back and hushed up.

It didn't last long, the petite woman unable to stop herself from mumbling, "So much for Christian charity and goodwill…"

"JUST DO IT LAMY!"

Loke meekly presented his wrists to the small woman and winked at her. She might be an enemy, and she might be just a little bit off, but she was still a woman. And a fairly attractive one at that. Flirting would always be first nature to him.

Lamy, as he now knew was her name, gave him a sly smile and used a hank of rope from the satchel he hadn't noticed leaning against the wall to bind his wrists tightly together. She secured his feet in the same manner, tying a really impressive looking knot for each. Loke couldn't resist leaning in for just one more suggestive comment. "This isn't your first time, is it?"

While Lamy worked on binding their captive, Hades flipped the power back on to the monitor, which had been rerouted to stored solar power, and examined the footage of the house and its surroundings. He didn't seem to like what he saw, since he immediately prepared to leave the gatehouse. "L, guard the prisoner. If he isn't exactly where I left him when I get back, there will be hell to pay. Understood?"

"Aye-aye captain!" Lamy chirped. She saucily pushed the thoroughly tied-up Loke to the floor and stood over him, hands on her hips. "He's not going anywhere."

Hades hesitated, but eventually just sighed and left the guardhouse without saying anything else.

"Sooo…looks like I'm your prisoner then..." Loke purred, playboy charm fully restored with their angry chaperone gone again. "Know any good time-killing activities we could do?"

* * *

Mystogan watched the white-haired commando leave the guard house and tightened his hold on Erza as she pulled against him in an effort to follow the stranger. After an argument over what to do that had been getting too loud, Mystogan had put one hand over her mouth and used the other to pull her arm behind her back. His hands felt like they were going to break holding up against her strength, but he managed. Barely. When the man was out of sight he released his hold.

Erza immediately turned on him.

"What the hell are you doing? Why didn't we stop him?!" she whispered fiercely, preparing to head through the brush after the man in charge. Mystogan darted out and grabbed her wrist again with a sigh before she could get too far.

"As I explained before, he's heavily armed. With guns. Which we don't have. The guys inside are better equipped to handle him! And besides that, Loke needs us to rescue _him._ I'll text Levy and let her know that that Hades guy has Loke's phone and that he's headed toward the rest of the team. And then we can do what we're needed for out _here_."

Erza stared defiantly into his eyes for almost thirty seconds, willing him to back down. Mystogan kept his face blank even as panic broke out behind his sedate gaze. A battle of wills with the Titania was no meager feat. But he wasn't about to let her go running off after a man that he'd counted carried no less than four firearms. Not if she had nothing but a sword and a few knives to defend herself. His resolve hardened. He was making the right decision for both of them.

Finally, she sagged in defeat.

"Fine. Text Levy. I'm going to go free Loke from that little girl." Erza stalked off in the opposite direction from Hades.

Mystogan let the breath he'd been holding out and sent a quick text to Levy, letting her know the situation. He had just hit send when the gunshot went off.

"Shit!" He took off at a run through the trees toward the sound, trying not to imagine the worst.

* * *

Levy's fingers flew over the digital keys as she relayed what Mystogan (Blue, as he was set in her phone) had sent her to the rest of the team. Hopefully, with a little advance warning, they'd be able to get the jump on the leader of the enemy team.

 _Attention! Orange has been captured. Red and Blue are mounting a rescue, but Hades is heading your way in a hurry. Don't say anything important over the call. He's got Orange's phone. But don't stop talking either. We can't let him know we know he knows!_

After hitting send, Levy carefully cleared her throat and inquired of Sol over the phone call if his boss understood French.

"Non, non, non."

"Excellent."

And with that, she and Sol began discussing what he had found so far and how they were going to get it to Levy, with the added benefit of filling the phone line with nonsense to everyone else on the line.

Levy grinned as her new friend explained his plan. She couldn't do much against military-trained fighters, but she sure as hell wasn't going to do nothing.

* * *

Gajeel finished reading Levy's text and frowned.

"Gray, go get the idiot. Bunny Girl better be normal again, cuz we're out of time," he called out the door of the panic room, careful to cover the mic on his phone and Sol's. The Frenchman flinched away from the hand entering his field of vision, but just muttered something insulting in his native language and copied another incriminating file he'd found to the digital dropbox where Levy could grab it and save it to her laptop. His lip curled a bit at the latest evidence. Monsieur Heartfilia had no originality. So far, according to the one they called Gray, he'd imitated every famous business scam perpetrated in the last thirty years. He'd even pulled the one from Office Space. Unoriginal to the extreme. But the really horrendous thing was how he was getting away with it. Sol shook his head and just kept transferring files.

Gray nodded back at Gajeel, clicking out of the messaging app on his own phone, having read the same message. He turned to Weisslogia.

"What's up kid?" he said casually. Gray showed him the message on his phone, then tapped his ear and replied.

"Looks like we're just about ready to head out with Lucy. Just gonna go grab a smoke."

Weisslogia nodded back, pulling out his firearm. "Those things'll kill ya kid."

"So they tell me." Gray muted his phone and put it in his pocket. "I'm going to get Natsu and Lucy. Keep an eye out until we get back. Give a shout if you see anyone coming before I get back."

Weiss gave him a lazy salute and pulled a toothpick from his pocket, working the thin piece of wood with his tongue. It was a habit he'd picked up from Igneel. Always better to have something other than your tongue to bite down on when the action got going. Or something to spit in the face of your enemy. Whichever was needed.

Gray took off down the hall to track down his idiotic roommate and their damsel in distress.

And she'd sure been in distress. It had been a shock seeing Lucy like that: so frail and helpless. It wasn't what he'd come to anticipate from the blonde. He'd half-expected her to snap at Natsu when he rushed in to pick her up. To complain. To insist she could take care of herself.

She was always saying things like that. That she could take care of herself.

 _Apparently not._

He remembered the desperation and relief when she'd latched onto Natsu. Like he was her lifeline. A pang of jealousy reared its green-eyed head at the thought. Would he ever have someone look at him like that? Was that even normal without something like the bond tying two people together? He was starting to think being around all of these soulmates was giving him unrealistic expectations. Although, it was new to him to have expectations at all...

He trailed down the hall, looking for signs of the couple and wondering.

* * *

"Me too."

Natsu's words hung in the air around them as Lucy stopped breathing, her heart running a mile a minute to compensate. He hadn't given her the chance to say it, and he hadn't _really_ said it either, but the magnitude of what they'd just _not_ said surrounded them in a pressurized bubble of intensity. For just a moment they were frozen in silence, just smiling at each other.

Then the bubble popped and they were frantically grasping at each other, lips and tongues meeting harsher than before, but no less sincerely. They clung and pulled, struggling to get impossibly closer. The fire in Lucy's veins heated her blood, warming the farthest cold corners of her mind and washing away the last vestiges of panic.

Natsu's hand slid up her back, finding its way under the back of her nightgown so he could feel the heat of her silky skin under his hand. Lucy moaned at the feeling, the sound reverberating in his own vocal chords and tickling out a low rumble of his own.

The sound of it thrilled Lucy to her bare toes and they curled in response, her leg timidly sliding up his calf to hook around his thigh, a gentle parody of the frantic marsupial-like grip she'd surrendered only moments before.

As though her movement had been some kind of silent signal, Natsu immediately responded, wrapping a strong hand around her knee, pulling it up to his waist and rolling on top of her in a smooth motion that had them both moaning at the feeling of their hips smashing together in a new and wonderful way.

Which, of course, was when Gray busted into the room.

"Natsu! Lucy! You've got to get out here right now, we've…" He noticed the compromising position they were in. "...got a..." His eyebrows came down and he glared at Natsu. "...problem... _Seriously_ man? NOW? What the fuck is wrong with you!?"

Lucy gasped and stiffened, closing her eyes while she tried to get her heart under control. Natsu glared back at Gray and rolled off of her. "What the fuck is wrong with _you_?! We were obviously having a private fucking moment, dickhead!"

"A private moment? You've got to be kidding me. This is not the time or the place, you idiot! We aren't home-free yet. Which you would know if you weren't thinking with your dick instead of the pathetic excuse for a brain you keep in your head."

"Don't get me started, assho-" Natsu leapt off the bed ready to deck his cockblocking roommate, when he was halted in his tracks by a small, firm hand grasping his arm.

"What's wrong Gray?" Lucy said seriously over the pinkette's shoulder. Natsu resisted the automatic urge to turn and look at her, keeping his glare on Gray instead. She slid her hand down his arm, twining their fingers together as she came to stand beside him.

"Yeah, Gray, what the fuck did you guys screw up in the five fucking minutes I was gone? Everything was going great." _Except Lucy,_ he corrected himself in his head. Natsu peeked at her out of the corner of his eye and felt his muscles relax a bit. The scared little girl he'd carried away from her nightmares was gone, replaced again by the strong, beautiful woman he'd come to love. It was a relief to see she was back to normal again. Or close to it. There was a slight tremble to her still. He rubbed the back of her hand with his thumb in response.

"Unfortunately, one thing actually wasn't going so great." Gray had both of their attentions immediately. "They've got Loke. And the head guy is on his way to us."

"Shit," Natsu responded. "Leave it to the perv to get himself captured."

Lucy eyed her soulmate skeptically before asking,

"Uh...guys? Who's Loke again?"

* * *

Loke stared up at the woman he'd spent the last hour or so very pleasantly fucking, bewildered beyond belief. One minute, she'd been giggling at some ridiculously smooth comment he'd been making and then Erza Scarlet had shown up and the next minute it was like Lamy's Crazy Dial had been turned up to 11(for when she just needed that extra push over the cliff). Instantly her mirth left her, her mien instead filled with unmerited hate. The force of her enmity was almost a tangible thing.

Erza had even taken an involuntary step backwards at the sudden change, feeling a chill overtake her. The bloodlust was practically rolling off of the small woman's frame as she stared the redhead down. Then, fast as lightning, she'd pulled her gun and fired off a shot. Luckily, Erza was just as fast, diving forward and rolling forward to kick the gun from her hand.

"You bitch!" Lamy screamed at her, throwing herself at the redhead with bloody intention.

Loke could only watch in shocked silence. Apparently there was a hell of a lot of crazy shoved into her cute little body. And Erza was all it took to bring it out.

"How many times do I have to tell you not to stick your dick in crazy Loke?" Mystogan's exasperated voice, coming from right above him, jolted Loke out of his horrified daze to discover the bluenette nonchalantly leaning into the open window above his head, chin propped up on his hand. His voice was casual, if a bit breathless, but his eyes were worried as they flickered to Erza every few moments.

"It's not like I picked her out of a crowd! I had to do my part for the team!" Loke's defensive tone dropped into something a little cockier as he continued. "But I'll never say I regret it. She was a freak in the sack."

The sound of Lamy shrieking a battle cry as she threw herself at Erza again drew their attention back to the fight.

"No Loke, she's just a freak," Mystogan sighed and took the hat/muffler combo off his head to get a breath of fresh air. "One of these days you're going to nail a chick who isn't happy to go your separate ways and then you'll be tied up in some girl's basement wondering where you life went wrong."

Loke hummed to himself. "I don't know, that doesn't sound so bad to me… As long as I've got my cell, you guys could always perform another rescue mission, right?"

Mystogan didn't even bother pointing out that he'd already lost his phone. Clearly, there was no winning this argument.

* * *

Gajeel and Weisslogia stood side-by-side, facing the door to the hallway, their prisoners at their backs.

"You know, it occurs to me, how do we know you're not some kind of double agent in all this?" the black-haired man casually said to the blonde one. They were both holding a gun in each hand, preparing themselves for Hades' arrival. Gajeel shifted restlessly. He'd never been a huge fan of guns. But he wasn't stupid enough to bring a crowbar to a gunfight. Hundreds of action movies had shown what happened to guys who did stupid shit like that. "I mean, an hour ago, you were the enemy. And Natsu straight up can't stand your son, so there really isn't any guarantee you're not playing us all for fools."

"Guess you'll have to take my word for it," Weiss replied, checking the sight on the second gun he'd picked up from where Natsu had dropped it. "It's not like there's any way for me to prove it more than I have." He eyed the tattooed man next to him, a little creeped out by the way the panther on his shoulders had a tendency to follow him with its eyes. Sting had been hinting at wanting a tiger tattoo, but now he was thinking of withdrawing his approval. Maybe he could get a stylized tiger or something...without eyes...

"Then, if it's all the same to you, I'm not gonna trust you not to shoot me in the back when I'm not looking." Gajeel's words brought Weisslogia back to the situation at hand, sending a chill down his spine. For a second it was like looking into his old comrade's eyes. The man's father had been just as untrusting.

"I would expect nothing less of Metalicana's son," Weiss returned, the tension in the air multiplying at his words. Suddenly both men were sizing the other up, flexing muscles unnecessarily in the process. They were oblivious to anything else.

Brandish, handcuffed next to her employer on the floor behind them, eyed them with disdain.

 _Men._

They would never stop having pissing contests. But, today, that trait was paying off for her. She carefully pulled the long thin metal barrette she wore out of her hair and snapped it into pieces. Taking one of those pieces she slid it into the ratcheting part of the furry hand cuff on her left wrist and pushed while pulling out on the mechanism. Smooth as butter, the cuff slid silently open. Repeating the procedure on her right wrist, she removed the cuffs and started to untie the silk cord curtain tie-backs wrapped around her ankles.

Amateurs the lot of them.

* * *

Levy rubbed her tired eyes as she dragged the newest document into her files and emailed a copy to her school email like she had with all the others. She wasn't taking any chances. Multiple copies, multiple places. Even if they managed to get her laptop, she'd still have copies of all the many shitty things Jude was doing. Or, at least she assumed he was doing, due to the sheer number of files Sol was sending her way. She hadn't had a chance to look into any of them yet.

Did they really need them _all_? It seemed like they had more than enough to blackmail him with now.

Idly, she double-clicked on the file she'd just sent and opened it up. The screen filled with numbers in a table, the Excel document in front of her obviously some kind of ledger. She couldn't even begin to understand what all of it meant, but Gray had taken a look (who knew he was an accounting major? It sounded way too boring for the stoic noirette, in her opinion) and assured her anyone in the know could convict him of half a dozen crimes from that evidence alone.

She closed the document and looked through her collection of files. Most were Excel documents too, but there was a whole batch of photo files Jude had labeled "Leverage". That sounded promising (and stupidly labelled). She pulled a bag of potato chips from her bag to munch on and double-clicked on the icon.

An image immediately took up most of her screen. Levy dropped her bag of chips as her fingers lost direction from her brain.

The high resolution image featured a younger, maybe sixteen-year-old, Lucy sitting on the lap of a middle-aged man who could be her father or uncle, but clearly wasn't. They were in what looked like a fairly high class hotel lobby, and the look on the man's face was anything but familial. The placement of his hand was less so. Levy went to click out of the picture and noticed a scroll bar down the side. She pulled the bar down a bit. More pictures in the same setting unfolded into a clear story. At first glance, it just looked like a beautiful young woman being seduced by an older man. Only someone who really knew Lucy would suspect she was underage. She'd developed early. For once, Levy didn't think she'd gotten the better end of the deal in the cleavage department.

It was the perfect trap.

"Oh Lucy…" Levy whispered. She knew her friend's dad had made her do terrible things, but she hadn't known he'd stoop so low as to pimp out his own daughter. She winced and scrolled to the bottom of the pictures. It was hard to look at. The last picture in the line was the most damning. An uncomfortable Lucy pulling away as the man groped her in the shadows.

 _Lucy, what did he make you do?! She's always said she's still a virgin, so he didn't go that far...but…_

On a hunch, she clicked back out of the pictures to reread the file name. Confirmed in her theory, she scanned the names of the other image files and whistled softly.

JudgeDoma . jpg, OfficerNadal . jpg, CommrBelno . jpg, DAOrg . jpg…

The list went on and on.

Her laptop trilled at her, alerting her that Sol had sent her more of Jude's dark secrets. There were several more spreadsheet documents and another image file. The title of that photo file caught her attention immediately.

KingToma . jpg

"Holy-large-scale-corruption-Batman…" Levy whispered to herself, barely resisting looking at that particular set of pictures. It was no wonder Jude had kept Lucy under lock and key until she turned eighteen. She was the keeper of his Get-Out-of-Jail-Free card. Every high-ranking male who had never thought twice about feeling up a hot, blonde "piece of ass" was under Jude's thumb. Any one of those files released to the press could destroy that man's career.

The laws against having relations with a minor were harsh in Fiore. Harsher even than most other countries. The previous king had felt very strongly about it and pushed almost an excessive amount of legislation through parliament. Not that anyone had resisted. If there was one thing politicians everywhere could agree on, it was the sacred nature of their children.

Levy frowned. Jude was smarter than she'd been giving him credit for. He was also more vile than she could have imagined, of course, but she couldn't deny he had a modicum of wily intelligence behind his detestable actions.

She itched to bring his house of cards tumbling down around him. All it would take was one well-placed anonymous letter to the press and a usb drive full of evidence, and _all_ the pervy bastards would go down. But there was Lucy to consider. If this information got leaked, she'd be subpoenaed in court cases across the country. Everyone would know who she was, what she looked like, and the details of every horrible thing he'd made her do.

Levy could never do that to her. Lucy just desperately wanted to be normal, and no matter how much the blunette wanted to metaphorically grind his face into the dirt with the size-six rubber heel of her Converse high tops, she would resist, to keep her friend from being dragged into it.

So she shook off her vengeful thoughts and forced a small smile instead. They were halfway to a successful Operation True Freedom; obtaining proper blackmail material had been as essential a part of the plan as getting Lucy out was. It was the only way to keep it all from happening again, or Jude from coming after them. And now they had it.

Levy's laptop trilled again and more documents popped up. She squared her shoulders, popped open her bag of chips, and got back to work. For now, she was doing her part. Everything else could wait until they had Lucy safely away from her father.

* * *

Mystogan finished cutting through the ropes on Loke's wrists with one of the giant knives they'd taken from Erza's first opponent.

"There you go. Your hands are free," he ventured.

But it fell on deaf ears. Loke was far too distracted by the fight going on beside them. Mystogan wasn't sure how Erza had managed to disarm her opponent, or even how the petite woman was keeping up with the redhead in hand to hand combat, but from the sound of things the fight seemed to be evenly matched. While the blueberry found the fighting interesting, Loke seemed to be more distracted by the fact both women had stripped down to their sports bras to duke it out.

They stood just outside the gatehouse as Mystogan sawed away at the ropes on the ginger's feet. He couldn't even begin to untie the knots the crazy bitch had put there. Though, he had to admit, Loke hadn't had much trouble getting out of the small building all tied up. The bluenette tried not to think about what kind of practice it took to move comfortably while bound tightly hand and foot. He just didn't want to know.

"And done. You're free at last," he quipped as he sliced through the last holdout threads. Still no response.

A little drool trickled out of Loke's open mouth as his head moved with the action happening in front of him. Mystogan rolled his eyes and stood to see what could _possibly_ evoke that reaction from a grown man. Even if it was the house perv.

To his everlasting shame, he was drawn in immediately. He'd come much too late in the fight to see Erza in action the first time. Seeing her exercising the full lengths of her abilities to fend off the other woman was like viewing a Van Gogh, or watching one of Natsu's fireworks shows; pure art in movement.

After five or so minutes of silent staring, Mystogan closed his mouth. His throat was getting dry. He cleared it, coughing a bit.

Loke reached behind him through the gatehouse door without looking and pulled out a bottle of something with kanji all over the label.

"What is that?" Mystogan queried, dragging his eyes away from the magnificent site of Erza kicking ass to examine the label. Though his eyes veered back almost immediately when he felt her muscles pull at the barely scabbed-over wound running down his own chest. He tried not to worry about it. If she wasn't feeling any more pain than he was, she'd be fine.

"No clue. It's pretty good though." Loke didn't bother to look away from the fight to answer. The blunette pulled the cork out of the bottle and took a swig of the potent liquor inside. The burning sensation of the tepid liquid going down his throat was surprising. After five plus years in a fraternity, he thought he'd tried just about every liquor straight-up at some point. But this was a whole new level of gut-melting alcohol content, with a strangely unique taste. He coughed a bit, handing the bottle back to Loke and returning his attention to his girlfriend. "We should definitely not be drinking that."

"Yep," Loke agreed as he took a swig of his own and handed the bottle back to Mystogan. His tone changed to something more like speculation. "I'd totally do the two of them together. Just imagine the results of that kind of fierce competition…" Loke trailed off dreamily, picturing things that Mystogan could only guess at. If he had wanted to. Which he didn't.

The blunette tweaked Loke's broken nose violently for mentioning that he'd like to fuck Erza and then tilted his head while the ginger screamed and continued as though nothing out of the ordinary had happened. "I don't know. That chick is still seriously giving me the crazy vibe…"

Just then, Lamy flew their way, sliding on the gravel and landing on her back staring up at them. Taken off guard, they both just stared down at her. Suddenly the fury practically glowing from Lamy's eyes flipped to a happy glow and she squealed. "Oh my gods, you're ADORABLE! I'd do the both of you together sometime if you want." Erza chose that moment to aim a particularly vicious stomp at her head, which she narrowly dodged, the evil gleam taking over her eyes again. "That's it! I'm gonna fucking kill you, you big-boobed cunt!" And she threw herself at Erza again with twice the fervor.

"Nope. I was wrong. You guys are perfect for each other," Mystogan deadpanned, taking another drink. Lamy came rolling toward them again, Loke casually lifting a foot and pushing her back into the fight as he replied.

"I know, right?!"

* * *

Hades stalked down the hallway, trying to figure out where it had all gone wrong. He had a team of professional killers at his beck and call, and somehow they'd been overtaken by a bunch of teenagers and twenty-somethings in a matter of hours. He swore he'd fire them all and hire a new team when this ridiculous ordeal was over.

Up ahead, where he expected to find it, Jude's door had a faint glow of light coming from under it, more consistent than a flashlight would be. He silently drew both guns he carried and crept up to the door, the plush carpet all but completely concealing his approach.

In a flash, he grabbed the knob and threw the door open, raising his guns as he stepped into the room.

He was met with the barrels of three guns. Two, coming from his own employee, codename W, AKA the traitor. The last one came from a tall, black-haired beast of a man, who had the gun in his other hand trained on the blonde beside him.

Which made Hades raise an eyebrow.

Quickly he divided his weapons between the two men and held his breath. Weiss, admittedly not the quickest guy in the brains department, finally seemed to realize that the other guy was pointing a gun at him too.

"Seriously? You're doing this now?!" He shifted his stance and aimed one of his guns at the black-haired man with an exasperated sigh, keeping his attention on Hades. "This is ridiculous."

"Call it whatcha want. I told you I don't trust ya," the man barked back at him. Hades' eyes darted back and forth between them, hoping to find a weak spot he could exploit. Unfortunately, both men were just as vigilant. The three stared each other down in silence.

Growing curious about what could be happening on the other side of the now closed steel door protecting him, Sol peeked through the little bullet proof window.

It looked like a scene out of a spaghetti Western. What was with these Fioreans and their inability to fight conservatively without all the flash? With a scoff, he returned to his computer and kept working. He was doing more with his keyboard than they could ever achieve with their silly guns.

Just outside the steel door, below the sightlines of the French voyeur's porthole to the action, Brandish and Jude Heartfillia crawled slowly around the edges of the room on their hands and knees. She'd tried to get Zancrow out too, but he had been knocked out cold. And frankly, she didn't like him all that much. He was the idiot who thought he could shoot through a bulletproof door after all. He'd made his bed, he could sleep in it as far as she was concerned.

Suddenly, her knee connected with something smooth instead of plush. Brandish shifted her weight to her other knee and found a smartphone lying on the carpet with a set of earbuds trailing off of it. When she picked it up and turned it over, she saw the Punisher case of the one they called 'Black''s cell phone. A sharky grin spread across her face and she tucked the phone into her pocket, following at the agonizingly slow pace she'd set to escape detection.

Jude and Brandish made it to the door to the door to the servants hallways and made their escape.

* * *

Natsu and Lucy walked behind Gray as he led the way back to Jude's bedroom. They were still wrapped in a warm bubble of sentiment, the glow of admitting that they loved each other coloring the situation a bit brighter than it would otherwise be. Neither could find it in themselves to worry about what happened next. They were together again, and starting to learn that everything was better when they were together.

Natsu tugged Lucy closer and threw an arm around her neck, nuzzling the top of her head as he breathed her scent in deeply. In many ways, the bond made it impossible to truly be alone, but seeing Lucy's empty apartment had planted a tiny seed of loneliness in his gut he'd been struggling to ignore. He didn't realize just how unfulfilling it was to see through her eyes until he'd seen her beautiful brown eyes staring back at him. It was a sight he now knew to be precious. And he'd protect it with his life. He hummed into her hair and slowed his pace a bit, for the first time in his life trying to prolong the time before he would be thrown into another fight.

"Natsu? Is everything ok?" Lucy queried, noticing his change in pace. His fingertips, trailing languidly from the arm around her neck brushed against the exposed skin of her collarbone and her skin erupted with heat. She prayed he wouldn't notice how red she probably was in the darkness of the hallway.

"It's perfect," he replied, planting a kiss on her head. She laughed openly at his statement.

"Your definition of perfect is a little different than mine," she giggled.

"And mine," Gray muttered under his breath, unnoticed by the couple behind him. He knew what Natsu meant; who wouldn't feel like the world had righted itself with his soulmate safe in his arms? But they were far from out of the fire.

None of them noticed the door creak open behind them and the middle-aged woman step out into the hall, hands planted on her hips.

"And what is the meaning of this? Who are you brats and where are you taking Miss Heartfilia?"

Lucy immediately lost her glow at the sound of her long time governess standing right behind her. Immediately her mind went into recovery mode, starting to catalog the things that could be pissing the woman off:

-She was alone in the company of men.

-In her nightgown and pajama pants that didn't match (it was actually a crapshoot as to what would piss her off more, not wearing pants or wearing ones that didn't match).

-In the dark, in the middle of the night.

And that was just the list of things that Aquarius knew about. Lucy's skin become uncomfortably warm thinking about what she and Natsu had been doing only moments before. Alone _together_. In bed.

Natsu's arm tightened around her and suddenly her apprehension fizzled out.

Wait, why was she panicking?

She didn't have to listen to Aquarius anymore. She didn't have to listen to her father anymore. Tonight was the night she left behind her former life forever. The adrenaline pulsing through her prompted Natsu to tilt her face up to him until he meet her bright eyes with his own. He couldn't help but grin as she gently pushed him away and turned to face her former governess alone. She looked so...alive. Her sense of purpose illuminated her features even in the dim lighting.

Natsu blinked and suddenly he was somewhere else entirely.

 _He stood beside his blonde-haired warrior goddess, with her crew running amok behind her and felt proud that she'd chosen him. Every time he didn't think he could take the criticism, or the jokes from his comrades, or the inadequacy of being below the rank of his lover, he'd look at_ his _Artemisia and he'd convince himself that he was lucky. That determination and drive like hers made her more beautiful than anyone else could ever be. The light in her eyes would sustain him._

Natsu blinked repeatedly, coming back to the present at the sound of Lucy's voice. It took him a second to readjust to the version of Lucy hiking up her too large pajama pants instead of the drape-y toga thing she'd been wearing. _Wait...men's pajama pants._ His eyes narrowed. Where had she gotten those?

"These are my friends. And they're taking me home. So back the fuck off." Lucy's heart swelled with righteous joy as she told off Miss Aquarius. It felt so good not to be afraid.

"Don't be ridiculous. You're already home. Finally. Don't make me get your father. I don't know what he'll do if you persist in this ridiculous farce, but it won't be good," Aquarius snapped.

"How can you call this a home? My father wouldn't know what a home was if it bit him in the ass." Lucy's eyes blazed as Aquarius became like smooth marble: impenetrable, immovable, and confident in her faultlessness. It was a look Lucy knew well.

In the past, it had meant the end of the argument, no exceptions. It had meant she would be hauled before her father and face his terrifying disapproval. But today, it didn't scare her.

"He's a heartless son of a bitch who hasn't really loved me a day in his life."

"You should be ashamed of yourself. You have everything you could ever want in life. Your father has done whatever was necessary to give you that. He has earned your respect. This is not how a lady beha-"

"Have you _met_ my father?" Lucy interrupted in disbelief. "You're more fucking delusional than I thought if you think he does anything for anyone but himself. I'm a tool to him. Property to be used and managed."

"There are worse ways to live, brat." Aquarius spat the words, her eyes flashing for a moment as she struggled to keep her composure. "You should be grateful for all you have."

"Fuck you. And my father. I'm fucking done with you."

Like lightning, Aquarius' hand snapped out and slapped Lucy across the face. Natsu and Gray each started forward, the former ignoring the harsh sting of the strike on his cheek. Lucy held up a hand, halting them in their tracks. It was clear she wanted to handle the woman on her own. Both remained tense, but stayed put, sharing a glance of silent agreement. If it looked like Lucy was going to get hurt, she could complain from behind their solid fists.

Aquarius' face was a twisted mask of hate and resentment, righteous indignation flowing off of her.

"You ungrateful brat! You're nothing to anyone but a disappointment. Your body's the only valuable thing about you, and you still couldn't figure out how to use that without help. I hate you so much! No matter what I do, you won't just do what I tell you! You were a worthless child and you're a worthless adult. I really feel bad for your father in all this. If he had any other children, I'm sure he would have abandoned you years ago. He should have done so anyway." She paused before delivering the final blow with venom. "This must come from your _mother's_ side of the family."

During Aquarius' scathing words, Gray heard shouting coming from the phone in his pocket. He grabbed the earbud hanging out of it and stuck it in his ear. Levy's voice immediately yelled at him over the line.

"HOLD UP THE PHONE SO WE CAN HEAR WHAT'S HAPPENING!"

Gray winced. "Shit Lev-er.. Cyan? You don't need to yell!"

"Oh, you're there now. Awesome! What's going on? I could hear Lucy yelling at someone and then like every third word."

"Yeah, she's having it out with Aquarius. Like, she just slapped Lucy across the face," Gray narrated under his breath.

Lucy lowered her hand and rubbed her affronted cheek, meeting the unapologetic eyes she was so intimately familiar with. "Thank you," she said evenly, not a hint of her inner turmoil or excitement showing. Faster even than Aquarius' had been, her fist lashed out, her whole body twisting into the hit with all the fury she'd been building up inside of her for years. Her knuckles connected solidly and the blunette stumbled back with the force behind the blow. "It made it _so_ much easier to do that."

Natsu flexed his hand, silently making a note to teach her softer places to punch in the future. Her hands didn't have the callouses his did.

"And Lucy totally just punched her in the face!" Gray continued.

"Hold up the phone and put it on speaker already!"

"Oh...sure…" Gray fiddled with his phone and pulled out his earbuds.

Brandish slowed as she went down the grand staircase, listening to the drama unfolding in her ear. She longed to turn around and race back into the house, her blood boiling at the sound of the blonde's voice. Jude Heartfilia didn't seem to notice her change of pace as she lagged slightly behind him.

Lucy stepped forward as Aquarius stumbled back, shocked that Lucy had actually hit her back.

"What kind of twisted, superficial shrew would feel bad for my father? He deserves to burn in hell for the things he's done! You don't even know the HALF of it! But you know what? It doesn't matter what you think. You're as bad as he is. You deserve each other. And more importantly, NEITHER OF YOU SCARE ME ANYMORE! I've spent years cowering from you and my father and the threat of what he would do if I didn't behave! And, do you even have any idea what that threat was? What he DID to me?! He beat the ONLY person who still loved me to death in front of me and told me it was my fault! I WAS TEN YEARS OLD! Did Grammi deserve what he did to her?! WAS SHE _WORTHLESS_ TOO, YOU IGNORANT DICKHEAD!"

Gray, stunned to hear what her father had done to her, but not really surprised, still couldn't help but comment on her choice of words to the pinkette beside him. "She should spend less time with you. The stupid's rubbing off."

Natsu just shrugged, unable to contain a proud smirk. "Shut up dickhead."

His amusement was short lived.

Everyone listening to the fight went silent as Lucy's screamed accusation reverberated through the air. Even Hades, Gajeel, and Weisslogia, beginning to feel the strain of holding guns in mid-air for too long all looked toward the faint sound coming through the open door.

Brandish stopped dead in her tracks, eyes narrowing in on the back of the man standing in front of her as she fought to breathe. Her head spun and her vision blurred. Every part of her felt numb. Her hands clenched until she punctured crescents in her hands with her nails. With her heart pounding in her hears she swayed.

 _No...that can't be right. It was Lucy's fault...  
_

Aquarius supported her thoughts with her rebuttal, "That's just some rumor started by the staff. It goes to show that you don't have a leg to stand on that you're dragging that out again. I'm disappointed brat. You were never a liar."

"She's not lying." Natsu's voice cut through the tension in the room as he stepped up beside Lucy. He longed to take her hand, but her hands were clenched into fists. Her knuckles were turning white. The tension rolled off of her in waves and he could feel hot tears pushing from behind her eyes. One touch and she'd lose it. He continued, concern in his eyes. "I thought you knew her. Lucy would never lie about something like that. Not after what happened to her own mother."

His words silenced Aquarius, the blue-haired woman pausing at what he said. Because what she herself had said in passing was true. Lucy Heartfilia was a worthless brat, but she wasn't a liar. And the brat had worshiped her mother. Slowly, doubt crept into Aquarius' mind. Whispers from the staff over the years and moments of cruelty from Jude that pushed the boundaries of the gray area she'd learned to live in over the years surfaced unbidden in her mind.

"Oh my gods…could it be true?" she whispered to herself.

As Aquarius stood there, stubbornly trying not to believe what even her own mind was telling her was fact, Lucy let it all go. She took a deep breath and let is out, un-clenching her fists and grabbing Natsu's hand. Together, they walked away, Gray trailing after them. She'd said what she needed to say and she was going home.

The phone slid from Brandish's numb fingers as Aquarius' words reached her, barely decipherable. The arrogant man in front of her didn't even stop when the device hit the cement of the veranda with a clack, the patter of the earbuds following after. Her eyes glared holes into his back as she reached for the spare firearm she'd picked up from her room on the way out of the house. Without hesitation, she cocked it and pressed the barrel against the nape of the neck in front of her. And with the feeling of cold steel on his skin, Jude Heartfilia finally noticed something was wrong.

* * *

There was a lot Brandish Myu's team didn't know about her.

They didn't know that she had a soft spot for giant plushies.

They didn't know about her stint doing porn right after she left the army.

And they didn't know that despite her vast sexual experience, she had never had a relationship last for more than a week.

But, perhaps, the most important and relevant thing they didn't know about her was that she had grown up on Heartfilia Estate.

Not as a ward, showered with equal parts praise, gifts, and criticism like the heiress of the house, but instead as the daughter of a member of the staff. Though, as a child, they had been thrown together a lot.

Lucy was alright. A bit too spirited sometimes for Brandish's taste, who preferred tea parties to Lucy's wild explorations of the garden and grounds, but overall, not a bad playmate. She was never hateful to Brandy (as she called her) and never looked down on her despite the obvious gap in social standing between them. For many years, Brandish considered Lucky Lucy Heartfilia a friend. Her first real friend.

The day that Lucy's mother died, Brandish's mom cried for hours and Brandy didn't understand why. She knew that people were always sad when people died, and that Layla Heartfilia had been a generally kind person; beautiful, but nothing special. She supposed Mrs. Heartfilia's friends would miss her, but the lady of the house had hardly belittled herself to be what could be called "close" with an employee like her own mother, so the seemingly endless tears confused her.

So she did as little girls everywhere do and asked her mother why.

Her mother's response she would remember for the rest of her life: "I'm crying for Lucy. Could there be anything worse than depriving a little girl of her mother? Only a mother can unconditionally provide the love that every child needs to grow in love and kindness. I fear her path will become very dark indeed without someone to guide and protect her." As always, her mother could see what Brandish could not: that Jude Heartfilia was a cruel, unloving man who viewed his daughter as something less than the treasure any child should be to his or her parents.

Seeing her mother so very sad, and thinking of her friend Lucy, and how sad she must be in turn, Brandish piped up, "Well, then I will share you with Lucy, Mommy, because you're the best mommy in the world. Then she won't have to grow up without one."

"Well, if you say it is alright with you, I will do just that," she replied, halting her tears with a smile.

And from that day on, Brandish's mother stood by her word and lavished little Lucy with all the extra love she could muster out of sight of the master of the house, whose soul grew darker every year without his beautiful wife to check him.

Then one day, it all changed. Lucy ran away, intent on exploring past the gardens that contained her caged life. Brandy pouted and steamed over the little blonde girl's betrayal and laughed when she was caught, for Lucy had left her out of her grand adventure and therefore deserved to get in trouble. She felt superior to her only friend for the first time, because she was smart enough not to get in such big trouble.

And as with every time Lucy got in trouble, her mother gave Brandish a big hug and then whisked herself off to protect Lucy from the worst of the master's temper.

Only, this time was different. This time, Grammi Myu never came back.

And it was all Lucy Heartfilia's fault.

Her anger and hatred for Lucy Heartfilia had distracted her through the explanations of the "accident" that had taken her mother's life. They had sustained her through dozens of foster homes. And they had convinced her to join the Fiorean army and learn was what needed to stop being a victim and get what she wanted: Lucy's life in return for her mother's.

A life for a life.

It had been a stroke of luck that Hades had been hiring when she showed up at the estate. Like, winning the lottery lucky. But then Lucy hadn't been there. Jude assured them all she'd be home soon though, and over the years of military life and foster homes, she'd learned patience. Brandish could wait however long it took for her target to come home.

It had taken months of endless guard shifts strolling through the familiar walls of her childhood and counting the days..

And then the prodigal princess had finally returned, defiant as ever and just as caged. With a deadly secret enemy waiting right outside her door. Brandish had only to bide her time long enough for Ikaruga to leave, and she could drown Lucy in her bathwater, or push her out a window, and at last exist in peace. She was so very, very close.

It was so hard not to react when Lucy looked her in the eye, mere inches away, and didn't recognize her. So hard not to grab the nearest piece of furniture and crack it over her perfect platinum blonde head. But she managed, picturing the different ways she could finally do it. Her personal favorite was putting the princess in one of those stupid corsets her governess kept purchasing for her and tightening it til her ribs broke and she couldn't breathe. It seemed so fitting somehow. Lucy had always complained about being trapped. Privileged people didn't know the meaning of the word trapped.

She'd spent more than half of her life pursuing revenge for her mother. She'd spent it hating the first friend she'd ever had.

And then that bitch Aquarius had poked the bear, and Lucy had opened up her mouth, turning Brandish's world on its head. Assumptions that she'd clung to, but found hard to explain suddenly clicked into logical progression. It made so much sense. Everything she knew about the cruel man in front of her had been pointing to the truth all along.

Her mother had been murdered by Jude Heartfilia. He was responsible for everything.

And she was alone with him, in the dark of night, holding a gun to his head.

At long last, she was done waiting.

* * *

Lucy made her way out of the house, Natsu still holding her hand and Gray trailing behind them. All she wanted was to get the hell out of there.

Her companions didn't do anything to stop her, letting her get down the porch steps and into the yard before Natsu halted behind her. Releasing her hand and beginning to pull away.

Or at least he tried to. Lucy's hand clamped down on his like a vise. He gently squeezed it back.

"Luce, I need to take care of a couple of things inside before we leave."

After a moment of silent pleading, Lucy nodded reluctantly, letting his hand go and moving off a few steps. He watched her look up at the moon and rolled his shoulders before he pulled Gray aside.

"Wait ten minutes and then take her to the rendezvous point." He turned to go back up the porch steps. Gray cursed quietly and grabbed his shoulder.

"Fuck Natsu. What are you gonna do?"

The pinkette shrugged off his hand. "If you let anything happen to her, I'll never forgive you."

Gray nodded. "Don't do anything too stupid."

Natsu left without another word.

* * *

Something had to give. The whole situation was getting ridiculous. Gajeel felt his arms sinking again and brought them back up, his biceps screaming and hard as rock with the strain. He made a promise to start visiting the gym on a regular basis again the minute he got home. He was getting soft.

The minutes stretched on, feeling like hours. Weiss tried for what was the fourth time to talk everyone down.

"Guys, this is still ridiculous. Why don't we just put down the guns and work this out like civilized men?"

Gajeel and Hades ignored him. Again.

Another minute or two ticked by. Just when Gajeel swore he couldn't hold up his hands any longer, he caught a flash of pink behind Hades. Weisslogia noticed it a second later. They both stared over Hade's shoulders and grinned.

"Like that's going to work," he barked. "It's the oldest trick in the book!" At which point Natsu hit him over the head with the heavy metal bust of some old dude that had been decorating the hallway, knocking him unconscious. He stepped into the room, raising an eyebrow at his allies, still holding their guns on each other.

"Did I miss something?"

"He turned on me first!" Weiss exclaimed.

"We can't shouldn't trust him. How do we know he won't turn on us?" Gajeel said in response.

Natsu just rolled his eyes and shoved past them. "That's just fucking stupid. Stop it. Now, where did you stash Jude. I'm gonna teach him a lesson he won't forget."

Both men dropped their arms, both unable to keep them up if they tried, eyeing each other suspiciously. Gajeel was the one to answer. "He's right where we left him, over there." He gestured with his chin to the corner, finding his arm wouldn't cooperate to point.

"Yeah, he's definitely not there. Neither is the chick."

Both men swiveled and swore simultaneously then glared at each other.

"So, you're saying that you have no idea where Lucy's homicidal father, who you were supposed to be guarding, has gotten to?" Natsu's tone was laced with anger as it dropped dangerously low.

Silence fell.

Natsu growled in frustration and scrubbed a hand over his hair. He stuck a hand in his pocket looking for his lighter to keep him from decking any of his comrades. He felt something round and smooth instead. An idea occurred to him and he gauged how much time he could spare before he had to finish hunting Jude down.

Striding over to the panic room door, he knocked on the steel.

The door slid open and Sol peeked his head out. "Puis-je vous aider?"

"Don't care. Get what you need and get out of this house." He turned to the other conscious men in the room. "You too. And take them with you." Gajeel wrinkled his nose, but leaned down and picked up the unconscious old man on the floor Natsu indicated, grabbing his crowbar at the same time. Anyone who knew Natsu would recognize the look in his eyes and get the hell out of his way if he knew what was good for him.

"What are you gonna do?" Weiss was understandably confused, but leaned down to pick Zancrow up anyway.

Gajeel turned to him, shifted Hade's weight and muttered, "It's really better not to know. Come on."

Sol put his computer in his bag and followed them out, glancing back to see the pink-haired one doing something with Jude's alarm clock. Beside him sat a comically familiar object.

"Is that a bomb?!" Sol exclaimed. Natsu looked up at him, eyes dark.

"I told you to go," he responded with barely reigned annoyance.

Sol went.

* * *

Lucy stood staring at the moon, trying to remember if the stars had ever looked so bright. Even with the faint hint of light beginning to tinge the sky grayish blue, they seemed to glow and twinkle.

"Let's go." Gray's voice startled her from her reverie. "Natsu will meet us later."

Lucy frowned. "I'll wait."

Gray sighed. "Please Lucy? He'll be fine. We all just want to make sure you get out of here. Levy's waiting for you." Lucy wavered. Gray gave her a gentle push. "Please? Natsu wants it this way. We'll all feel a lot better when you're far away from here."

The blonde finally nodded reluctantly, starting off down the driveway. She looked back over her shoulder one last time, hoping to see a familiar pink head of hair headed her way, but heard something floating on the wind toward her instead.

Her father's voice.

Screaming for help.

Eyebrows furrowed, Lucy immediately took off running. She wasn't sure what made her do it.

Maybe it was the desire to tell him off, to get closure like she'd gotten with Aquarius.

Maybe it was some sort of natural instinct.

Maybe it was wanting to make sure he understood that she had everything she needed to take him down and he couldn't raise a hand against her and her friends anymore in person.

Whatever it was, it drove her forward, guiding her to the back corner of her mother's garden. But she didn't see her father. Instead, she found the guard from outside her bedroom door, pushing dirt into a hole in the ground with a shovel that looked like it'd been out in the elements since she'd left for Magnolia.

The other woman didn't hear her come up beside her over the cries of her father. He was trussed up like a pig lying in a hole in the ground. His desperate yelling immediately ceased when he saw her, replaced by the stern, confident tone he always used with her.

"Lucy. Wonderful. Get me out of here. This is ridiculous. This woman is insane."

The turquoise-haired woman violently hit him in the knee with her shovel, a crunch indicating something wasn't where it should be any more as he cried out in pain.

"Shut up asshole, I'm sick of listening to you," the woman barked at him. She turned to Lucy then, hate in her eyes. "Don't you dare try to stop me Lucy. I will straight up kill you too. Don't think I won't. I still hate you."

The blonde stepped back reflexively and her vision flickered, showing her a long forgotten memory a little turquoise-haired little girl standing in this very garden with her.

 _The skinny little thing wiped her running nose with the back of her arm and glared daggers. "I'll never forgive you Lucy. Never ever! I hate you!"_

And then it was like time had zoomed forward, leaving those same two little girls standing not ten feet from that very spot.

"Brandy…" Lucy whispered in astonishment, finally recognizing the childhood friend she had all but forgotten through the trauma she'd suffered.

"Don't try to stop me," Brandish repeated harshly as she gestured at him with the rusty shovel. "I should have known the minute I saw him again. I can't believe it took all _this_ to figure it out." She shoved the rusty spade into the pile of dirt beside her and dropped another load on the man in the hole. Jude's voice rose up from the opening, tinged with pain and calling to his daughter.

"Lucy! You're a Heartfilia! Heartfilias protect their own. You can't let her do this. It will haunt you the rest of your life!"

Lucy's eyes were cold as she responded to his cries.

"I doubt it. I don't care what you do to him Brandy, but I would like a word with my father first." Lucy gazed down into the shallow grave that had already begun to swallow him up. Assuming Brandish would grant her that much, she addressed her next words to him.

"After all these years I've finally figured out why you were never able to love me...why I was always a disappointment...why I could never be the person you so desperately wanted me to be." She stared into the eyes of the man she had feared and obeyed her entire life and found that she pitied him; he was alone with no one who really cared for him. "I'm _not_ a Heartfilia. Not deep down. Not where it matters." She paused, reveling in the words. "This is the last time you will see me. You will not send anyone to look for me. You will not send anyone to hurt my friends. Every incriminating file on your computer, every image of me that you've used to exploit and blackmail, has been copied and the originals have been encrypted. If you attempt to contact me in any way, I will release every single one to the press and destroy the Heartfilia name forever. I won't run anymore." She smiled joylessly down at him. "Goodbye Father."

Lucy stepped back from the grave, preparing to leave, but Brandish's hand lashed out, clamping down on her wrist in a bruising grip. She waited for the other girl to explain herself, but was met only with silence, her turquoise hair trembling as she fought some internal struggle. Eventually she seemed to decide what she was going to do, releasing Lucy's wrist.

"I was going to kill you. I should kill you. You ruined my life."

"I'd feel the same in your place. I know it probably won't mean anything to you, but I am sorry. I loved your mother. And her death was the single worst thing that ever happened to me. Worse than Mama's death even I think. It fucked me up in ways I'm only just beginning to understand."

Lucy lapsed into silence again for a moment before continuing.

"He deserves whatever you do to him and more." Jude started to protest, but Brandish dropped a shovelful of dirt on his face and his words were lost as he choked on the soil. Lucy frowned and finished what she had to say. "I know you probably will never see it this way, but it occurs to me that with him out of the picture, we're the closest thing either of us have to family left. If you can ever forgive me for what he did...I'll be waiting."

The blonde didn't wait for a reply, turning away and starting to make her way out of the flowerbed they were standing in.

"Don't count on it."

Brandish's response put a hitch in her step, but otherwise had no effect.

"I won't," she replied.

And with that, Lucy joined Gray where he stood several feet behind them and the two of them made their way slowly back to the driveway.

Just as they made it back to the gravel that wound a half a mile to the road running through the Heartfilia Estate, a group of men exited the house. On closer examination, Lucy saw Gajeel among them, carrying one of her father's guards.

"Hey!" she exclaimed with a wave. Gajeel tramped down the steps, dropped the man he was carrying none too lightly on the ground, and made his way over to them. Behind him, Sol picked up a cell phone his companions had missed.

"Hey Bunny Girl. Gray. We ready to get the fuck out of here finally?"

"Yeah. Have you seen Natsu?"

Gajeel looked a little uncomfortable. "Uh...yeah. He's going to be a few minutes. Said to meet him by the rendezvous point."

Lucy sighed. "How did I know you were going to say that?"

"You're the one bonded to that freak. I'd be surprised if you can't hear each other's thoughts at the rate he's progressing with that shit."

Lucy giggled nervously at the thought. As far as she knew her thoughts were safely her own...for now.

Weisslogia spoke up then, "Is anyone going to explain what the hell you're talking about?"

The whole group started off together down the driveway, the tension in the air dissipating a little more with every step.

"So what're you gonna do now?" Gray asked Weisslogia, the two naturally falling back to watch everyone's six. Gray watched Gajeel ruffle Lucy's hair fondly and the blonde swat back at him playfully with a laugh. It was nice to see her laugh again.

"I'm not sure. I'll have to send some feelers out and see what's out there. But only after a nice long time at home. I've got enough money to take a little time off. Thankfully Heartfilia paid us all up front, because I doubt he'd be paying me now."

Gray remembered what he'd witnessed Brandish doing in the garden and swallowed the lump in his throat. "Yeah, I definitely don't think he'll be paying anyone anytime soon."

As they approached the gatehouse, three figures in black stepped out of the small building and waved.

Gajeel grinned. "Looks like everybody came out alright. The perv's definitely a surprise though. Thought he'd at least me unconscious by now..."

"Ok, who the hell is this guy? I keep hearing about him, but all anyone seems to say is that he's a pervert! Why is he even here?"

"It's kinda a weird story...but it might be quicker to just ask him yourself."

"Which one is he? The one with the blue hair? Or the redhead?"

"He's the ginger. The blueberry is Erza's soulmate Mystogan."

"Oh that's right! I was looking forward to meeting him and Erza! It was so nice of them to come. It's not like this was their problem at all or anything. I feel kind of bad they had to get involved…"

"Shut up Bunny Girl. Meet them before you start feeling all responsible and shit. You'll see for yourself why they came."

The threesome ahead of them started walking toward them so they met up with them fairly quickly. The striking redhead immediately stepped up to her and stuck out a hand. "Lucy, it's an honor to meet you. I had the honor of seeing you take down Orga at Metallicana's several weeks ago."

Lucy took the offered hand, confused before she figured out what the other woman was talking about. She looked a little sheepish. "Oh! I had no idea you were there that day! How embarrassing! You must be Erza. Natsu talks about you a lot. It's a pleasure to meet you." She turned to the blunette beside Erza and tried to free her palm from the redhead with varying degrees of success. "And that would make you Mystogan. It's nice to meet you too!" In lieu of actually being able to shake his hand (only three of her fingers free from Erza death grip), she executed a small wave and upped the wattage of her smile. "I can't thank you both enough for helping with my rescue! I really appreciate it.

Her excessive geniality caught him by surprise and he automatically grinned widely back. Gray's eyebrows went up at that. Mystogan was not known for grinning. In fact, the noirette wasn't sure if he had ever seen it himself. "We were happy to help," the oddly grinning blunette responded.

Lucy, knowing none of this, merely marked the meeting up as a success and turned to the third member of the grouping, finally freeing her hand from Erza.

Only to have it seized by Loke, who immediately brought her hand to his lips. Lucy cocked an eyebrow and stumbled over a greeting. "Er, uh, you're, um, Loke then?"

The ginger angled a rakish smile that somehow seemed to look up at her, even though he was several inches taller. "So you've heard of me then. I'm flattered. It was a pleasure to help rescue you Princess, and I definitely look forward to getting to know you better." He leaned in with his words, suddenly turning the tables and seeming to tower over her, one hand coming up to smooth a strand of hair away from her face. Lucy froze at the unexpected motion, feeling a bit warm and lightheaded. She shook her head a bit to relieve the sensation.

Gray frowned and started to step forward, but Lucy recovered quicker than he expected.

"You know I'm dating Natsu right?" she said, holding her ground and straightening her spine. She was still quite a bit shorter than him, but the proper posture seemed to make her grow in stature. Loke leaned away slightly, raising an eyebrow. It had been a while since any woman had resisted his charms. He stared into Lucy's eyes for several more seconds, the entire group growing slightly uncomfortable as time passed. Eventually, as though he'd received some sort of silent signal from her, he nodded his head slowly and his smile slipped into something a bit more genuine. Stepping back and shifting the grip on her hand, he shook it slowly.

"He's a lucky man." He maintained his hold on her hand as Lucy's eyebrow went up. She opened her mouth, but never got the chance to inquire further, as a yell went up behind her.

"Back off perv, or I'll break the rest of your nose!" Natsu's voice drifted up from far behind her, making Lucy's eyes light up. Loke's smile dropped a bit as she immediately released his hand and turned away, grinning at Natsu. The pinkette put on a burst of speed and slowed to a breathless stop next to Lucy, dropping a bundle of clothing to the ground unceremoniously.

"Hey! Was he bothering you? Yeah? Great, I'll beat him up later. For now, we really should get goi-" His words were cut off by the sound of an explosion in the distance. The whole group pivoted to look at the house and the small curl of smoke drifting from one window. Lucy's mouth dropped open. No one else looked surprised, a sigh escaping them all simultaneously.

"What did you _do_ Natsu!?" she exclaimed, eyes flickering over him as though she could divine his actions and motivations by looking at him. The only thing she managed to figure out was that he looked pretty great in black. It really contrasted nicely with his hair, which he had uncovered and was running his fingers through, looking the cat that had gotten the canary, his smile smug. "Did you blow up generations of my family's home!? What about all the other people inside?!"

Natsu's smile dropped at that, immediately becoming more serious. "No, I blew up your family's _house_. And only a small part of it. Just the one room actually. Everyone's fine, they were already evacuating out the back." His eyes locked onto hers, instantly securing her gaze. She couldn't have looked away if she wanted to. Natsu reached out slowly and grabbed her hand, willing her to understand what he'd done.

Lucy's skin immediately erupted into goosebumps. A flash of heat rushed through her and her heartbeat doubled in speed. Natsu hadn't even gotten into her personal space and her reaction was ten times what it had been to Loke's blatant advances. He took a small step towards her and squeezed her hand, a corner of his mouth going up at her body's reaction. Still, his tone was dead serious when he leaned down, bringing them eye-to-eye. "You never have to see that place ever again, or remember what happened there. And he's never going to hurt you again. I promise I'll protect you. He's just lucky I didn't find him."

Lucy didn't mention that she'd already spoken to her father. She didn't tell him that Brandish might be burying him alive as they spoke. She didn't ask what place he meant. There was only one place he could be talking about, and her heart swelled to think that he'd committed arson to destroy her nightmares. She leaned forward, meeting his forehead with hers lightly as a smile pulled at her lips and tears pressed at the back of her eyes.

"I know. Take me home?"

"Absolutely."

The sun peeked over the horizon as the group set off to meet Levy and head back to Magnolia.

* * *

It wasn't until later, while she was curled up in her bed in a maid's uniform (because those were the ONLY clothes Natsu could find in the whole fucking house for her to change into?!) with her boyfriend snoring behind her where they had both collapsed after making it home on the train that she felt the burden that her father had placed on her shoulders truly disappear for the first time.

The whole thing almost felt like a dream. But as her soulmate's arm snaked around her waist and pulled her flush against him in his sleep, she knew it was real.

She could finally stop running and just….live.

In the morning, she was figuring out this bonded thing once and for all. With that rallying thought in her head, she drifted off for some much anticipated rest.

* * *

 **And with that, I dub this arc endeth...ed. HUZZAH! I knew I mentioned that some of these chapters might take me two weeks, but DAMN. Happy with how it came out, but that was a struggle. A BIG thank you to my beta Shedauwz and extra brainstorming time with ShannaHollows. It would have been a TERRIBLE chapter without them. Just, trust me on that.**

 **Now, the not so good news...my local con is coming up in two weeks (you know, the one that I talk about all the time, and have made a million cosplays for, and will be hosting two panels and a photoshoot at? That one?) and I will be taking a couple of weeks off to concentrate on that. I'll be back to start the next arc after that...in which the Jerzagan three-way bond will be more intensely explored, Nalu will finally maybe get some, and the flashback research project gets into full swing! Yay plot that had NOTHING to do with Jude Heartfilia!  
**

 **And yeah, I'm just gonna leave him in a hole in the ground. Anyone upset? Didn't think so.**

 **Oh! Almost forgot to mention, I'm writing another multi chapter fic! If you haven't checked it out, and are interested in a day-by-day play-through of what could have happened COMPLETELY IN CANON over the year gap for Natsu and Lucy, then definitely give it a shot. The chapters are much shorter, but there will eventually be more than 300 of them...so...that. Read it and let me know what you think so far! It's called Falling. It started as a one-shot, but I'm crazy, so it's going to be 300 chapters instead! YAY! Shameless plug complete.**

 **NOW! REFERENCES! (not sure when these started shifting so much to movies...I blame the male characters for not reading enough...)**

" **the one from Office Space"-referring to the scheme the be-cubicled protagonists come up with to embezzle money from their company in the movie Office Space**

" **her Crazy Dial had been turned up to 11(for when she just needed that extra push over the cliff)"-reference to This is Spinal Tap, a rock band mockumentary**

" **Get-Out-of-Jail-Free card"-reference to Monopoly...in case there's still someone left who has escaped from the clutches of that evil never-ending game of economics**

 **a bottle of something with kanji all over the label-the drink I've assigned as Lamy's favorite squirreling alcohol (that is the liquor she stashes various places for winter or a rainy day) is a Japanese liquor called** _ **awamori.**_ **It's a rice-based liquor from Okinawa with a high alcohol content, many brands being more than 80 proof.**

 **spaghetti Western- just in case someone doesn't know what this is referring to, the term was coined to refer to a number of Western films in the 1960s that took after Italian director Sergio Leone's film-making style. They are also known as Italian Westerns or apparently Macaroni Westerns in Japan.**

 **Punisher-in case you're not into comics (or Netflix shows), The Punisher is an anti-hero vigilante who has no qualms about killing, which sets him into direct contrast with many comic book superheroes. His symbol is an elongated and heavily stylized white skull.**

 **Puis-je vous aider?-French for "Can I help you?" (another thanks for blargolp for helping me keep Google Translate in check!)  
**


	40. What I Want To Do

**HI! I'm BAAAAAAAAACK! I didn't intend to stay away this long, but catching the flu after con for a solid week sort of fucked with the plan. Blame it on fucking Con Plague. Con Plague apparently hates fan fiction. T.T**

 **Anyway, I had a great time at con, my panels went well, and I placed in the cosplay contest! For those curious, I changed my profile pic to the Juvia 2.5 cosplay I made from scratch and rocked the first day of con so y'all can see it. Not gonna lie, I'm damn proud of it.**

 **Now, on to the excessively long chapter I've written to punch you in the face with all that Passive Aggressive glory you don't even know you've been missing!**

 **Oh, and smut. LOTS of smut.**

 **Like seriously, this chapter is just smut with fluff and bother thrown in pretending to be plot. A big thank you to my beta Shedauwz who hates reading smut and gagged his way through...lol.**

 **To all those who have asked since chapter 6 when the lemons are coming…**

 **YOU'RE WELCOME. Send me suggestive reviews to return the favor. Or, you know, regular reviews. I'm easy. ; )**

* * *

Natsu could smell Lucy before he even woke up.

His arm reached out blindly, questing for the beautiful blonde he'd spent most of the previous day cuddling. Or thinking about cuddling anyway. Lucy had been more than a little peeved about the whole maid outfit thing when she woke up. Natsu smiled thinking about it as his arm slid through empty sheet, eventually meeting open air. "Luurcy?" he mumbled against his pillow, brows furrowed as he struggled to find the woman his nostrils were insisting was there. "Lucy?" he said clearer, lifting his head, eyes still closed. He took a deep breath in again and sighed. She smelled like sunshine and sugar. He licked his lips. Maybe they could get up in time to get some chocolate croissants right when the cafe opened. "Wanna get croissants?"

"Naw I'm feeling more like a bagel, thanks. And stop calling me Lucy."

The aura of Lucy-scent dissipated rapidly as Natsu cracked an eye to see a grumpy, shirtless Gray glaring blearily at him. "Oh. Where's Lucy?" He didn't bother to lift his head from his pillow, disappointed to wake up to a pervy stripper instead of his girlfriend.

"At her apartment I assume," Gray snapped. "Getting a good night's sleep without you saying her name every fifteen minutes in your sleep." He pulled a t-shirt over his head and grabbed his bag. "Now get the fuck up and go to class. If I get pounded on by Erza again for not being your fucking babysitter, I'll use one of your fucking fireworks to blow up your fucking scarf."

Natsu rolled out of bed, landing effortlessly on his feet on the floor six feet below. "Dick."

"Ljubavna budala." Gray left the room, slamming the door on Natsu's yelled retort.

"Insult me in godsdamned English you freezer burned asshat!"

* * *

Sitting cross-legged on one of her boyfriend's beat up kitchen chairs, Levy wrestled her newspaper to the next page and nearly sent orange juice shooting out of her nose when she saw what was written there. She hacked at the burning in her throat as Gajeel turned silently from his place in front of his stove to raise an eyebrow at her. Still unable to answer, she coughed again and held up the page, the headline clear even from across the room. Gajeel dropped his spatula, spattering scrambled eggs across the worn but serviceable linoleum.

 **Jude Heartfilia, CEO of Heartfilia Hotels, found dead at 49**

Levy immediately started reading the article.

 _Found on the grounds of his estate by his security staff Monday morning, CEO of Heartfilia Hotels Jude Heartfilia died of exposure to the elements sometime on October 1st. After having sent the staff of his estate away for the weekend, it is unknown why he was outside for the first hard frost of the year, though the presence of a fire on the premises may have contributed to his departure from the famous Victorian mansion. He is survived by a daughter, heiress to her father's board seat currently attending university. There will not be a public funeral, but memorial offerings can be sent to the headquarters of Heartfilia Hotels in Crocus._

Gajeel snorted as he read over Levy's shoulder. "What a bunch of bullshit. I wonder what that pirate geezer had to do to get his team to shut up. Or the maids and shit."

"Probably nothing. Jude was an ass. I doubt anyone even mourned his death," Levy responded, acid in her words.

"Yeah. Doubt it. What's Bunny Girl gonna do?"

"You have seriously got to quit calling her that. She really hates that nickname. And I don't know. Lu has no interest in being on the board...but I wonder what she'll do with all the money? Especially knowing where it came from…"

"Yeah…"

The two finished their breakfast in comfortable silence, each imagining what they'd do with several million dollars.

* * *

"I donated it to Magnolia University, actually."

Lucy wrinkled her nose as she put back a questionable-looking plate of french fries in the student union dining hall. She really needed to go get groceries; the food they served the students at MU could barely be considered edible. "Hopefully they use the money to get some decent cooks."

"No kidding. Wait...all of it?!"

"Well, I kept a little, to live on and stuff, since school will be way easier without having to work too, but yeah. After I allocated a portion for all of you guys' tuition, I just told them they could pretty much have the rest. What am I gonna do with millions of dollars? It's gonna be hard enough to spend the million or so Gray insisted I keep. Apparently I could live off the interest alone if I'm careful. I'm just glad Gray's almost done with his degree and knew what the hell it all meant. My father's accountant is an ass." Lucy walked a few feet away checking out the salad bar instead, with even less hope. Lettuce was _supposed_ to be green...ew. "They wanted to name a new building or campus or something after our family, but I said no. I think Heartfilia is plastered across enough stuff, don't you?"

There was no answer to her query. She looked around to find Levy staring after her from in front of the warmer with the lackluster french fries. "Lev?"

"YOU PAID FOR OUR TUITION?!" she yelled, attracting the attention of the whole dining hall. "ALL OF IT?!"

Lucy quickly backtracked and dragged Levy out of the center of attention to a small alcove, waving off the stares with a nervous laugh. She played with her fingers, avoiding her friend's eyes as she explained, "Well, yeah. The guys and Erza didn't have much left to pay, but I tacked on another few years' worth just in case, and paid for their housing and stuff. If they don't use it, it gets refunded to them for other stuff. I figured you'll be here for at least four or five degrees, so _you_ were actually the most expensive, but even with that and purchasing Fairy Hills - because that landlady is a nightmare! - it still barely made a dent in the donation, so basically they just assigned me a liaison and I can request money to go wherever if something comes up I want to pay for while I'm here."

Levy's eyes sparkled with tears. "Lu-chan...I can't possibly…" Lucy cut her off with look, finally meeting her eyes with determination.

"No, Levy. You can and you will. You all saved my life. One way or another, my life would have been over if you hadn't come to save me. The buyout was insane for my board seat and shares, and there was no way I could keep it all. Not when I knew how he got it. So, I wanted to do something good with it."

"Lu, that is such a beautiful gesture! I can't begin to thank you!" Levy dove at her for a hug, tears streaming down her face. Then her phone went off. She ignored it in favor of squeezing all the air out of her best friend's lungs.

"Uh, Lev? You gonna answer that?" Lucy gasped desperately, doing her best to pry the blunette turned-starfish/koala off of her.

"It's just Gajeel, wondering who he's gotta beat up now." She sniffled and released Lucy to wipe her streaming eyes as her phone stopped ringing. Then a second later it beeped.

"He left a message?" Lucy inquired, curious.

"Naw. That will be Erik texting me pictures of Gajeel crying. It happens every time."

She wiped away the last tear and sniffled again, trying to regain her composure as the nearby tables stared over at them. Her words reminded Lucy of the one fault in her plan.

"That reminds me! Gajeel doesn't go to school here, so I didn't know what to get him to thank him! Any ideas?" She gently guided the blunette further away from the staring tables. Maybe they should just go pick something up nearby. Not like she couldn't afford it.

"Lu, seriously, you don't have to do this. We were all happy to help. That's what friends are for." Levy's voice was stern, but she let her friend guide her out of the building.

"Yes, I _do_ ," Lucy responded absentmindedly, trying to decide which direction would yield the best lunch options.

"Ok...well, if you insist...get him a bike. Like Natsu's. He's totally jealous. Not that he'd ever admit it." Levy grinned to herself remembering the big man practically begging Natsu to let him tune up the engine when he heard Lucy ask about it. He'd told her once that if he hadn't loved doing tattoos so much, he would have been a mechanic.

"Like Etherious? Yeah, that works! I'll take him out to buy one as soon as midterms are over. Now, let's go find something edible and eat already…" Lucy wrinkled her nose again as she looked back at the dining hall. "I think there's a McDonald's that way…"

"Are you kidding me? I'm buying you lunch somewhere decent! With milkshakes. Let's get out of here!" Levy exclaimed as she dragged her friend away from the building. Lucy was more than happy to go along.

* * *

Natsu shoveled another giant roll of spaghetti into his mouth and tried to ignore the ribbing he was getting from the rest of the house. Couldn't a guy enjoy a family-sized portion of pasta in peace anymore? His chemical reaction engineering lab had been cancelled so he had a wonderful two _whole_ hours to stuff his face for once. Unfortunately, his beautiful lunch was being ruined by his stupid frat brothers speculating about his girlfriend. Didn't they have anything better to do? Like eat dammit? Some people would never understand the sanctity of a meal.

"I'm betting she's a five. Tops. Why else would he keep her from coming by the house?" Jet crowed over the laughter of his comrades. Beside him, Romeo scoffed, his mouth still half-full of garlic bread.

"Yeah right. Why would he settle for a five when he's got a fucking fan club of nines? Gotta be a ten." He grinned at his idol, but faltered a bit when he saw the scowl on Natsu's face.

"Or an animal in bed," Bacchus leered good-naturedly as he sidled up behind Natsu, slapping a hand on his shoulder. Natsu froze.

It was just for a moment, but was enough that every guy around him gasped.

"No way. The great Natsu Dragneel couldn't seal the deal?! A great man has fallen!" Elfman roared over the raucous chatter Natsu's reaction had spurred.

"Whoa, she's gotta be a ten after all…or a four and he's just not trying..."

"Maybe he's just lost his touch."

"Someone should inform his fan club."

"Someone should pour the poor man a shot."

Natsu closed his eyes and shoved another bite of saucy noodles between his lips.

He could resist retaliating. He could. Lucy didn't want him fighting, so he wouldn't fight.

Lucy was fucking perfect in every way, and next to that, his reputation was nothing. The guys just didn't know she was different than the girls he'd been with in the past. He could respect her as a woman and not fall to the same level as the fucking twats he lived wi-

"I think this girl just needs to see how it's really done. Why doesn't Loke or Gray give it a shot?!"

Loke and Gray paled and stood from their table against the far wall as Natsu flipped his table, spaghetti and all, and tackled Simon, the unlucky good-natured heckler who'd stepped more than a little too far over the line.

As the two watched their more conscientious frat brothers pull furniture out of the path of destruction per the clearly posted Emergency Action Plan of 1991 (following the Great Brawl of '91), Loke fingered his still tender nose and winced. Natsu's fist connected with Simon's stomach multiple times before four or five guys managed to slow his attack down enough to let Simon take a swing. Natsu ducked it, pulling the men clinging to him into the danger zone. Simon's fist connected with Jet's ear, prompting him to let go of Natsu and swing at Simon. But he missed, the larger man, ducking and throwing the lighter cross-country runner over his shoulder and across the room.

Then Jet had the misfortune of landing on Laxus' lunch, and everything dissolved into chaos.

Gray watched in silence, trying to decide if it was worth hopping in to burn off some energy in a quick scuffle, but was distracted by his phone vibrating in his pocket. He sighed.

Of course she was texting him.

 _WHAT THE HELL IS HE DOING?!_

 **Don't worry about it. It'll be over soon. He's doing a decent job of not getting hit actually, considering.**

 _Like hell I won't. Where is he?_

 **Fairy Tail. But seriously Lucy, it's not a great time. Just let him handle it.**

There was no response. Gray's mouth quirked up at one side. At least no one would accuse Lucy of being unattractive when she busted in to give Natsu a piece of her mind.

There was something...not good about them seeing her though...something that tickled at his brain. He almost had it when he found himself knocked to the floor by a flying body. At which point he jumped into the fray and totally forgot that he was even trying to remember what he'd forgotten but needed to remember.

Loke, on the other hand, made his way out of the room, carefully sidling around the action towards the door. He breathed a sigh of relief as he reached the exit to the front hall without being maimed. A broken nose was hard enough to cover up; a black eye would be a nightmare to hide. Though the pity sex might be worth it…

The ginger playboy smiled to himself as he made his way through the deserted entry, but jumped back as he was almost hit by the heavy front door swinging open. An admonition froze on his lips as he saw the blonde goddess gracing the doorway, her petite blunette friend trailing, out of breath, behind her as she drew herself up in the doorway. This particular blonde was still the most beautiful thing he'd ever seen. Add the sun shining down on her through the open door and it was like witnessing the canonization of a saint. A fashionable saint that is. Who wore short skirts and high heeled boots. Praise be unto the gods for that.

"Luuuuuuucy! Did you come to grace our humble abode with your unequivocal beauty and charm, my princess?" he said jovially with a slight bow, turning on his charm, despite her obvious ire. He took her hand and kissed it.

"Not now Loke," she growled, ripping her hand from his grasp and striding past him, the exceptionally high heels of her boots clicking on the parquet flooring. Loke licked his lips as his inclined position gave him a great view of the sliver of leg exposed above her thigh-highs, her pleated skirt gracing the curves of her ass in a way that could have tempted even the most sanctimonious gentleman...and Loke was no saint.

"Perv," Levy snapped as she smacked him in the back of the head. She followed her friend at a more leisurely pace, munching on funnel cake sticks and showering her top in powdered sugar in the process.

Lucy hit the doorway to the room she remembered in flashes of blacklight and ice luges and froze, mouth dropping open. Absolute chaos wasn't a strong enough phrase to describe the pugilistic display going on in front of her. The mob of men taking up the center of the room had destroyed several chairs, a ceiling fan blade, and possibly some bones. Fists and furniture flew as half the crowd crowed in delight and the other half bellowed back in rage. And there, in the center of it all, grinning his face off like he'd won the World Cup, Holy Grail War, and Tri-Wizard Tournament all in one day, her soulmate stood, like the eye that the whole crazy storm rotated around. She could feel his adrenaline rush as he ducked under a shot from a tall, angry blonde guy. The man's punch caught the edge of his shoulder and the pain blossoming through her shoulder knocked Lucy out of her stunned reverie.

"NATSU DRAGNEEL!"

Everyone turned to see who was yelling and froze. Including the man of the house as he felt that strange stomach-flipping reaction he always got from Lucy saying his name, though he recovered quickly and used the moment to suckerpunch Laxus in the gut. Then he was bounding over the mass of people and strolling over, like his girlfriend had sweetly summoned him instead of yelling his name in rage across a crowd of testosterone-blinded males.

"Lucy! Hey, what's up? Guys! This is Lucy!"

"HI LUCY!" the crowd responded on instinct, knowing grins adorning their slightly bruised faces.

Lucy just stared at Natsu, her anger disarmed equally by his abrupt cheerfulness and what the full force of his adorable grin did to the flock of newly hatched butterflies in her stomach.

Immediately, his gaze flicked to her midsection in speculation, returning quickly to her eyes as his grin became impossibly wider and sweeter. Lucy stubbornly held her ground, refusing to give in to her baser nature and fling herself into his arms. Her blood pounded in her ears to rhythm of his leisurely walk. Watching him had stirred up conflicting feelings in her. It was hard not to appreciate him in his element. Natsu was a born fighter. But it was also hard to see him putting himself (and her, through him) in harm's way, especially when she'd specifically told him not to. Natsu just kept striding toward her as the room filled with whispers behind him.

"Holy shit."

"No fucking way."

"Is that _her_? She's smokin' hot!"

"No wonder he couldn't get with her. She's classy as fuck!"

The men turned to look askance at Max for his comment. He stared back at them. "What? She is!" And they couldn't help but agree upon closer inspection. The boots, stockings, skirt and sleeveless sweater that would have screamed 'easy' on anyone else somehow managed to look sort of posh on her.

Lucy and Natsu didn't hear any of it. The pinkette was slowly invading her personal space, grinning his face off as he felt her heartbeat increase a little more every inch of space he closed between them.

"Nice of you to come see me," he murmured, holding eye contact as one hand ghosted over the bare skin of her shoulder. She couldn't suppress a shiver as his fingers trailed over her bicep, swirling around her elbow before caressing the sensitive skin of her inner forearm, eventually twining their fingers together as his other hand tucked a loose strand of hair securely behind her ear. Vaguely, her brain registered that she was upset with him. For something…

"Hey. I'm mad at you," she said faintly, distracted as he pushed her hair over her shoulder.

At which point Levy rolled her eyes and left. The two lovebirds would be all over each other for a while yet, and she had a new book to locate at the library before her next class.

The whispers had backed off to hear Lucy's response, but came back with a fury.

"And _that's_ how it's done. Fucking _wild_ to see the master in action again."

"No kidding. Shit."

"Hey guys...I feel like I've seen her before…"

"Yeah, I was just thinking that."

Natsu ignored them and nuzzled Lucy's nose with a smirk. "No you're not."

"Yeah, I am…" Lucy wasn't even paying attention to what she was saying. His lips were so close. Every ounce of her attention was on keeping herself breathing. And not attacking him with PDA.

 _And why would that be bad again?_ Lucy shook her head a little, trying to remember why she had felt the need to run across campus in the first place. _Wait! Shit! SHUT UP HUSSYSLUT LUCY! We're better than this! Get ahold of yourself dammit!_

She was just pulling back and opening up her mouth to tell Natsu why she was actually _really_ pissed at him, no matter what her hands were doing to his back muscles at the moment, when a sudden exclamation from behind Natsu tore through the moment.

"HOLY SHIT SHE WAS MAKING OUT WITH GRAY AT THE MOON DRIP PARTY! That's where we know her from!" Murmurings of agreement spread from there.

Mickey didn't get a chance to say anything else, as Gray's fist connected with his jaw. Lucy's eyes shot wide as she stared at the action happening behind Natsu.

"Shut your mouth, you idiot," the noirette growled. His shoulders were tense and he gritted his teeth. Natsu just _had_ to videotape that damn party. Life would be so much easier for all of them if no one remembered that stupid night.

The rest of the guys shut up pretty damn quick, but the damage was done.

Lucy looked back to Natsu to find his eyes closed, his muscles tensed and his brow furrowed. All the warmth, light, and happiness he'd been exuding the moment before was absent. Forgetting the remnants of her anger and embarrassment, Lucy wrapped her arms around his neck and leaned forward to press her lips to his. His arms automatically locked in around her waist and pulled her body against his roughly. She could practically hear his brain growling ' _she's all mine, you fuckers'_ as he bent her backward and deepened the kiss, stealing what was left of her wits. Her fingers clung to him even though his strong arms had her locked solidly in place. She started to feel dizzy, like she'd fall through to another dimension if she let go of him for a second. Natsu swayed with her, pulling her upright again almost instantly.

A chorus of wolf-whistles rang out as his brothers cheered Natsu on. But after a few seconds of the amorous display of dominance, the frat brothers found other things to concentrate on. It almost felt like too intimate a moment for them to be witnessing.

Except Gray. He couldn't look away. It felt so...right to see them like that. Like they fit together. Normally public displays of affection tended to piss him off, but watching _them_ was like seeing the end of a romantic comedy (which he absolutely did _not_ secretly watch whenever Natsu wasn't home...) when the guy got the girl and all the shit they'd gone through fell away to happily ever after. He'd never seen Natsu try so hard for anything in his life, and, honestly, he'd never seen him look that happy. Not even when he had been infatuated with Lisanna.

In that moment, he found he couldn't be jealous of Natsu anymore.

Lucy wasn't for Gray. And he was surprised to find he was really okay with that. Because if Natsu of all people had a fucking _soul mate_ like her, then there had to be at least one girl out there Gray could be compatible with. And he was wasting time not looking for her. The noirette sighed and saluted the pair with a smirk, grabbing his jacket from his chair and heading for the door. But he tossed a last pearl of wisdom over his shoulder to his housemates before he went.

"It's almost one. Don't you shitheads have to get to class?"

Like he'd spoken the magic words, the crowd dispersed in a flurry of curses, intent on finishing the remains of their spilled lunches or getting the hell to class. Because being at MU at all was fucking expensive, and midterms were coming up.

Lucy could hear them leave, but didn't move, content to cuddle in Natsu's arms for as long as he wanted her. It was Natsu who eventually broke the kiss, grinning again with a fire in his eyes that hadn't been there moments before. He leaned his forehead on hers and sighed, but didn't say anything else.

"You good?" Lucy whispered in the warmth between them.

"Yeah. I'm good. That shit still bothers me I guess." He closed his eyes again, breathing in her scent deeply before loosening his hold on her.

"Well, that's fair... Would it make you feel better if I let you make out with someone else in front of me?" she joked. But her eyes gained a sharpness at the thought, bothering her more than her own joke should. Her arms tightened reflexively, her nails sinking into his back. Natsu jerked at the feeling, not really in pain, but certainly surprised. With a small smile, but serious eyes, he pried her hands off his shoulders and held them in front of him.

"Naw. I don't want to kiss anyone but you."

Her apprehension dissolved away again and Lucy vaguely questioned the emotional rollercoaster she had become in a back corner of her mind. Was it knowing her father was gone that suddenly made her iron control on her displays of affection and anger slip? Or was it just Natsu? She never felt more out of her own control than when she was with him, like Mina under Dracula's spell. Or Basil under Dorian's.

But staring into Natsu's eyes...she couldn't bring herself to care.

* * *

Gray readjusted the strap of his backpack, checked his phone, and picked up his pace across campus when he saw the time. He could still make it to class on time if he hurried. Glancing down at his phone again at the sound of a text message alert, he rounded the corner of the English building and ran full tilt into a petite young woman who immediately lost her balance and began to fall, Gray managing to catch her hand at the last minute.

"Shit! Sorry. That was all my fault. Are you okay?" He pulled her upright again carefully and tried to look her in the eye, but found that her short, platinum blonde (almost to the point of being white) hair was in disarray, covering most of her face. Hastily, she pulled her hand from him and straightened her hair out, revealing a face as symmetrical as it was sweet. She looked almost like a china doll brought to life, her delicate features and large brown eyes stunning him into silence for a moment.

"It's okay. I'm fine! And it was partly my fault too. I wasn't watching where I was going." She leaned over to pick up a large book with a big, neon, MU Library label on it he hadn't noticed she'd dropped. Carefully, she straightened out the pages and folded the crinkly plastic-covered flap into the book before closing it again to hold her place. Then she turned a sweet yet somewhat nervous smile on him. "Plus, it's not your fault I haven't learned the best ways to take around campus yet."

His eyebrows went up. "Are you a freshman then?" She looked more mature than that...but then, Lucy hardly looked like she was eighteen either. What was with this freshman class?

"Yeah." Her smile upped in wattage a bit, her fingers fidgeting with the book in her arms.

Something about her smile struck a chord with Gray. The smile, the hair… "Hey, you aren't related to the Strauss family by any chance are you? You look a lot like this girl I know named Lisanna."

She rolled her eyes. "I actually get that a lot. I haven't had the pleasure of meeting them yet. It's Mary Jane, Elfman and Lisanna, right? Do you know them?"

"It's Mirajane actually. And yeah. I'm in Fairy Tail Fraternity with Elfman. It's creepy though. In the right light, you could be Lisanna's twin. I'm Gray by the way, Gray Fullbuster." He held out his hand with a practiced smile. His recently found inner gumption to start looking for someone he could actually have a relationship with sizzled in the back of his mind as he stared into her eyes. What about her? She'd certainly captured his interest quick enough, even though she was a little quieter than the type he normally went for.

"I'm Yukino Agria. It's really nice to-" Her words were cut off by the sounding of the campus clock tower chiming one o'clock. "Oh no! Is that the time?! I'm gonna be so late!" And with that she ran off, awkwardly opening her bag and shoving her book into it as she went.

Gray watched her go, giving up on getting to class on time. When she was nearly out of earshot and he was just thinking about turning to go, she stopped abruptly and turned, yelling back at him.

"Nice to meet you! See you around Gray!"

Gray grinned back and offered her a brief wave. Yeah, she'd definitely be seeing more of him. It was time to turn over a new leaf.

* * *

"Want to grab some lunch?"

Lucy was jerked out of her thoughts by Natsu's cheerful question, smiling wryly as she replied, "I just ate actually."

"So did I. What's that got to do with it?"

Lucy sighed and rolled her eyes. "What are you, a hobbit?"

Natsu just looked confused. "A _what_ now? Did you just call me short?"

"No! They eat like twelve meals a day! Whatever. Nevermind." Lucy turned to go, raising her eyebrows when Natsu followed her. "Aren't you going to help clean up your mess?" She gestured at the wreckage behind them. He just shrugged.

"I'll do it later. You're here now."

Lucy turned to reply and squeaked in surprise to see a very tall and muscular blonde man glowering over Natsu.

"Or you'll do it now, you idiot," Laxus rumbled. The display had little effect on Natsu, who jumped a little at not noticing the guy standing so close, but was otherwise unaffected.

"Laxus, come on now. Lucy's here visiting me right now. It can wait. Hasn't _Mira_ taught you anything?" Natsu executed a slight turn and grinned slyly at his newly reinstated fraternity brother, who, if grumpily, backed off. Thanks to the disaster that was the Drunken Fairy Tail Poker Night of 2015, Natsu was one of the chosen few who knew what Laxus really thought of his gorgeous best friend. Well, those few people and whoever held The Book. He made another mental note to search for where Gray had hidden it (and promptly forgot about it). Wasting no more time, he threw an arm over Lucy's shoulders and guided her out of the room. "Now Luce, don't you have class to get to?"

"Not until four, actually," she replied as they made their way through the now mostly deserted halls of the house. "So, I guess if you want to get food, I could always just go and sit with you while you eat…"

"Nope, changed my mind. Wanna see my room?"

Lucy's heartbeat, which had finally stabilized, amped up again. Was he trying to kill her?

"Your...room?"

"Well, me and Gray's room, but yeah. It's just this way."

If Natsu noticed her heart freaking out, he didn't show it. She swallowed the lump in her throat that had suddenly formed and went for casual, "Sure. Why not? I've got time to kill."

It didn't take them long to get there. Within a minute they were standing in front of a door with burn marks radiating from one corner and 'Keep the fuck out' written in permanent marker running up diagonally across the middle. Lucy was freaking out a little. This was her first time in a guy's bedroom. What was the protocol for this?

And then there was the frisson sparking between them. It always popped up at the most inappropriate times (i.e. being rescued from being kidnapped, while playing laser tag, having fallen off a parade float). No matter where they were, they couldn't seem to keep their hands off of each other. That constant pull to be in physical contact never seemed to fully go away. Hell, they'd just basically made out in front of a room full of people. What would happen when they were finally alone together again? With a lock to keep nosy people out, and no security guards around to wander in... Neither of them had to be anywhere for hours. A lot could happen with that kind of time. Was she ready for that?

Lucy's body sure seemed to think so. The hand on her shoulder had dropped to her lower back and seemed to radiate heat through her sweater. Without thinking, she leaned into it, his hand sliding to her hip so his forearm could support her back. He cleared his throat and she turned her head up toward his face, to find his expression was maybe a little nervous too. As she watched him chew on his lower lip uncertainly, a wave of affection swept away a considerable portion of her nerves. _I can't believe I love him this much already. That's nuts right?_

 _She slid behind the wheel of her beau's automobile, ran a gloved hand over the smooth leather enclosing it and couldn't stop grinning. She was finally going to learn how to drive! Beside her, Stirling looked a lot more apprehensive. She shifted in her seat to face him a bit with a smirk. "You ready to walk me through it? Or are be going to sit here all day without moving?"_

 _Lucy/Ashley could see his Adam's apple bob as he swallowed hard and nodded, seeming to gain back a little more of his confidence. It was funny; she'd never seen him look so unsure of himself in a vehicle. Normally he owned the road. Although, he wasn't in control this time, maybe that had something to do with it. Whatever caused it, she was enjoying his shyer side. It was so much more fun to tease him._

" _Alright, let's get started then! I'll be driving at fifty kilometers an hour in no time!" she bated._

 _Her driving instructor went green. "Maybe we should do this another day…"_

" _Nope! Today is the day I learn to fly! Get going_ professor," _she finished the haughty sentence with a purr in his ear. That seemed to wake up his confident side. He turned to her with a sly smile._

" _If you want to fly so badly, I can always take it from here...we don't need an auto for that…" His hand slid suggestively up her thigh._

 _She blushed at his implications, but grinned back, playfully pushing away his wandering appendage. "Maybe later, you egg. Now teach me how to master this stallion!"_

 _Stirling sighed and turned the key on his favorite tried-and-true 1930 Cadillac Roadster, indicating that she should press the gas to engage the starter. Lucy/Ashley reveled in his trust in her. She knew he'd been through a lot with those sapphire blue fenders, but he was letting her take control of them for her maiden voyage. She kept her eyes glued on him and leaned forward to kiss him on the cheek when the engine roared to life._

Lucy jerked as though she'd woken up from a dream about falling to find herself horizontal on something soft...and lumpy. The first thing she saw was a pitted ceiling full of marker and pen graffiti, mostly things like, 'JoJo was here' and 'Beware Professor Bitch," but 'Don't drink the Moon Drip!' had her eyes veering away in shame, only to see the one next to it: 'DRINK ALL THE MOON DRIP!' She couldn't help but smile. The walls of the room were covered in posters, stolen street signs and drawings. Some of them were obviously Natsu's work, featuring dragons and fire for the most part, but other styles spanned across the displays too. For a few minutes, she was absorbed in trying to see everything. Even the bottoms of the loft beds installed on either side of the room were covered.

"Good flashback?" Natsu's voice had her sitting up swiftly, finding herself face to face with her boyfriend, who sat at the other end of the swaybacked couch, her legs across his lap. He was conspicuously scarfless, but her curiosity was swiftly satisfied as she saw it hanging on a hook near the door. That area of the wall was the only part not covered in pop culture overload, letting her know that, apparently, the walls were a bright purple color. No wonder they were completely covered up. She blinked a few times and sat up, feeling a bit light-headed.

"Uh, sort of…" she said faintly. "You were teaching me how to drive apparently…"

"Sort of?! That car was a fucking work of art!"

"Well yeah, I guess it kinda was, but...wait. Hold on. HOW THE HELL DID YOU JUST DO THAT?!" Her eyes narrowed and she swung her legs off his trim jean-clad quads so she could stand and lean over him intimidatingly. "How are you tapping into my flashbacks?! No more stalling. You did the same thing back...um, _there_ , didn't you? That's how you knew! I'm not crazy, you haven't always been able to do that, have you?" With every new demand she leaned further over, bracing her hands on his shoulders.

Natsu scrubbed a hand through his hair and resisted the urge to look down Lucy's top.

Again.

And failed.

Again.

After several moments with his eyes bouncing between her face and her overwhelming cleavage, he just went with looking away from her altogether.

"Uh, yeah. That's new actually. Like the seeing through your eyes thing? And the hearing through your ears thing when I really concentrate on it..." He paused to look back at her face. She seemed a little shocked but otherwise was taking it pretty well. "I don't know why it's happening. I just thought I'd try and the next thing I know I'm able to do it. This was the first time I really tried to enter your flashback on purpose though. The first time, it just...happened." He waited for her to respond, but she seemed to be frozen in place. "Luce?"

Lucy was freaking the fuck out. He could hear everything she could hear? He could _actually_ see through her eyes?! That had been a joke _she'd_ made up for gods' sakes! And now, he could basically see into her mind. Or at least the minds of her previous lives! What was an appropriate response to learning something like that?! And why could he do such amazing things when she couldn't?! She'd actually given the bonded-vision a try before, after joking around, just to satisfy her curiosity. Goodness knows she wouldn't mind having that trick when they were showering...HOLY SHIT SHOWERING. Did that mean he had already... _seen everything_?!

Lucy's cheeks exploded with heat as she refocused on the concerned pinkette in front of her and she quickly retrieved her hands and crossed her arms across her chest self-consciously. "That means you've seen me…in the...you known...with the….YOU PERV!"

"NO! Well, I mean, yeah...but not on purpose!" Natsu mentally crossed his fingers at the white lie. But the look on her face said she saw right through that. "Ok, sometimes on purpose. But can you blame me? Have you seen yourself? Well, actually, I know you _have_. Do you have any idea how much time you spend looking at yourself when you shower?"

"Oh gods...I'm not hearing this. This is not happening. I'm going to wake up and not have really gone through this embarrassment!" Lucy mumbled into her hands. Like it wasn't bad enough she couldn't cry or get excited without him knowing, but now he could possibly see her naked whenever _she_ did, and she wouldn't even know it was happening! If she ever found out who had created that stupid bond she was going to wring their neck. Only sadistic bastards would make anyone go through this humiliation. For a brief moment, she thought she heard a deep chuckle of laughter, but when she pulled her face from her hands, Natsu's face showed nothing but discomfort and confusion.

"I don't know why you're so embarrassed. I've seen you almost naked before. It's not like you didn't send me that picture. And you were down to almost nothing when we were playing laser tag anyway..."

"But, those were on _my_ terms! And now you've seen me _completely_ naked! That makes a difference! Oh god. What if my legs weren't shaved? Wait, so you _have_ peeked in the shower?! That means you've seen me...ohgodsohgodsohgodsohgods. I'm going to hussyslut hell. You've seen me..." Lucy covered her mouth with her hand, unable to bring herself to say what she was thinking. Natsu, unfortunately, knew exactly what she was unwilling to say.

"What? Touching yourself? Masturbating?" He paused and leaned forward with a grin to whisper the last word with his lips only inches from hers. "Coming?" He seemed to find the whole thing amusing as he chuckled softly.

"You don't have to be so crude about it…" Lucy's heart dropped and she slumped back against his desk in defeat. Was it seriously not that big a deal to him? Did he not take their physical relationship as seriously as she did? For the first time in months she felt like she was just one of the many girls she knew he'd pursued in the past. Her eyes drifted unbidden to the ceiling, suddenly seeing the names too feminine to be fraternity members. Maybe she was making too big a deal about the whole thing. Maybe she was just supposed to laugh the whole thing off. She bet other girls would handle it like that...girls like Jenny, Karen, Sarah, Mandy, Lizzie, Beth...Jesus, how many fucking girls had signed his ceiling?!

But his next words slowed her panicked (and increasingly more pissed off) thoughts.

"I'm sorry to disappoint you, but if you think I have the willpower and concentration to keep the link going when I'm feeling.. _.that_ , you're crazy. Shit, I _wish_ I could. But, no. I have definitely not had the pleasure of seeing you...come undone, so to speak. I think seeing that will be the best moment of my fucking life, to be honest. But that definitely needs to be in person. Nothing's quite as great when I can't see your beautiful eyes staring back at me."

She scowled at him, still feeling violated, despite the little thrill of pride that had shot through her at his words.

"Look, I'm sorry. The first time it happened, I didn't mean to see you like that. And I really don't go out of my way to watch you like a creeper or anything. But when we're doing shit as intimate as our fucking showers get, I can't resist doing anything to feel closer to you. It's never as good as seeing you _actually_ in front of me. But I'm not gonna deny that I don't enjoy seeing you like that."

His tone was deceptively casual, but his eyes blazed with interest as they locked on her own. How could he be so ridiculously confident and open? Lucy had been in a lot of situations where she had been forced to feign sexual interest-to be seductive even ( _Thanks again for_ that, _Father)_ -but that was different. That was just acting. She hadn't been showing her own feelings to someone she cared about. Someone who could break her with a word. That was so much harder.

And Natsu did it like it was nothing. Her heart was racing so hard she could barely breathe, and he just sat there looking at her openly like she was something to be devoured. Could she ever be that honest? Or that forward? It was so much easier to lie. Just pretend she was more enraged than intrigued. That she found the whole thing nothing but embarrassing, the way she should. But...listening to him talk about it had sent a little thrill through her. She subconsciously rubbed her legs together to relieve some of the discomfort she suddenly found herself in. Maybe...maybe she _could_ just tell him what she was thinking. If he could do it, so could she...right?

Natsu was freaking out inside. He was sure she could feel his heart racing even as he struggled to remain calm. Why the fuck had he just gone off about _masturbating_? She'd clearly been trying to avoid the topic and he'd busted right in and laid it all out. That was not how you talked to a girl you fucking cared about! Seriously, what the fuck was wrong with him? He sounded like a total sleaze.

Yeah, he was used to being pretty blunt about sex, which was fine when he was talking to a fellow one-night-stander, but Lucy was so damn pure. So innocent. Even with all the crap her dad made her do, Lucy was...well, she was just different. Of course she was. She was his soulmate for gods' sakes, right?

But as his mind spun in circles, he couldn't stop his eyes from raking over her. Talking about her like that _had_ brought back a lot of pretty amazing memories of what he _had_ seen through her eyes. Her flushed cheeks and heavy breathing weren't helping the growing tightness in his trousers either.

Then she rubbed her thighs together and he almost groaned out loud. Shit. She was doing that shit within reaching distance if he leaned forward just a bit...fuck. Just, fuck. The struggle was real. Didn't she realize the effect she had on him?

"Maybe I'd feel better if I saw you naked..."

Lucy couldn't believe she'd just blurted that out, apropos of _nothing._ What had possessed her to say that out loud?! It was like her mouth had a mind of its own! She resisted the urge to facepalm and squirmed as she tried to look like she wasn't desperately hoping he didn't think she was totally weird. Her fingers tugged at the hem of her skirt, trying to pretend she wasn't ridiculously embarrassed for even mentioning it. She didn't know if she succeeded. She really, really hoped so. Her eyes skittered away from his, landing on his fitted t-shirt.

"I think I'd really enjoy that actually," she heard herself say. At which point Lucy gave up trying to understand what her mouth was doing. She clearly had no control over it anyway.

Meanwhile, Natsu struggled not to swallow his tongue. That had definitely not been what he'd been expecting. His eyes reluctantly left the painfully hot thigh friction show going on at eye level and found her gaze. Her cheeks were still flushed, but her eyes held a spark of excitement they hadn't a moment before. Something past the embarrassment. It was that spark that had him standing and reaching for the hem of his shirt. Never let it be said he passed up a golden opportunity when it came knocking.

"Sounds good to me."

And just like that, the famous abs of Natsu Dragneel, that had sparked more than one fan club (and lots of sneaky paparazzi-worthy photographs), were displayed in all their glory. As though the goddess Helia herself were blessing their sudden matinee appearance, the clouds covering the sun shifted, bathing his tan skin in golden light through the small windows set high in the far wall. Even with the stripes of the blinds interrupting the view, it was magical to behold. Lucy's mouth went dry and she sat down hard on the desk behind her.

"Oh, wow."

Natsu smirked at her glazed eyes and raised a hand to keep the sun out of his eyes, twisting his top half away in the process. Lucy couldn't keep a small strangled noise from emerging from her throat. Was he posing like that on purpose? Was he trying to give her a heart attack?!

"What? You've seen me shirtless a few times now."

"Not the same," she managed to get out. Barely. She continued breathlessly. "The first time I saw you we didn't know each other, the second time I don't remember, and the last time was in the dark. Which was the only time we weren't in public. This is a _whole_ different experience." _This time you're all mine..._ He raised an eyebrow and shrugged in response, unaware of her private thoughts. She breathlessly watched his muscles ripple with the action. Just that tiny movement was better than the smuttiest romance novels she'd ever read. Natsu ran a hand over his stomach to scratch an itch and she almost choked on her own spit. _So much better._

"So...I'm curious…" Natsu's words pulled her out of the magical place her brain had gone that she liked to think of as the Natsu-Zone as he started unbuttoning his jeans. "Am I the only one getting naked here, or do you have plans to join me?" It was a shameless effort. He knew that before he said it. But if there was the smallest chance of it happening...totally fucking worth taking a shot. He pushed his jeans over his hips and dropped them to the floor, kicking out of them.

"Uh...sorry... plans?" Lucy said faintly, eyes glued to his corded thighs. Apparently she had a thing for legs. Who knew? _Well,_ her eyes traveled over his mostly exposed skin as he stretched his shoulders out absentmindedly and she had to close her mouth to keep the drool from getting out. Ok, _let's be honest here. I've got a thing for pretty much everything he's got._

"Yeah, you gonna make me stand here stark naked alone?" His fingers skimmed the waistband of his boxer briefs, and he felt the heat rising in her face. He felt her swallow every time a finger dipped inside the elastic. It was a heady sensation, feeling her responses to his movements. He could feel the silky breath of friction between her thighs and the moisture gathering further up. His mouth watered as he fought to keep his mind open enough to stay in tune with her. He'd fallen into it so easily he hadn't even noticed he'd done it. Silently, he prayed to any god that would listen that she'd join him.

"You're not naked _yet_ ," she responded faintly. But she leaned down and unzipped her boots anyway, pulling them off and zipping them back up before she set them neatly to the side. Then she started rolling down one of her stockings.

 _Holy shit that shouldn't have worked._ Natsu clenched his jaw and froze to keep her from getting distracted and realizing what she was doing. Unfortunately, she seemed to know exactly what she was doing, because after she'd pulled the second stocking off and wiggled her toes in the shaggy carpeting, she looked at him expectantly.

Natsu didn't move. Mostly because he was too distracted by the now completely bare thigh action that had started again to remember what he was supposed to be doing. The things that little skirt concealed...and he could feel them all happening. It was taking everything he had not to spread her legs on his desk and bury himself in heaven.

Lucy's eyes drifted downward, feeling his arousal. Experimentally, she raised one side of her skirt a couple of inches and swallowed hard when she felt his reaction.

Just as Lucy cleared her throat to say, well, anything to diffuse the heavy tension in the air, they both heard the sound of someone making their way down the hallway, and simultaneously dove for the door. Natsu, being closer, got there first, snapping the deadbolt into place just as Lucy joined him.

They looked each other seriously in the eye and held it for a beat before bursting out into smothered snickers. For several seconds, all they could do was wheeze and shake, clutching their stomachs as they strove to keep whoever was in the hall from noticing they were on the other side of the door.

Until they heard the door on Max & Elfman's side of the bathroom open. It was Lucy who sprung into action first that time, quickly flipping the lock and jumping back from the door again, running into Natsu in the process. She spun, surprised at the feeling of his hot skin against hers, and caught her balance on his biceps as his hands came out to steady her. Her hands couldn't even begin to fit around them. They locked eyes in silence as they heard whoever was in the bathroom do his business, wash his hands, and, FINALLY, leave the way he'd come.

But the exit of their visitor didn't seem to relieve the pressure surrounding them. Instead, if anything, the still air following his departure seemed to heat up with anticipation and lust.

Ever so slowly, Natsu's hands moved to the hem of Lucy's sweater, dipping under the edge of it and stroking the soft skin just below with his rough fingertips. Her hands, still resting on his arms drifted up over his shoulders, soft fingers exploring the picture perfect wells of his collarbone.

Natsu eased his hand under the back of her sweater and pressed his palm flat against the silky expanse of her lower back, finding, smugly, that his hand fit _perfectly_ into the curve of her spine. Her fingers paused in their exploration for just a moment before they left him completely. She quickly lifted her arms above her head, before she could change her mind.

It took Natsu a foggy minute to recognize the universal request, but grinned the minute he did, immediately lifting her top up and over her head. He brushed her tousled hair back over her shoulders and took in the uninhibited sight of her extraordinary cleavage.

"Oh, wow."

Lucy couldn't hold in a giggle at his echo of her earlier sentiment. "Yeah that really is the only word for it, isn't-mhmm!"

She ended her sentence in a hum of surprise as Natsu leaned down and kissed her, almost lifting her off the floor as he pulled her flush against him again, like he had in Fairy Tail's dining hall. Except the overwhelming feeling of being dominated that she'd felt then wasn't there like before. Now it was more like a desperation; like he was begging her for more, instead of demanding it. One of his hands clutched at her skirt, crumpling it in his fist. The other threaded into her hair, cradling the back of her neck as he arched her back with the force of his kiss.

Lucy felt ravished by the heat coming from his skin. Every point of contact with him was on fire, from his tongue caressing her own to their hips crashing together, where she could feel his hardness pressed against her.

But she was even more aware of the points where they weren't touching. The sheer size of her chest, even smashed into him like it was, kept his abdomen, infuriatingly, from making contact with the sensitive skin under her breasts not covered by her bra. The fabric he was clutching at her tailbone rode up, skimming the bare skin her underwear left exposed, igniting a longing in her to have his grasping hand on her butt instead of her skirt. _Stupid skirt. Should have taken that off first._

Her fingers pulled at his hair, clinging to him for balance as she stood on her toes and rested her weight in his capable hands, silently willing him to just _touch_ her. More. _Always more_.

Her hips swiveled against his, seeking relief from her sudden need to have his hands where she wanted them. Her mouth was too currently engaged to ask. He reacted with a groan, his mouth leaving her lips to taste the dewy skin of her neck and shoulder, though his hands stayed frustratingly where they were.

Finally, she untangled one hand from his thick locks and reached down to undo the side zipper of her skirt, tugging on it several times before Natsu realized what she wanted and released his hold on it. Then it fluttered to the floor and she _finally_ had his hand where she wanted it. Both of them in fact.

Natsu felt his hand meet skin and sent his other to investigate, pulling away from his thorough tasting of her bare shoulder at the sound of a faint, satisfied moan. The sound and the sight of Lucy bare in a matched set of lingerie sent a shock of warmth straight to his groin that had him groaning himself. Did she always wear lingerie? The evidence pointed to yes. And he was never one to doubt the evidence. It was an experiment he would gladly continue conducting.

His fingers reflexively tightened and she moaned again, leaning forward to suck on his collarbone before assailing his lips again. Natsu's daze broke when she captured his bottom lip, gently biting it. He grabbed a more secure handful of her ass and spun them both to press her up against his door, actually lifting her off the floor in his fervor.

Lucy took the opportunity to wrap her legs around his waist and explore his chest with her hands. Every inch of him was taut and smooth, his muscles beautifully engaged in keeping her pinned where he wanted her. Shifting her weight to one hand, Natsu wasted no time squeezing one of her bra-clad breasts with the other. It was like nothing else Lucy had ever felt. She hadn't even known she wanted him to handle her there until he did, but suddenly feeling his hand on her bare chest was all she could think about. Her hands slid from his chest, trying to get to the clasp sandwiched between her and the door, but unable to. Trying again, she leaned forward into him. Her lips met his shoulder and she nipped at the corded muscle there as she squirmed for the clasp again.

Natsu finally seemed to realize what she wanted and leaned back, taking him with her and giving her room to pop the clasp and pull the offending article of clothing from between them. Almost frantic to feel his calloused fingers on her at last, she let loose a pleasured squeal of surprise when he hiked her up higher and captured her nipple between his lips instead.

His hand did eventually find its way to her neglected breast, but by that time, Lucy's eyes had been opened to the pleasure that was Natsu's tongue and she wanted _more_. She reflexively grabbed his head and pulled it closer, arching into his mouth as short breathy moans escaping her every time his tongue rasped over her hardened bud. The pinkette grinned to himself and veered to lick a path up the valley between her breasts, feeling her abundant flesh spill between the fingers of his hand, but quickly found his head guided back where she wanted it. Horny Lucy was apparently more than a little bossy.

"No, keep doing that, that feels amazing," she sighed down at him.

And the pinkette had no fucking problem with that. Bossy Lucy was ridiculously sexy. And they had a whole hour of free time to explore just what Lucy lov-

" _Ding Dong the Witch is dead! Which old witch? The Wicked Witch! Ding dong the Wicked Witch is dead!"_

The sound of Erza's ringtone automatically had him pulling away from Lucy, years of conditioning telling his body not to make the red menace wait any longer than she had to.

But Horny/Bossy/Ridiculously Sexy Lucy had other ideas. After a moment of looking at his phone, she turned back to him.

"Ignore it." She pulled his head back to face her, biting his bottom lip again to gain his attention.

"Okay," he replied with a grin, diving in to dominate her mouth again.

" _Ding Dong the Witch is dead! Which old witch? The Wicked Witch! Ding dong the Wicked Witch is dead!"_

His body stiffened in reflex again. This time Lucy broke their kiss, glaring at the small device. "Put me down," she demanded with a frown. He did as he was told, though with a little sad frown of his own as she pulled away, covering her bare chest with an arm, and walked over to his cell. Stupid Erza. He'd had that glorious ass in his fucking hands.

Lucy indicated for him to sit on the couch and held out his phone for him to swipe it open, which he did because the look on Horny/Frustrated Lucy's face was almost as scary as Annoyed Erza's was. But when he went to take the phone to answer it, she pulled it out of his reach. Natsu could hear Erza's voice coming faintly over the speaker.

"Natsu? Are you there?! Answer me!"

Natsu broke into a sweat just hearing the annoyance in her voice. But Lucy ignored her, instead regaining most of Natsu's attention as she straddled his lap and sat on his knees. Finally, she brought the phone to her ear.

"Hi Erza. Natsu's busy. He'll call you back later." She finally moved her arm letting her heavy chest free for his viewing pleasure again and monopolizing what was left of his concentration. "Right Natsu?" Lucy held the phone to his ear, balancing herself with a hand on his shoulder as he unabashedly ogled her toplessness. He didn't even notice what Erza was saying on the other end of the phone.

"Yep. Definitely busy."

Lucy smiled proudly at him and brought the phone back to her ear with a quick, "Bye Erza!" before she hung up and powered it down. Then she reached into her bag sitting next to the couch and turned hers off too. Butterflies fluttered in Lucy's stomach at the thought of continuing down the road they were on. She wasn't sure if she was ready for...well, everything. But dammit, she wasn't going to let another interruption decide for her. "Now. Where were we?"

* * *

Erza glared at her phone.

"I'm worried Lucy is a bad influence on Natsu."

Her blue-haired boyfriend looked up from the burger he'd just taken a bite of and politely finished chewing before responding. "Why? She's seems like a great influence to me. He's almost completely stopped fighting because of her."

"But she just hung up on me. After telling me Natsu was _busy_. The nerve!" Erza snapped, already preparing to redial and give the couple a piece of her mind. Thankfully, Mystogan interceded, grabbing the phone out of her hand.

"Erza, take a second to think about it. They're soulmates. Lucy outranks you now, and that's how it should be. Especially if they're doing what I suspect they're doing." He accompanied his statement with a suggestive eyebrow wiggle. "Honestly, if they've managed to squeak out a little alone time together I'm surprised they answered at all. I certainly wouldn't if I were similarly _engaged_ with you."

"If you are referring to sex, that is no excuse. My calls are always necessary and Natsu knows that. He always answers if he can."

Jellal internally rolled his eyes. He doubted any man would stop in the middle of sex to answer his phone, no matter who was calling. It just went against nature. "Do I really need to explain to you why that's not a reasonable way of thinking? Plus, Natsu's never been really serious with anyone since I've known him. This is different for him. And despite what your gut is telling you, change it good. Just look at us!" He spread his hands in an abbreviated motion indicating playfully how great he was.

Erza gave him a look like he was insane before replying, "What? You're trying to convince me change is good using _our_ relationship? The one that somehow now permanently involves your twin/my fellow kidnapped childhood comrade-in-arms being bound to us for the rest of our lives while he finishes out a prison sentence for doing terrible things to people? What part of that is supposed to convince me?!" Erza stood, gathering the trash from her meal with a single sweep of her arm and flawlessly tossing it into a nearby waste receptacle.

Mystogan held his ground. "The part where I love you?" he said evenly, just loud enough for her to hear, refusing to break eye contact.

Erza paused taking breath for her next tirade and froze, letting it out instead. Slowly she sank back into her seat, but remained silent, lost in thought.

"Well?" Mystogan eventually asked, slowly dying inside, but seemingly unconcerned to anyone who cared to look.

"Some change is good. And Lucy _might_ still be good for Natsu," she finally responded, grudgingly.

Mystogan smiled slightly as he watched her gather her things and leave shortly after, just the hint of a blush still dusting her cheeks. He didn't know what he had been expecting, but in the end, it was enough for that moment. After all, being the reason that Erza Scarlet changed her mind and basically admitted she was wrong was no small thing. Next time, he vowed to himself, he'd get her to say it back.

* * *

Gray couldn't concentrate. His fingers danced over his phone, opening the messaging app only to close it again a moment later. Who could he even ask? She'd said herself she hadn't met the Strauss siblings yet, but she knew about them, so someone in their circle of friends had to know her. Would it be weird to send out a mass text asking everyone he knew for her number?

Gray's fingers opened the messaging app again and hovered over the screen, trying to decide.

He could ask Loke, but honestly, if the ginger wasn't already aware of Yukino's presence, he didn't want to alert him now. Loke complained that he didn't have the "draw" that Gray's body did, but his skills were nothing to sneer at. Loke radiated love for women in general. Even the ones annoyed by his pick-up lines could recognize the genuine appreciation below them. It was a rare woman who could resist that kind of worship.

He scrolled down toward Loke's name anyway, just for something to do with his fidgeting hands, but stopped when he ran across a name in his contact list, recently changed back from Cyan.

Didn't Levy work for the library? Yukino _had_ been carrying that book… It was a long shot, but maybe… He selected her contact info and typed out a quick message.

 **Hey, you work at the library right?**

Gray's leg bounced under his desk as he jotted off another note about what his professor was saying, immediately switching back to his phone when it lit up.

 _Yeah. Why?_

 **I ran into a girl this morning carrying a library book. Yukino Agria. Short almost white hair, cute. You don't know her by any chance do you? She's a freshman too.**

 _Yeah, she's in my advanced German class actually. Why? How do you know her?_ Gray grinned down at his phone. Of course Levy knew her. He was beginning to think she knew everything. And she definitely wasn't shy about letting everyone know it. Gajeel really had his hands full in Gray's opinion.

 **Think you could get me her number?**

 _No._

Gray's smile melted into a frown. **Why not?**

 _She's not your type. She's a really sweet person. She'll think you want something more than you do._

 **Who says I don't want more?**

 _Your track record? I've seen you in action, remember? Lucy only wanted someone to play with for the night. Yukino will take you seriously. I won't be responsible for you breaking her heart._

Gray gritted his teeth. Would he never stop being reminded of that stupid mistake? It was starting to feel like everything in his life had splintered off in crazy directions the minute he'd met Lucy. Somehow, everything always came back to her. Hell, she was basically the reason he was willing to try the whole relationship thing to begin with.

He frowned down at this phone and tapped his fingers absentmindedly on his desk, slumping in his chair. Levy just _had_ to butt in and insert her opinion. Couldn't Yukino make her own godsdamned choices?

Gray sighed. He knew the meddlesome blunette was just trying to help her friend. It wasn't fair to blame her; she didn't know about his newfound mission. If he told her, she'd probably help him, but it was embarrassing. Gray didn't share his feelings with people. Unless they were conveyed with a right hook to the jaw. At the same time, he felt like a hypocrite. How could he push Lucy to depend on her new friends if he didn't do the same?

Finally making a decision, he went to message Levy back, typing several things and deleting them again before finally hitting send. Sharing emotional shit was so fucking awkward.

 **I want to change. Like really change. Can you please get me her number? Or at least give her mine?**

Levy didn't respond for a while. Gray thumped his head down on his notebook, louder than he intended. The sound of the professor droning on suddenly went silent. Cautiously he lifted his head to find the whole class staring at him.

"Are you unwell Mr. Fullbuster?" Dr. Roubaul asked, furrowing his wizened white eyebrows.

"Uh, no. I'm fine." Gray slumped further in his seat wishing he was invisible.

"Then please refrain from sleeping in my class. Especially when you walk in ten minutes late."

"Will do. Sorry." Gray tried his best to look apologetic, poised with pen over notebook as though he were excited to take notes. He did for a while, until the instructor's voice had gained that continuous monotone that meant he'd gone on autopilot, and nonchalantly swiped his phone awake again. Levy had messaged him back. Just a phone number.

The uncharacteristic grin broke out over Gray's face again at the sight of it. Day one of the new Gray started now.

* * *

"Where were we? Well, I'm pretty sure I had you up against that door over there…"

"Ha ha, very funny, you know what I-ahhhh! Holy-abrupt-boob-attack-Batman!" Lucy rose on her knees to chase his mouth as Natsu hummed his amusement around her pert nipple and traced his hands up her bare back. He reveled in the feeling of her in his arms. She felt so small and delicate. She'd been so close to disappearing from his life. Too close. His grip tightened. Every passing minute with her was a gift. An almost naked gift.

It had been a long time since he'd had a topless girl on his lap, though none of them had been Lucy. She blew them all out of the water. He pulled back, tugging her soft flesh with his teeth before letting go so he could look at her again. She panted lightly as she looked down at him with dazed eyes. His own eyes dilated with hers. He could feel the warmth sweeping through her body at his every touch. It was a hell of a rush.

"So...you definitely like that," he murmured as he nuzzled her neck, his hands creeping up her sides. He leaned in to kiss her as he firmly swiped his thumbs on the underside of her breasts, just above where her underwires had left a faint indent on her skin. Lucy's whole body shivered and she gasped. He did it again with a grin, triggering another shiver before sliding his hands slowly down and settling them on her thighs.

Lucy was concentrating on mastering Natsu's tongue when she felt his hands creeping up her inner thighs and froze as she heard Aquarius echoing in her head.

 _Men only want one thing. And ladies don't give it to them without an ironclad pre-nup._

Lucy held her breath and closed her eyes, willing away her demons. Apparently defeating them in real life wasn't going to exorcise their influence completely from her mind, no matter how much she wished it would. Panic threatened to choke her, but she kept her face carefully trained to nothingness. Maybe she would never be truly free. Dark thoughts swirled in where Natsu's touch had cleared a path of white hot lust.

The man she was mounting paused in response, concern coloring his tone. "Luce? You ok?"

Nothing happened for a minute and Natsu started second-guessing himself. Her body was shutting him out somehow, but the last thing he'd felt from her was racing panic. Maybe he'd pushed her too far… But everything had seemed fine. Hell, she'd been pushing _him_ onward, if anything. He started to reluctantly remove his hands, but Lucy's fingers covered his, keeping them in place.

So Natsu waited, growing more apprehensive by the moment. He fell into his now familiar daze, seeking to reestablish the connection that had broken moments before. Slowly, almost reluctantly, her quickened heartbeat returned to him again, and the tight knot in her stomach ached. "Luce…"

Slowly the blonde pulled away so she could look him in the eyes. The smile on her lips was wide and as fake as a sex-tape orgasm. His brow immediately furrowed.

"I'm fine. Don't worry about it," she said lightly and tried to lean in for a kiss, but he leaned away.

Lucy's smile slipped and she settled back again, sitting on his knees.

"Yeah, right," he said sarcastically as he strengthened his grip on her legs, her hands tightening on his in response. "And I'm Hrothgar, King of the Danes," he intoned sarcastically. Lucy's smile went a little more natural at his words. Like he'd hoped it would.

"Did _you_ just reference _Beowulf_?"

"Hey, I had to take basic English Lit classes just like everyone else. And Hrothgar is the best name ever. Now. Don't change the subject." He wiggled his fingers against her skin, still held in place by her delicate looking hands and she stiffened again. "What's wrong?" When she didn't offer an answer again, he forged ahead. "'Cause _something's_ up. I can feel your anxiety. If you're not comfortable with something just tell me. It's not a big thing. Seriously. We can stop right now if you want and talk or something." Certain parts of Natsu's anatomy vehemently rejected that idea. He ignored them. With a little effort. He kept his eyes strictly trained on hers. "Although, if that's the case, you have seriously got to put a shirt back on before I can talk about anything but how amazing your boobs are."

Lucy immediately folded her arms over her chest, but leaned forward a bit with a sad smile. "No, really, that's not the problem! You didn't do anything that made me uncomfortable. This is definitely what I want. It's just my screwed up brain messing with me…" Her head bowed a bit as she avoided his gaze, nervous. "I mean, since you asked, you should probably know that I don't think I'm quite ready to um... _lose_ anything at this precise moment...but I'm open to trying anything up to…that." She shyly peeked up at him through her bangs. Natsu raised a brow with a mischievous smile.

"Anything?" He felt her stomach flutter and his smile grew.

"Ok, not _anything_! Dammit Natsu, you know what I mean! Shit, I'm obviously not very good at this." Lucy tightened her arms, feeling more exposed all of a sudden.

The pinkette laughed to himself, moving his now free hands down to her knees and away from temptation. He knew he probably shouldn't even be touching her right now, not until he knew what was up, but he couldn't bring himself to release her entirely.

When he wasn't in physical contact with Lucy, it was like a part of him was missing. He couldn't describe it. For some reason, her sitting on his knees just wasn't enough. He need to feel her skin under his fingertips. Just thinking of all the skin he could touch right then had his heart racing again. "You're kidding right? I have to keep reminding myself you've never done any of this before." He gestured to their current positions, keeping his other hand firmly on her knee. "I mean, you're naked and straddling _me._ Entirely under your own power. For that matter, _I'm_ clothingless by your request as well. If you hadn't told me, I would never guess you're a virgin. Seriously."

Lucy blushed and tried to hide behind her bangs again. Looking back, she had been the one driving the whole thing without really planning to. But, if she was managing not to look like a complete novice, it was only because Natsu was really damned good. Even with her lack of experience she could tell that much. It was like the difference between dancing ballroom with a man who knew how to lead and a boy who didn't; having a partner who knew what they were doing made the learning process feel effortless.

Natsu swept her bangs over one ear and tilted her face up so he could see her eyes again. "But, just because you've initiated things this far doesn't mean we can't stop whenever you want. Or... if you're not sure where to go from here...I can always take the reins for a bit if you want…" He flashed her a roguish grin. "I'd ask you to tell me if you don't like something, but, honestly? I'll kind of already know. There are definitely some downsides to the whole bonded thing, but being able to feel your reactions to what I'm doing to you is definitely not one of them."

"Yeah...I guess I didn't think about that…" Lucy trailed off as one of Natsu's fingers lightly burned a path up her inner thigh in illustration, sending heat radiating from between her legs. Her vision blurred a bit as her whole world shrank to that light graze of contact. Her brain couldn't form words.

"Fuck Luce," Natsu breathed, almost drowning in her reaction. "It doesn't take much to get you going does it?" He licked his suddenly dry lips and leaned his forehead against hers, pulling his hand away from her leg again..

"Apparently not," Lucy responded, biting her bottom lip uncertainly for a moment. Hesitantly, she reached out for his hand again and brought it back to her leg. Her heart pounding, she put a hand on each of his broad shoulders and leaned forward, placing her lips tentatively on his. She scooted forward a bit on his legs, putting more pressure into her kiss. His hand immediately came up to her waist to steady her. His thumbs traced the lace of her underwear sending more wonderful shivers through her, but also tickling a bit. He immediately stopped the motion. Lucy's heart swelled a bit at his response. He was trying so hard to be a gentleman about the whole thing. Suddenly the craving to let him show her what he could really do came crashing over her. She broke their kiss, leaning in to whisper huskily against his ear.

"Take the lead. I'm all yours."

Natsu didn't need to be told twice. His hands fell to her hips and pulled her close against him, testing the limits of her flexibility as her legs spread wide against him. If she hadn't already felt his desire through their bond, she wouldn't be in any doubt now. A rush of adrenaline surged through them both at the contact, neither sure who it was coming from, but honestly, neither caring.

Natsu's arms locked around her and the next thing Lucy knew she was on her back on the couch with the fit pinkette on top of her, face buried in her chest, reminding her just exactly where they'd left off. She found herself clutching his head again, fingers buried in his hair, feeling her longing for him winding up again like a tight coil in her stomach. His hips bucked against hers relieving her ache a bit, but not entirely. She mirrored the action, still searching for more, but not quite finding it. Her soulmate tugged on her nipple gently with his teeth, distracting her from the ache between her legs with a zip of pleasure shooting to her core.

Natsu palmed Lucy's other breast and ran his tongue on the sensitive skin underneath as he shifted his own body to the side. He knew what Lucy's body was wanting, her hips grinding against his leg as she shivered from what his tongue was doing. He kept one knee between her legs, using it to anchor one leg with his body as he pulled her other knee up and out, exposing her covered core.

Their tongues stilled and Lucy held her breath as Natsu's hand slid slowly up her inner thigh again, prolonging the sweet agony, until he was finally where her body desperately wanted him. He lightly traced her slit through the thin fabric, increasing pressure almost immediately as he stroked her, soaking the silky fabric in seconds. Lucy hips followed his movements, desperate for more contact - always _more_ \- and Natsu complied, pushing the scrap of material aside to stroke her slick folds just as he resumed exploring her mouth with his tongue. He couldn't seem to get enough of the taste of her. It almost made him light-headed.

Lucy could barely reciprocate his kiss at first as he used his slick fingers to circle her clit, the stimulation shorting out her brain with a white hot throb on every pass. Her moans of encouragement into his mouth were met with a renewed advance on her straining nipples with his talented tongue, but the pace of his fingers remained frustratingly steady. Lucy's hips found the rhythm he set quickly and pressed into his touch, desperate to chase the promise of greater stimulation he was offering. Her hands clenched and unclenched, instinctively finding the bare skin of his back to grasp and dig her nails into as her eyes slid closed. Her brain had halted all rational thought, instead firing primitive synapses through her body, preparing it for what was to come. She felt boneless, yet strung tight, compelled to contract her every muscle to keep from snapping.

Natsu lifted his eyes as he sucked on the supple flesh of her chest, catching sight of his golden goddess, pink in the cheeks with her eyes crunched closed and her kiss swollen lips agape. He could feel the pleasure surging through her and swiveled his hips against her trapped thigh to relieve his own need. The pinkette removed his mouth from her skin and resettled the arm that supported his weight, changing the angle of his shoulders just slightly. Anticipation of her reaction had him holding his breath as he pushed her one step further.

One well-slicked finger penetrated her opening with and the taut string holding Lucy immobile snapped. Her muscles relaxed at the relief such a simple touch could bring her, and her eyes flew open to find deep emerald green ones, almost black with arousal, staring down at her. When he withdrew his appendage and pushed it back into her again, her hands, releasing their death grip on his shoulders, explored every inch of hard contracting muscle they could find. It was like her brain had gone from 0 to maxed out in 3.5, praise, excitement, and encouragement jostling to make it out of her and getting caught in her mouth. Finally her tongue untwisted enough to form words.

"Oh gods Natsu...that's just...aaahhh...just…" Lucy couldn't keep a coherent thought in one place long enough to finish what she was saying as a second finger joined his first and pushed into her with increased frequency. She found her hips following his rhythm again, encouraging him to push her to the edge - harder, deeper, faster - moaning with satisfaction each time he pushed her a little bit further.

Natsu got caught up in Lucy's fervor, lost in her pleasure, until her wandering hands grazed his waistband and her thigh shifted against his erection, reminding him of his own straining need. He sucked in a breath, trying to keep himself from getting carried away. But the noises Lucy made at his every movement sang in his skin. He felt like a god in that moment. Her god. With elation, he leaned forward and he sucked on her earlobe, tugging it with his teeth as he curled his fingers upward inside of her. She cried out to him and arched her back, riding hard into his hand. One of her hands slipped lower, tracing his defined pelvic muscles tantalizingly slowly, and before he knew what he was doing he was murmuring into her ear.

"Touch me." He curled his fingers again in her slick heat, groaning as her response swept through him, making him harder than ever. She was still so tight he could barely maneuver two of his fingers inside her even though she was dripping wet. He thrust hard into her again, imagining what she would feel like surrounding his cock instead. "Fuck. I want you so bad, Luce."

Her soft hands immediately turned their journey southward, her lips tasting every inch of his skin they could between heavy breaths. Natsu automatically lifted his hips away from hers to give her room to explore, all of his muscles engaged from arm to knees to keep him suspended above her. The anticipation was nearly killing him, his heart thumping in his chest.

Natsu's arm almost buckled as her fingers finally brushed his bulge through the restricting fabric of his boxer-briefs. They returned a moment later, tentatively gripping his covered length. His fingers stilled inside her as his brain short circuited for a moment, focused completely on the feeling of her hands right where he wanted them. Her touch retreated briefly, prompting him to open his eyes again just in time to see Lucy grin breathlessly as she hooked her fingers into his only remaining garment and shoved it down his hips, releasing him to spring out in one swift movement.

Natsu groaned, resting his head on her shoulder briefly. Lucy's eyes widened as he raised his head again, revealing what now stood proudly erect between them. She froze, her inner muscles clenching around his idle fingers at the sight, reminding his digits they still had work to do. He pumped them into her a few times in response, breaking her reverie. Her hands responded immediately, gripping his considerable length in both hands.

They both sucked in breath at the feeling. Lucy massaged the velvety skin beneath her fingers experimentally and fought to breath as a different sort of pleasure joined the coil in her belly. Her muscles clenched around Natsu's fingers again and he thrust his fingers deeply into her, unconsciously mirroring the movement with his hips, sliding his cock through her surprised fingers to poke her in the hip. He groaned and drew his hips back again, an apology on his lips when he felt her fingers hesitantly surround him, stroking him slowly from head to base and back. His fingers thrust quickly and mercilessly into her, adding a third finger the minute he thought he could. Lucy's fingers tightened around him as she cried out, vocalizing her pleasure with every thrust, mindlessly matching the rhythm his fingers and hips set with her hands, soon slick with pre-cum. Her fingers cramped and she pressed him against the curve of her hip instead, each thrust of his hips dragging him across her soft heated skin and the strong dexterity of her fingers. He pushed into the tight space she'd made and groaned, doubling his pace, his fingers only a hair behind his frenzied pace.

"Oh god...I think...I think…" Words trembled and fell from Lucy's lips as her body trembled. Her fingers curled in without her permission, pressing crescents into her own hip as she fought to keep her hands where they were.

Natsu struggled to hang on to his sanity, desperately trying to keep from coming until Lucy could get there. She was so close that her pleasure was washing over him in waves, demanding he just let _go_ already. Finally, when he didn't think he could take the almost painful tension wound close to breaking inside her anymore, he desperately curled his fingers one last time, sweeping his thumb firmly over her clit, and _finally_ felt her climax. Her fingers released him, blindly grabbing at the couch cushions beneath her as she cried out, keening softly as her muscles spasmed.

The feeling of her release pushed him over the edge, giving him just enough time to aim away from the upholstery before he came across his girlfriend's abdomen. Lucy's keen upped in volume as she felt him climax, easily loud enough to be heard through most of the house. Thank the gods most of his brothers had class. With that thought, Natsu's arm collapsed beneath him, sending him crashing sideways into the narrow space between Lucy and the back of the couch.

Silence broken only by their panting breaths descended as their jellied limbs begged for mercy. Natsu's neck, the last hold out in the fight for self-control, finally released his head to fall on Lucy's chest, his breath ghosting across her nipple.

Lucy didn't even have the strength to squirm, merely lifting a hand and resting it on his head with a sated sigh. "Natsu...that was absolutely incredible."

"Yeah. That was...fuck. I can't even describe how amazing that was." Natsu cracked an eyelid getting an eyeful of naked, jizzy Lucy. With a frown, he reached out to grab one of the discarded garments hanging over the back of the couch and wiped the remains of their activities away, dropping the balled-up garment onto the floor unceremoniously. He'd make sure it got laundered later. Right then, he was too tired to care. He shimmied his boxer briefs back up where they belonged and snaked an arm around Lucy's waist and pulled her against him. One of his legs fully immobilizing her in his patented Natsu-cage cuddle move. He'd always been a post-coitus cuddler, but had sex always wiped him out like this? His foggy brain couldn't remember.

Lucy wrinkled her nose as the sticky shirt hit the floor, but laughed as she kept her arms out of the way of Octopus Natsu. "Thanks. Is it always like that? I mean, I know we didn't actually...you know, and it's got to be way better when you actually…you know..."

"Have sex?" Natsu interrupted, amused at her avoidance of the word.

"Yeah, that. But is it always so...breathtaking?"

"Hmph," Natsu responded automatically as he thought about it sleepily for a second. He nuzzled the soft side of her breast while his brain struggled to catch up. Sex in general had always been pretty damn awesome. But feeling what he was doing to Lucy as he did it was on a-whole-nother level. Hands down. "No. That was probably the best sex I've ever had actually."

"Wow...and we didn't even really...have sex."

"Yeah."

"Gods, can you imagine what that's gonna be like? Feeling everything _through_ each other, and _in_ or _around_ each other, and pressed up _against_ each other-" Natsu's hand halted Lucy's words as he clapped it over her mouth. She looked over at him in surprise, beautiful brown eyes wide. Natsu removed his hand and propped himself up on his free elbow to smirk down at her.

"If you don't want to find out, please, for the love of all that is holy, stop talking about it." He wiggled his hips where they were pressed against her just enough to make it clear exactly what the problem was.

"Oh! Yeah, sorry." Lucy blushed and tried to extinguish the little fire that had sparked low in her stomach again. To distract Natsu (and herself), she started running her fingers through his hair, working out the sweaty tangles their lovemaking session had left behind. Natsu's hold on her tightened, his face buried nose deep in side-boob as he took a deep breath. "Oh gods, please don't do that. I desperately need a shower."

"Nar yirra ally smilag ood," he mumbled into her, his breath washing over her skin making her nip. A shiver went through her.

"Sorry, what?" Her question was met by only the sound of deep, even breathing. "Natsu?"

A snore escaped the man-shaped starfish locking her into place. With a sigh, Lucy experimentally tried to pry his arm off of her midsection.

The results were not favorable. Natsu's tightened, rolling her over to face him and sliding his other appendage under her outstretched arm to tether her securely in place, his face burying itself in her cleavage with another deep breath.

"Well shit," Lucy whispered, giving up before he rolled over and smothered her or something. "Guess I'm not going to my last class.

* * *

 **Smoke if ya got 'em.**

 **Sooo, yeah…**

 **Achievement Unlocked: Smexy Time Lemon Level 1 Complete! (just wait til we get to level three... But seriously, I must be such a perv. That lemon (not counting the first kiss, or conversation up until she asks him to get naked) was more than 6500 words long. In an almost 16k chapter.**

 **CONCLUSION: I'm definitely a perv.**

 **REACTION: No shame.**

 **Things and Stuff**

 **Ljubavna budala** -per Google translator, this should be something like "Lovesick fool" in Croatian (any fluent Croatian speakers, please feel free to correct me if needed!)

 **like he'd won the World Cup, Holy Grail War, and Tri-Wizard Tournament all in one day-** the World Cup is obviously referring to the soccer championship, the Holy Grail War is a reference to the Fate/ series (Fate/Stay Night, Fate/Zero, etc.), and the Tri-Wizard is

" **like Mina under Dracula's spell. Or Basil under Dorian's"** -The first one is obviously a reference to Bram Stoker's _Dracula_ , the second refers to the artist, Basil Hallward's obsession with the title character in Oscar Wilde's _The Picture of Dorian Gray_

 **What are you, a hobbit?-** LOTR...because hobbits might be the only creatures in existence who eat as much as certain anime characters...

" **You egg"** -1930s slang for a crude person

 **Dr. Roubaul** -Gray's professor is the Master of Cait Shelter, just in case the name didn't ring any bells

 **Hrothgar, King of the Danes** -as Lucy recognized, this is a reference to Beowulf, an Old English text with an unknown author in which the great hero Beowulf assists Hrothgar, King of the Danes, to destroy the monster Grendel. This is required reading in most American schools, so I made it that way in Fiore too, and I feel like Natsu would appreciate that story the most due to the amount of action and the principles of good conquering evil. Plus, Hrothgar is the coolest name ever.


	41. Breakthrough

**Another chapter! A day or two later than I had hoped, and a little shorter than normal, but a LOT of important stuff happens...plus, I'm still struggling to finish all my Christmas gifts. And get them mailed internationally...YOU KNOW WHO YOU ARE! But anyway, the chapter is done, the first round of gifts have been mailed out of the country, and half of the next chapter after this is begun!**

 **In response to the guest who asked, YES. I'm totally back on schedule. I've even got the week of Christmas off from work so there will be one shots and Falling updates thrown your way too! I'm planning on being a writing machine! But, overall, there will definitely be a chapter a week again, even if it has to wait a day or two to be polished by my most excellent beta.**

* * *

"Hello?"

The sweet voice on the other side of the phone had Gray smiling. "Hey, Yukino? This is Gray Fullbuster. We ran into each other yesterday?"

"Oh! Um, hi….? How did you get my number?"

"Levy McGarden in a friend of mine. I hope it's okay that she gave it to me."

"Oh, yeah, that's not a problem, I was just thrown off for a sec. I love Levy! She's amazing! Did you know she finished all her classwork for the semester in the first two weeks?! Seriously, two weeks into her first year in college and she's that put together. I don't know where she finds the time! We actually went to highschool together, though we never had any classes the same. It was pretty amazing getting to finally meet and talk to her in person!" she gushed.

 _Wow, she talks a lot._ "Yeah, Levy is definitely a force to be reckoned with. Though, I'm pretty sure that's not true..."

"Oh, sorry, I was rambling wasn't I? I can't help it when it comes to her. I'm just so glad we're friends now. I tried to get into one of her other classes but...oh sorry, I'll shut up now, I swear." She paused for a second. "So...what's up? Was there a specific reason you called?"

"Yeah, actually." Gray took a deep breath and let it out, his fingers fiddling with his shirt buttons. "Do you wanna go out sometime? With me that is." There. Done. The chips were down. No going back.

"Like...on a...date?"

"Well...yeah. Yes. A date. Like dinner? Or a movie or something?" Gray mentally facepalmed. He was sure she knew what a date was. She didn't need the generic descriptions. Why was this so much harder than a casual hookup? He walked up to complete strangers on a regular basis and asked if they wanted to leave with him. Flirting with girls like that was like breathing for him. Where had all _that_ fucking confidence gone?! He felt warm. Way too warm. He shrugged out of the shirt he was wearing, the cool air weaving its way through the quad doing a lot to soothe his nerves. Gray ran a hand over his belt buckle, the metal cool to the touch. He didn't notice the drill team practicing a few yards away freeze one by one and pull out their phones to take pictures, pretending not to stare.

"Well," Yukino replied. "I don't normally date guys I just met...but, since you're a friend of Levy's...why not? When were you thinking?"

Gray let out the breath he'd been holding, his hand leaving his belt to run a hand over his shaggy hair. He really needed a haircut. Maybe Lisanna would cut it for him again? "How about Friday? Like, six?" That should give him plenty of time to get the hair issue under control.

"Ok. That works for me. Where do you want to meet?"

The crowd of women, now including pretty much every female on campus who happened to be walking past, sighed as he twisted to the side, hand still on his head, surveying the campus landscape. His belt hit the ground without him noticing he'd removed it.

The half-naked noirette walked a few steps, trying to think of the best place to meet her. His jeans slipped down his hips a bit. The phones pointed at him switched to recording video.

Where would she have no trouble finding? "How about the fountain? I'll pick you up there."

"Alright. Where are you planning on taking me?"

Gray panicked again, unbuttoning his jeans. "Well...it's a surprise…" He really should have thought that out before calling her. Where did people go in Magnolia to have fun? Somehow he doubted all his favorite hook-up places would be appropriate. They were really only good for one thing.

"Ok...well, if I'm dressed wrong for it, then it's all your fault," Yukino replied, flirtatiously.

Gray smiled. "I take full responsibility. Though I can't imagine whatever you wear not looking great."

She laughed. "Now I've really gotta bring my A game don't I? Wouldn't want to disappoint."

Gray chuckled softly back, walking aimlessly away a few steps, the grass beneath his feet tickling his toes. "I'm pretty sure I just told you there was no way you could disappoint me, but I'm not going to pass up an opportunity to see what you can do when you're not being run down by careless idiots like me."

"Well, I'm not one to brag, but I clean up pretty nice."

"I bet you do." A huge cheer went up behind Gray, startling him. He hadn't noticed the crowd gathering. Which was, oddly, made up of mostly women. He turned, confused only to find them all looking at him, phones held in front of them. His brows furrowed. What the fuck was that all about? Yukino's voice in his ear distracted him again though.

"Well, you'll just have to wait and see Friday. I've got to go now...but text me later? I'd love to know how you and Levy met."

Gray smiled. "Absolutely. Talk to you later then."

"Bye."

"Bye." Grinning to himself, Gray automatically went to put his phone in the pocket of his jeans. But instead of feeling the weight fall into his pocket, the phone hit the grass at this feet.

Which was when he noticed he was walking around in nothing but his boxer briefs.

 _Well shit._

He sighed. _Not like it's the first time._ With a reluctant smile, he took a bow, to shrieking applause.

Then, Gray picked up his phone, pulled his jeans back on with a final wave to his adoring fans, and headed back to Fairy Tail, already forgetting all about the incident. And his other clothing.

 _I just have to figure out where to take her now...and get a haircut._

* * *

Just as Lucy was leaving her apartment building, a warm hand shot out and pulled her around the corner, into what was quickly becoming her favorite stand of bushes.

"Natsu!" she squealed, cut off by his mouth landing on hers. She responded immediately, opening her mouth and kissing him back. Which somehow swiftly progressed to him pressing her up against the cold brick, a thigh between her legs and arms wrapped tightly around her. He always had a way of taking her breath away.

But as fun as kissing Natsu was, Lucy had class to get to. She threaded her fingers into his hair and tugged hard enough to get his attention. He broke away, his lazy grin sending ripples through the pool of warmth in her belly.

"Morning Luce."

"Good morning Natsu. This is…" Lucy trailed off, distracted as Natsu decided her neck was fair game. "...um, nice, but I'm gonna be late to class."

"So?" he murmured between kisses, scraping his teeth over her earlobe and playing with the stud in her ear with his tongue. "Class is overrated."

"And yet," she replied as his hands found their way under her shirt, "oddly required to graduate." With a Herculean effort, she grabbed his wrists and pushed them away. That seems to get his attention, his head coming up and smile slipping into a pout. "Seriously. I've missed so much class between your stupid experiments and all the other crap that keeps happening to me, it will be a miracle if I even pass the midterms!"

"Pssh, yeah right." His hands came back up to pull her close to him again. "You'll be fine. You basically pay your teachers' salaries now. They're not gonna flunk you."

"They don't know that's me! It's called an anonymous donation. And so not the point!" Lucy grumbled, spinning out of his arms to push her way through the bushes. "I'm here to learn. And not going to class isn't going to help with that at all." The branches she pushed away sprang back, hitting Natsu full in the face.

Lucy recoiled backward at the sting, hands flying to her face. "Damnit! Stupid bond."

Natsu gingerly put his arms around her waist from behind, cradling her weight as he guided her head back to look at the red marks on her cheek. He pointedly ignored the sting on his own skin. "You okay?"

"Yeah, I'm fine. Which you can already tell."

"Well, yeah, but half the fun of being your boyfriend is getting to take care of you." He release her head, letting her right herself.

She felt his chin hook over her shoulder and she turned her head to catch him looking sidelong at her before his eyes darted forward again. She couldn't help but smile. "How about a compromise then? You walk me to class and I'll let you take me out tomorrow night?"

One of Natsu's eyebrows went up, game but suspicious. "How is that a compromise? Sounds more than a little one-sided..."

"You get my undivided attention. And we can do anything you want."

Natsu's eyes lit up with speculation. "Anything?"

"Oh for the love of all that is holy, you know what I mean! Anything within reason!"

"Yeah," he chuckled. "I do." He made a great show of thinking about it before acquiescing. "Fine. I accept your terms." He let her waist go but threw an arm around her shoulders instead, grinning down at her. "Let's get you to class."

Lucy smiled up at him, waiting until they'd started walking before saying what she was thinking. "I love you."

Natsu tripped over his own foot, barely catching himself before he took them both down. Lucy giggled. It was fun to watch him flounder a bit. Usually, he was so balanced she could probably jump on him and he wouldn't even have to step back to catch her… Maybe she should try that sometime, it sounded like fun...

Once he'd righted himself, he gave Lucy a suspicious look. "Did you do that on purpose?"

"You'll never know," Lucy chirped back, unable to keep a sly grin from spreading over her face. The arm around her shoulders pulled her in close as Natsu turned his head and put his mouth up next to her ear. She held her breath, waiting to hear his response to her declaration.

He took his time, his hot breath sending shivers through her as they ambled along in the direction of campus. Finally, he spoke.

"I…"

Lucy leaned further into him, following his lead until they slowed to a stop. "Yeah?"

"...think we should get croissants."

"Natsu!" she whined, pushing off his arm and stomping away. "You...dickhead!"

Natsu quickly caught up with her, slinging an arm around her waist as he laughed to himself. "Yeah, but I'm _your_ dickhead. I seriously need to teach you some new insults, Weirdo."

Lucy scowled playfully. "Shut up and walk me to class...Pinky."

"Pinky? That the best you can do, sugartits?"

"Well sooorry. Some of us didn't grow up casting aspersions on other people's characters every other sentence," she sulked, crossing her arms over her sizable chest.

"Pssh, yeah right! You grew up with a bunch of rich snobs. I bet you had a fucking private tutor in _casting aspersions_."

"..."

"Wait, you actually did?!"

"Maybe... But I seriously doubt you'd care if I hinted at the inferiority of your staff, or backhandedly complimented your pastry chef's terrible taste in chocolate."

Natsu let out a huge fake gasp. "How _dare_ you! There is nothing inferior about my _staff_ , thank you _very_ much! In fact my _staff_ has been deemed superior on more than one occasion!"

It took Lucy a minute to figure out what he was alluding to. When she did, she groaned.

"You perv!"

"Hey I'm not the one who brought up my staff. Or sent an almost complete stranger a mostly naked pic of yourself. That one was all you, Miss Priss!"

"Your are never going to let me live that down, are you? I knew you were my fucking soulmate! Degenerate urchin."

"Ok, now you're just _trying_ to hurt my feelings."

* * *

"Again!"

Levy closed her eyes, took another deep, calming breath, and summoned the picture of Gajeel in her head, focusing on the warmth he always ignited in her. Almost instantly, she fell into another flashback.

" _We could just get married in the park…" she heard her past-self's fiancé mumble across from her. Levy immediately jumped into analysis of the flashback. Suit, narrow tie, clean-cut hair, glasses...1960s Levy then._

 _Her eyes rolled. "With_ _ **my**_ _family? Yeah right. If we don't get married in a church, we will never hear the end of it." The tall black-haired man beside her hmmph'd and scowled. "I know you're not a fan of churches, but it's only for an hour. Tops. You'll live. And it would have meant the world to my dad. If he were still here." Levy's past self looked around the diner where they sat, her nylon stockings sliding a bit on the glossy vinyl of the booth seat. Levy could feel the pain radiate through her past self. She had really loved her father._

" _My dad probably would have shown up drunk just to piss off the bible thumpers," the past version of Gajeel replied wryly, taking her hand. "But he'd have loved you...he always had a thing for blueberries."_

 _Past Levy's hand immediately went to her hair. "Haha, very funny."_

" _No seriously. Wait until you meet my mom."_

" _Oh...so…" she purred at him, leaning forward over her lukewarm cup of coffee. "Like father, like son then?"_

" _Heck yeah."_

Suddenly, Levy felt like she was falling. She jerked out of the flashback and opened her eyes to an almost clinically sparse living room, serviceable but bare of almost anything to hint at the individual who lived there.

"Well?"

Porlyusica stood, arms akimbo, at the end of the couch she'd just fallen off the arm of. The breathless moment of terror from the falling sensation, so familiar from similar dreams, had her heart racing, but it was highly preferable to being slapped in the face every ten minutes to bring her out of it.

Levy sighed. "1960s, planning out the wedding. Still too soon. Turns out I had blue hair then too though."

"Interesting, same hair color through three separate incarnations? That's very unusual…" The age-hardened pinkette replied, making a note in the open document on her laptop. "So, from the last ten tests, it is clear you have little-to-no control over where you "flash to", as you call it. But so far, all of the flashbacks have been of happy memories, correct?"

"Well, yeah…" Levy nodded. She suspected she knew where this was going. "It's because I use love as the inciting emotion to send me there, right?" She took the opportunity to drink a healthy gulp of her now cold tea while her instructor was distracted. Porlyusica apparently didn't believe in breaks.

"Yes. I think we can assume as much. And you mentioned your relationship with your soulmate in your most recent incarnation was less than amicable, correct?"

"Yes."

"Then you will try again. This time, focusing on a darker emotion. Like hate. Anger. Something that could trigger that same moment. What do you remember feeling in that first flashback?" As she spoke, the gaunt thin bony woman dragged Levy bodily to sit back up on the arm of the couch, facing her. Levy rubbed her upper arms where her new instructor had grabbed her. For being made of nothing but skin bone, she had the grip of a vulture.

"Um...well, I was proud of myself, confident. But frustrated with the witness. And...upset. The murderer was...horrifying. I was sad for them, but angry too."

"Let's start with frustration then. You've been using pure feelings up until now: love, happiness, pride. Hate itself can be pure and satisfying in its own way, but frustration is prickly, complicated, and uncomfortable. Maybe it will yield different results. Try again. And think of what frustrates you about him."

Levy nodded minutely and closed her eyes. _Frustration?_ Love had come easy to her. All she had to do was think of love and Gajeel and she spiraled off into a pleasant flashback. But Porlyusica was right. It hadn't been a pleasant experience with Gajeel in that lifetime. That's why she needed to see it again in the first place. _So...think of Gajeel and something frustrating…?_ Almost unbidden, a mental image sprang to mind of Gajeel holding the tattoo appointment book over his head only the day before at Black Steel and watching her jump for it. Tall people always thought that was sooo funny. She grit her teeth and concentrated on that feeling. Just as she felt herself being pulled into a flashback, Erik popped into her thoughts,as he had in real life, and smacked Gajeel in the back of the head, making him drop the book for Levy to grab. Then she was flashing.

" _Let me at him! Three hours in that room with me and he'll practically be on the payroll he'll be so helpful!" Present Levy could feel the tension in the small office her past self stood in, the urge to punch something causing her body to tremble._

" _Agent, if he's our perp, he's killed more than a dozen women your age. The last thing we need is to make you into a target! If he doesn't confess, we've got nothing on him. He'll walk."_

" _What about his lack of alibi?"_

" _Sketchy, but not damning."_

" _The eyewitness?"_

" _Unreliable. Couldn't pick him out of a line-up."_

" _The death threats?"_

" _Suspicious, but not enough to hold him on. You know that."_

" _Then, clearly, you need me! It's why you asked to have me flown out from Quantico in the first place!"_

" _We asked for their best interrogator, not a future murder victim! Black Steel is a cruel bastard and a violent gang leader. This isn't some suburban serial killer, moonlighting as a psycho and hiding it from his wife and kids."_

" _They sent_ _ **me**_ _, because I'm the best there is. I'm not some little school girl afraid to get her hands dirty. That's the job. Quit this chauvinistic bullshit and let me do it already! You've only got another 16 hours before he's got to be charged or released. You don't have time to get an intimidating_ _ **male**_ _interrogator sent from the bureau. And trust me, in this case, you don't want one. Our perp attacks young, successful, attractive women. That's the only solid, 100% guaranteed evidence of his character, no matter what the profilers have come up with. Because of that, I'm the perfect person to get under his skin." Past Levy stood back up with a grim smile, ready to accept her win. She'd fought hard to become the best, and she wasn't about to be held back from a challenge just because it might put her in danger. Every interrogation was dangerous on some level. It was just part of the job._

" _Fine. On your head be it. And if you don't get a confession, you will accept, without complaint, a local badge escort to and from your hotel for the remainder of this case!"_

" _Done." Levy's elation aligned with her past-self's. She was back in the correct past life and about to have another look at the interrogation! FBI Interrogator Levy swiveled on her heel away from the irritable, sleep-deprived police captain organizing the manhunt for Chicago's bloodiest serial killer, squared her shoulders beneath their shoulder pads, and flipped her teased hair over her shoulder. With a satisfied, but bleak set to her mouth, she started toward the temporary desk she'd been assigned._

" _So, we finally gonna see you in action?"_

 _The familiar accented voice had Past Levy smiling, and Present Levy completely shell-shocked._

What is **he** doing here?!

 _The dark, red-haired Latino male attached to the voice sat on the edge of her desk, lazily fanning himself with a file. The regulation tie required for detectives of the precinct was gone, the sleeves of his brightly colored dress shirt rolled up past his elbows. But the quippy liaison officer who'd been her guide to the case for the last week wasn't one for regulations. Especially in the poorly air-conditioned bullpen of Wentworth District's command center. She couldn't blame him. If she'd been back at her own desk back in Washington, with heat like that, she'd be sleeveless and unbuttoned. Unfortunately, getting people here to take her seriously was hard enough without bringing dress code violations into it._

 _Still, as she approached her desk, she took off her jacket, casually shoving the man off her desk with a strong, dainty hand._

" _Yeah. He's finally going to let me do my job." She gathered the folders on her desk, already thinking through the best strategy to start Black Steel's interrogation. She'd been going over it in her head since he'd been arrested, but a lot rode on this. More preparation never hurt. "You've dealt with him before right? What's he like?"_

" _He's been arrested for everything from drugs to guns, but only a handful of things have stuck. He's got priors in-"_

" _I know all that. I read his file. I want to know what he's_ _ **like**_ _. You were the arresting officer for more than a dozen of the cases where he was a person of interest, and one of his convictions, you must have spoken to him at least once. Or failed to read him his Miranda rights..."_

" _Yeah…" He sheepishly ran a hand through his hair, mussing the carefully styled spikes of his hair. It was an odd haircut for a detective, (it was the hip style thanks to that one band...the Flock of Pelicans or something…?), but he made it work. "He's a real piece of work. Life's thrown shit at him and he just keeps fucking going. But it was only a matter of time before he started killing people. He's a born leader. Could have been a powerful force in the world under different circumstances, but he's got a helluva temper. It's always getting him into trouble." Levy watched through the eyes of her past self, feeling her pulse race...which was odd considering she didn't have her own pulse in a flashback… It wasn't hard to picture a version of Gajeel that was dangerous. She'd seen him take out anger like that on Jet over something as small as making her cry. But his goodness was so powerful too. Did souls really change that much between lives? She mentally shivered. Well, that_ was _what she was trying to find out._

" _You sound almost like you know him. Like, really know him." The bureau's ace interrogator turned her sharp gaze on her temporary comrade, doing her best to break through his walls. Everyone had walls. Secrets. And every wall could be leveled with the right amount of leverage. "Admire him even…" She drew back up to her full height, putting on a mask of disapproval. "That's dangerous for a cop...getting friendly with the criminals he arrests. Someone might start suspecting you're not so squeaky clean, Martinez."_

 _His eyebrows came down immediately, a fire lighting under them, though his body stayed where it was, leaning, now stiffly against her desk. "Are you accusing me of something?"_

" _I don't know. Are you worth accusing, Detective?" She spat the words at him, her hand suggestively hovering over her gun. She took a measured half-step backwards. She hadn't known Detective Martinez for long, but as always, she'd done her research. He was the kind of guy who thrived on being liked. He brought donuts for everyone's birthdays and told stories of his own heroic deeds. His reputation was everything to him. Just a little further and he'd spill whatever he was hiding. "Maybe you're the reason Black Steel gets away with so much…"_

 _At that he stood, towering over her. For a split second, his eyes twisted into something nasty and she found herself almost actually pulling her gun on him. Then it was gone, replaced by righteous anger._

" _I knew him when we were kids. So what? That's a matter of public record. We were in school together. That does NOT mean I'm breaking the law and sticking my neck out to help that asshole. Ask anyone here! They'll let you know how much I'd like to wipe the smug smile off that sonuvabitch!" His voice barely rose over a low growl, but animosity rolled off of him._

 _Dropping all appearances of aggression toward the angry man towering over her, the ace interrogator stood up straight, smiled, and nodded. "That explains it then. I can use that. Stay on deck. I may pull you in to help me out with something. Now, excuse me. I've got a gangbanger to break."_

 _She walked away, all too aware of the shocked expression on the other officer's face, but already moving on to think about the meeting ahead._

 _Present Levy mentally held her breath. She knew what happened next. How long could she ride this out before-_

A sharp pain in her index finger brought her swiftly back to the present, to find herself lying back on a familiar lumpy couch. "OW! Hey! Why'd you do that? What did you even do?"

Porlyusica stood up from her kneeling position beside the couch and brandished the pin in her hand. "I pulled you out with pain. The falling method had no effect. So, I resorted to simple pin prick."

Levy looked down at her hand, a little peeved to see a small bead of red blossoming slowly from the tip of her finger. A tissue was thrust into her line of sight.

"Here. Put pressure on it. It will be done in a moment." She settled back into the unpadded wooden rocking chair she seemed to favor amongst her sparse selection of furniture.

It was a beautiful piece, the back carved with the relief of a seemingly sleeping dragon, one eye barely cracked open. Watching. Levy shivered.

"Tell me. What did you see?" Porlyusica rocked a couple of times, the creak of the ancient chair filling the space between them.

"I made it back! It was the right time. I didn't see Gajeel though. There was someone else there though! Someone else from this time. I was on my way to interrogate Gajeel though. If you hadn't brought me back, I could have gotten to the bottom of all this!"

"If I hadn't brought you back, I could have been sitting here all day while you frolicked in the Stone Age for all I knew. There was no way of me knowing when you'd ended up. Ten minutes was the agreement. It is unfortunate that there is no way to communicate with you when you're...away. Although, you certainly held onto that last vision pretty tightly. Perhaps I should use that as an indicator that you have landed where you wish to be..."

"Yeah...maybe. Let me try again. I think I know what I did to get there. And now that I know _he's_ one of us, the bonded ones I mean, that should make it easier to get there."

"You certainly will try again. But not today. Your body has gone through enough."

Levy looked at the other woman in surprise before glancing down at her hands, finally noticing their subtle quake. She stuck them under her thighs and looked back up at the pinkette. "I'm fine. I can keep goi-"

"No. You're done. Listen to your body. It at least knows when to say no, even if your mind hasn't figured out how. Leave brat. I have research to do. You've given me a lot to think about."

"But-"

"Scram. And take that cat with you."

Levy looked down, startled to find Gajeel's black cat sitting still and silent next to her right leg, attending the conversation as though he understood it. "Panther? How did you get in?" Absentmindedly, she picked up the cat and her bag and walked to the door.

"Thank you for your help Porlyusica!" she yelled back over her shoulder. "See you tomorrow?"

"Whatever brat. You did well. Go away. And eat something."

Which is exactly what Levy did, letting her day's success put a bounce in her step. She was so close to the truth she could taste it.

She was so lost in plans for the next day, it was hours before she remembered what she'd witnessed and thought to question it.

How the hell had Erik been in her flashback?!

* * *

Mystogan sat in front of a thick piece of plexiglass and stared at the empty chair on the other side, waiting.

He didn't even know why he was there. Maybe the urge to yell at his brother face-to-face had finally become too much.

He hadn't planned to visit Jellal again, but somehow, right after class, he had felt compelled to get into his nondescript, economy car and drive until he reached the prison. He hadn't even stopped for dinner, a decision he was beginning to regret as his stomach loudly expressed its displeasure to him.

He looked around the visiting room self-consciously at the growl of his foodless organ, quickly put at ease by its emptiness. Mystogan had always liked being alone. The apprehensive buzz fizzling under his skin subsided a bit at the quiet, and he drew the feeling around himself like a cloak, closing his eyes to let it sink into his skin and soothe his nerves.

Even a simple conversation with his brother took absolute concentration. People who underestimated Jellal Fernandez ended up in Joya without their cash, passport, shoes, and/or dignity.

A knock on the window in front of him prompted him to open his eyes. This was certainly a different setup than his first visit had been. Apparently after the odd "attack" they had all simultaneously suffered, Jellal's visitor status had been updated to no-physical-contact. From the looks of the empty chairs around him, not many of those particular inmates had visitors at six o'clock on a Tuesday.

If ever.

Mystogan picked up the phone receiver on his side of the glass.

"Hello brother."

"Hello Jellal."

"To what do I owe this unprecedented surprise?"

Mystogan raised his eyebrows a millimeter, unamused. "Gee, I wonder."

"Could this have something to do with the oh-so-beautiful Erza Scarlet?" Jellal replied archly, with just the hint of a curl to his lip. To anyone else, it may have looked like the beginnings of a smile. Mystogan recognized the sneer in it.

"Damn right it does." The heat of his own response surprised him. But the minute he said it, he knew it was the truth. Of course she was the reason he was here. "And what we're going to do to release her from this bond."

"Oh. Is that what we're calling it?" Jellal growled, eyebrows lowering the smallest amount, his eyes dark with feeling. "Finally come to tell the prisoner what's going on? Or just to berate me for something I had no hand in?"

"You're as much at fault as either she or I _._ I know you aren't as naive as you pretend, so drop the act. What conclusions have you already drawn concerning our newfound _connection?"_

"Well, brother _dear,_ I'll admit I've been lucky enough to have friends in...freer places that were gracious enough to do a little research for me. But why don't you tell me what _you_ know about the soulmate bond first. I'm sure you're much better informed."

"Ah. One of your bootlickers found Bisca's blog. That will make this easier. Have you read it?"

"I am not without some amenities in this godsforsaken place."

"Right, so you've skimmed it in the limited time you are allowed online."

Jellal's eyes narrowed. He was remembering why he'd distanced himself from his twin in the first place. Between his ability to see through Jellal's half-truths and his disgustingly honest disposition, Mystogan was a pain to have around. "In as many words."

"Well, there isn't much information beyond that blog anyway. At least not online. Have you started having flashbacks yet?"

Jellal was actually caught off-guard by that one. "Flashbacks to what?"

"Ah, you must not have gotten to those entries yet. Our past lives, apparently. At best guess, we're caught in what appears to be a never-ending loop of soulmate reincarnation. Neither Erza nor I have experienced any as of yet, but we assume they're coming. There are stages to this bond. We're in stage one. At the moment, we're trying to avoid entering stage 2. Having your second origin opened is...inconvenient."

"Inconvenient? Do I even want to know?" Jellal wrinkled his nose in thinly veiled disgust. It reminded Mystogan of the look he got as a child when the kids of the neighborhood would have mud fights, and he would enlist a team to fight for him while he sat high in a tree shouting out orders, and wrinkling his nose at the thought of dirtying his clothes.

"Well, in stage one, you, Erza, and myself...share skin, so to speak. We can transfer any substance that is foreign to our bodies through our skin, most notably, ink. Injuries inflicted upon one of us, are transferred to the other two instantaneously, as you probably already surmised. It is unknown what effect death or dismemberment would have on those bonded. In the second stage, we get more flashbacks, can sometimes access each other's senses, and our bodies mimic the condition of those we are bonded with. The long and short of this inconvenient and undesirable visit to your current _place of residence_ is to ensure that you will take measures to ensure your own safety..."

"Dear brother, I had no idea you cared," Jellal deadpanned sarcastically.

"...for the sake of Erza's well-being," Mystogan finished, not allowing his annoyance to show.

"And not your _own_ well-being? What of that?"

"I'm not concerned with myself."

"Convenient selflessness considering your well-being and that of Miss Scarlet are one in the same." Jellal was amused. His brother wasn't usually the white knight type. Even to pretend. But then, Erza Scarlet had a way of galvanizing people into action. He doubted she had changed enough to make that untrue.

"I don't expect you to understand. Selflessness has always been beyond your scope of vision."

"As ambition has been beyond yours," Jellal drawled back immediately.

"Better to lack ambition than morality." Mystogan sighed internally. Somehow, it always came down to the same argument when they were together for any length of time.

"Better to lack morality than a backbone."

"Only one without a conscience could claim the merits of immorality over cowardice."

"Only a coward fails to take what is right in front of him. It was your precious _Erza_ who taught me that."

Mystogan's eyes widened the slightest amount. Jellal never spoke of his time in the Tower of Heaven with Erza. His brother's lips twisted into a mockery of a smile.

"Has the lovely Miss Scarlet deigned to share with you what happened to _her_ during our...time together? Has she asked you to protect her? Has she wilted and cried and begged for only the safety you can provide? Because I doubt Erza has changed so very much. Even in the face of hell, she stares it down fearlessly. How could she ever respect someone as spineless as you?"

Mystogan was silent for a moment, ducking his head and hiding his eyes behind his bangs.

Jellal smiled almost maniacally as his brother examined the scratched metal surface below his elbows. His twin could play at being Erza's prince, but he would never fully understand her. Only Jellal held that honor. Only in the darkest moments of life, when death was a mere whisper away, could the truth of a person's character be revealed and understood.

But, as Jellal smugly celebrated his superiority, Mystogan raised his head, merriment in his eyes, a smirk on his lips. Jellal's expression slipped, losing a hint of its fervor. Confusion flashed in his gaze before his mask fell back into place.

"Really Jellal? Do you _really_ understand so little about her? Did it ever even occur to you that she wanted to be protected? That she wanted to be taken care of? There are some in this world who take control, not because it betters them, but because it's the only way of life they know. She _has_ cried. And begged for help." Mystogan carefully ignored the voice in his head reminding him it had been Jellal she'd been begging for protection at the time. "And I was there to protect her." _Not that she needed it._ "But the point is that she never has to ask. I'm there for her to lean on, in a way you never have been. You can say what you want to goad me into self-doubt or -pity, but it's useless. You've already lost that fight. You lost it the moment you disappeared from her life and lied to her about it. Deep down, she knows she can never forgive you for that."

 _I hope._

Jellal glared at Mystogan in silence, his thoughts racing behind steady eyes. Mystogan glared back, unwilling to break eye contact and show a hint of weakness for him to exploit. Anyone watching the security footage for the room might think the glass was a mirror; identical facades of tightly restrained anger reflected on either side, with only their clothing to show the differences between them. The tense moment stretched into the space around them, flavoring the air with bitterness.

Eventually, it was a PA announcement l that broke their heated battle of wills. At the sound, both glanced up, and swiftly back to the other. Jellal leaned back in his chair, his blank, emotionless mask once again firmly in place.

"Ok then," he muttered under his breath. "Maybe you'll be worth something to me yet."

" _What the hell is that supposed to mean?"_ is what Mystogan longed to snap back, the speculative gleam in his brother's eyes a familiar one that had his stomach dropping. Instead, he remained silent.

"I think this bond is the beginning of something _beautiful,_ don't you?" Jellal continued, his voice intentionally light and pleasant.

A shiver went down Mystogan's spine. _Oh no._

"And so _useful_ , don't you agree Mystogan?"

 _Shit. Shitshitshitshitshit!_ Sweat broke out on Mystogan's brow. _I fucked up._

"Especially for someone with my currently limited resources…"

"Whatever you're thinking Jellal, just forget it. Erza and I would never help you."

"For someone with so many of my genes, you're stupidly naive. You've already revealed your tell, and the cards aren't even cold on the table. Really, I would think you, of all people, would have seen this coming," Jellal drawled, twisting the phone cable around his finger tightly and squeezing.

Mystogan gritted his teeth at the pressure of the bruisingly tight metal cable biting into his skin as the blood ran from his face.

Jellal was right. He'd made a grievous error. But a part of him knew it was already heading down that path. It was that part of him that had jumped into a car and driven for hours to see their enemy face to face again. It was the part of him that screamed out in rage at the thought of Erza going through the pain that he was.

"Prison is a dangerous place, brother, and I grow tired of it. So, you're going to help me escape"

Mystogan trembled as he stared dumbly back, waiting for the final nail in his coffin to be driven home.

"Or I'll hurt Erza."

* * *

 **So...PLOT! I've been waiting for CHAPTERS AND CHAPTERS to start this arc..which I like to call, The Blueberry Sandwich Arc. Give it a minute if you don't get it. You will. Can't wait to get into the particulars. The bond offers so many interesting opportunities for Jellal...**

 **Somehow, I think I only made one reference...damn. That's just sad. Gotta step up my game next week!**

 _ **(it was the hip style thanks to that one band...the Flock of Pelicans or something…?**_ _-I'm of course, referring to the Flock of Seagulls. The band popular in the 1980s responsible for destroying the ability of the masses to make sensible hair decisions. But looked really cool doing it. In like that, I-just-fell-asleep-in-a-puddle-of-glue-and-woke-up-like-this kind of way._


	42. To Destroy My Very Body

**FUCKING FINALLY! I've tried to post this damn chapter about six fucking times, and I only just got this stupid site to let me. But it's up! Finally! I am hoping to get another chapter out this week since I've got the time off and do some one shots and a chapter or two for Falling...but, since apparently my body has decided I need ANOTHER FUCKING ILLNESS, I can't promise anything...but I'm seriously trying. I promise. Hope everyone had a great Christmas, or whatever else you celebrate, and are all geared up for New Years!**

 **Ok, now, what you actually came for...ENJOY!**

* * *

"But I don't want to go to the gym!" Lucy whined as her arm was almost yanked down the street without her, her well-worn high-heeled boots catching in the cracks of the sidewalk. "And I'm _really_ not dressed for it!"

Her complaints fell on deaf ears. Erza was already formulating Lucy's new workout plan in her head. "We'll start with a stint on the treadmills...and you said you do yoga right?"

Lucy sighed, resigned to her imminent fate. "Yeah, Levy and I normally do yoga on the weekends. But we haven't done it in weeks! I'm so out of shape! Can't we just take it easy today? Like maybe walking around campus?"

"We _could_ start with cardio in the field I suppose...but, no. It will be more convenient to be near the ring for post-cardio sparring."

"We're SPARRING?! With who?!" The blonde's already plummeting hopes face-planted on the floor and prayed for the sweet release of death.

"With each other, of course." The redhead raised one incredulous eyebrow. "How else will I be able to judge what level you're at and accurately adjust the schedule I've drawn up for you?"

"WHAT SCHEDULE?!" Her scream of frustration quickly dissipated in the whistling October wind, but a couple across the street glanced over and quickened their pace. Lucy mentally wished them luck. No one was ever really safe from the Titania, least of all herself. Freedom had been so sweet...

Too bad it had been ripped away by the latest incarnation of Athena Nike. Fucking Greeks and their interfering gods...

"As I said, cardio machines. Then a little advanced yoga and stretching to get you loosened up, followed by sparring, targeted strength training, and finally a cool down on the stationary bikes. Although...we should really shove some core and leg work in there somewhere…" Erza trailed off into mumbling as she considered and rejected various methods of torture at top speed.

"Why are you doing this? What did I do to deserve this kind of treatment?!" Lucy wailed, finally getting her feet under her and shuffling quickly along next to the enthusiastic red-headed demon in possession of her arm.

"Natsu is concerned for your safety," Erza responded as though it explained everything.

"What? He told you that?" Lucy immediately shoved her hand in her purse, flailing for her phone to demand Natsu find her so she could kick him in the face. Unfortunately, (or fortunately if one happened to be named Natsu Dragneel) her phone was conspicuously missing. Lucy mentally face-palmed. She'd taken it over to Levy's the night before and must have left it there. She'd been so caught up in what Levy had found out from her flash training, she hadn't even noticed leaving it.

And it was probably dead by now without its nightly charging. Great. The day was just getting more and more _fucking awesome._

 _Ladies don't spew profani-_

 _Oh shut it, Aquarius. You go through an Erza-motivated workout and then come back and tell me not to 'spew profanity'..._

Erza replied, interrupting her inner dialogue and reminding her she had bigger, pinker-haired fish to fry…

"He didn't need to. As his honorary big sister, I already know what he's thinking. He's been lightly stalking you since we got back from Acalypha: following you to class when he isn't walking with you, convincing you to skip lessons entirely, and spending the rest of his time trying to see through your eyes or hear your voice. All of this...distraction has interrupted his studies and your own. That is unacceptable. So, I have taken over the task of ensuring you are able to take care of yourself. Then he can stop worrying and invading your privacy. Now hurry up. We have a lot to get in over the next few hours!"

The end of her tirade didn't set in at first. Lucy was still stuck on Natsu's involvement. He was worried about her? Following her? Sure, he had been showing up everywhere she went the last couple of days, but that was normal for a dating couple wasn't it? But if he _was_ worried about her, why didn't he just say something? Lucy frowned.

"Maybe I want him invading my privacy…" she mumbled. "...wait, HOURS?!"

Screw the phone, she needed an escape route!

* * *

"Where do you take a girl on a date in Magnolia?"

Natsu looked up at his roommate with one brow raised. "Seriously man? How the fuck would I know? I've been on like one date in the last two years. Two if I can figure out what the fuck we're going to do tonight…" He trailed off, seemingly remembering that he had not yet in fact made any plans for him and Lucy.

"Ok, well, what did you guys do for that date then?" Gray asked, a hint of desperation evident in his voice as his forehead came to rest on his desk with a solid thump. "Ow."

Natsu shrugged. "I called in a favor and had the arcade I used to work at close for a 'private party' ." He grinned remembering how intimate their party had gotten before the guard had shown up.

Gray groaned. "Well, that's not an option then. You know how competitive I get… Any other ideas?"

"Dude, if I had 'em, I'd be using them. Just take her to a movie or something. Lucy pretty much nixed that option for our first two dates before we even met. And now, I'm sure, she's expecting something even better than our first date. Do yourself a favor and set the bar low, right from the start." He dropped his face into the couch he was laying on with a groan mimicking his roommate's as he mumbled incoherently. "Mphh smph scrmph. Ur grff togummph mmthrum fnkn vmph mfing!" (which Gray immediately translated as: "I'm so screwed. We're getting together in three fucking hours and I've got nothing.").

"Why is this so hard?! I mean, I Googled 'date ideas in Magnolia' and got generic bullshit like sakura blossom viewing. It's fucking October! They won't be blooming for another six months!" Gray sat up again, rapidly blinking his eyes like he was trying to wake the fuck up. "Ok. Complaining and shit isn't working. We need help. Girl help."

Natsu turned his head to look at Gray speculatively. "Like...Cana?"

"Pssh. Yeah right. I think she has less real dating experience than us. We need someone who's experienced in dating _and_ thinks like a guy…"

The roommates sprung to their feet at the same time with bright eyes.

"Lisanna!"

* * *

"Just lemme know when you're ready to start with color, we can check out options," Gajeel called out, closing the door behind his last appointment of the morning as she pranced happily down the sidewalk, pink pigtails swinging. It was great to be busy, but sometimes he wondered if some clients were worth it. If he ever had to do another godsdamned butterfly tramp stamp, it would be too soon. Gajeel sighed, running a hand over his face.

Erik looked up from the sleek new modern sofa he'd suggested buying for the front room. He'd spent the better part of the morning sitting on his ass sketching designs for people, but all of them had scheduled appointments. Gajeel couldn't really complain.

"So, lunch?" the ex-gang member asked of his boss while he finished up a sketch. "Levy coming today?"

"Yeah. The shrimp's class gets over soon, then she'll head over before she goes to see that woman," he growled, a scowl on his face.

"Are you _still_ mad about the whole flashback training thing? Get a new bit to chew why don'tcha?"

Gajeel gritted his teeth. It had become abundantly clear that keeping anything from the sharp-eared Puerto-Rican-Fiorean in such a compact workplace was a pipe dream, so Levy had volunteered to walk him through the basics of the whole bonding thing.

Which had turned into an entire evening's worth of discussion on their relationship, bond, and Levy's progress with her research, during which they managed to drink the rest of the rum Lily had brought him, giving Gajeel a hell of a hangover through his lightweight girlfriend. Add the fact that Erik seemed to take Levy's side of things almost immediately and the whole situation made Gajeel irritated as fuck. "That shit is still none of your business."

Erik snorted. "Just chill. She's working with a professional, right? You can't keep complaining after you told her that would be cool. Only cabrónes pull that kind of shit. Para de hacer tan cobardé. Aren't you worried about that dark and scary aura at all? That can't be good."

"I don't give a fuck what kind of shit I fucked up in my past life. I'm a decent person in this one and that's all that matters. Her finding out I was a homicidal bastard or something isn't going to help anything." Gajeel growled back as he picked up the phone and dialed for pizza.

Erik's brow furrowed, but he waited for Gajeel to order a massive Hawaiian pie and hangup before replying. "But you seriously aren't worried about _her_?"

"Of course I'm worried about what could happen to her! Why the fuck do you think I'm so mad? She's taking unnecessary risks to find out what my past-shitty-self did to fuck everything up." _I'm fucking worried about her every minute I can't see her...what's one more reason to fucking worry?_ Gajeel grabbed his half-gone soda and plopped down on the opposite end of the couch, twisting off the cap. "But it's not like she listens to me anyway." Erik shook his head, still dead serious. "What?"

"I actually think she does listen to you. And respects what you want...as much as she can. But, that's not what I meant. Haven't you thought about the other possibility in all this?"

Gajeel raised one brow, but didn't bother to answer. Erik would get to the point eventually. He was used to his friend's way of talking around the issue, even if it sometimes drove him crazy.

"Gaj, it wasn't _your_ aura that was black and menacing. Little Blue just assumed, with her flashback and everything, that your soul was the one in danger. But what if it's hers? What if _she_ did something to taint her soul? Don't you want to know? Maybe there's something you guys can do to purify it or something. Aren't you worried about possibly _damning_ her soul for eternity? Just the idea of that shit worries _me_ , and I just met her."

Gajeel sat in silence, clutching his drink with fingers gone numb. How had he missed that?

Levy was so sure it was him...and so godsdamned concerned about what he did, that it hadn't even occurred to him that she could be wrong. Hell, it was hard to see her being wrong about anything that didn't involve her blind recklessness in regards to the whole flashing thing. Dragging the ponytail holder out of his mane of hair, Gajeel ran a hand through it before replying. "Shit. I didn't even… Do you think she's thought of that? Is that _really_ why she won't let this go?"

"Honestly? No. I think she's going a little nuts because she's scared as fuck for you. And because that's just her nature. Even after only like, gods, has it only been a week? I can tell she doesn't do anything halfway. Even if she probably should." Erik tapped his pen on his sketchbook. "I really hope I'm wrong though. Not that I want to see your soul fucked up either."

"Yeah…" Gajeel trailed off, not really listening. He'd been focusing on the wrong side of this whole thing. Levy was right. They needed to know. And he needed to know what to do if it really was his Shrimp's soul in immortal danger. "How do you go about cleaning a tainted soul, you think?"

"My abuela would say confession...but I've never bought into the power of prayer myself. Besides, you're living proof that the Christians got it wrong. Reincarnation clashes the idea of an eternal heaven after all." The redhead leaned back on the couch and crossed an ankle over his knee, arms supporting his neck. "Honestly, your best bet might be that Rolly-Poly person."

"Porlyusica?"

"Yeah, her. My gut tells me she knows more than she's letting on. Past life expert or not, she definitely knows more about what's going on with you guys and this bonding thing. I'd bet my crowbar on it." He paused, his serious demeanor melting away into an annoyed smirk. "Speaking of which, you ever gonna give that back?"

"What, you getting the urge to knock over a gas station or something?"

"What? Me? Never…" Erik returned, his grin growing.

Gajeel snorted. "Yeah, I think I'll keep it. Call in employer's insurance. You're too talented to get fired over stupid shit. Like fucking jail time. Again."

Erik laughed back. "Fine. You know, you get more like your old man every day...remember the knife wall?"

"Oh gods, like I could forget it! Half the gang members in town lost their pieces to that fucking wall. Took Lily a week to unload them all when he took over. It's a miracle dad didn't get shot from taking the damn things off 'em."

"Wouldn't have mattered. He'd have just added the gun to the wall, kicked the ass of whatever 'punkass kid' was stupid enough to come into his gym packing heat, and sent him Lily's way for training in being an 'honorable opponent'. Then he'd notice half an hour later he was bleeding and duct tape a towel or something over it, until he got home and pulled out the bullet with his bare fingers."

Gajeel barked out a laugh. "Yeah, he wasn't wrong when he said he was tough as an old boot and just as pretty. That does give me an idea though." He hauled himself to his feet, striding into the back room with almost what could be described as a giggle.

Erik raised an eyebrow and waited. Who knew what Metalicana's son would come up with. They were two of a kind. No one could make a Redfox do anything he didn't want to.

 _Except maybe another Redfox…_ He couldn't help but grin as a little blunette came to mind. Gajeel's dad really would have loved Levy. She was everything he would have wanted for his son; that is, cute and not afraid to knock him upside the head when he was being a fucking idiot.

The black-haired tattoo artist walked back through the chain curtain with a couple nails in his mouth, carrying a hammer and the crowbar in question.

"What? Decide to give it back after all?" Erik reached for it, only to be lightly shoved away.

"Fuck no. Gonna start my own wall," Gajeel explained around the nails. He walked up to the brushed-steel-covered wall behind the couch and proceeded to hammer nails into his otherwise pristine surface as far up as he could reach. Then, grinning like a gamer on release day of the sequel to their favorite first person shooter, he lifted the crowbar up, ceremoniously thumping it into place, mostly level, on the wall. He turned to see a disgruntled face on his newest employee. He raised an eyebrow. "What? My wall not pretty enough for ya?"

Erik wrinkled his nose in a pout. "Naw, you just hung it too high for me to reach, ya bastard."

Gajeel guffawed heartily at that. "That was fucking intentional."

The door rang off a guitar riff behind him as Erik opened his mouth to tell him off.

"Hey guys! What's up?...um, am I missing something?" Levy paused in her greeting to stare bewildered at the beat up piece of equipment now adorning the wall. "Are we selling shitty construction tools now?"

"Naw, brainless here is just trying to teach me a lesson," Erik drawled playfully ducking an equally venomless right hook thrown his way. "How was linguistics?"

Levy's eyes lit up as she dropped her stuff on the end of the couch. "We went on a tangent today about isolated language development. Did you know that babies will actually make up their own language to talk to each other if they're together enough? Especially twins? If you dropped two babies on a desert island with a couple of mutes to take care of them, they would develop their own language and it would have all the important parts of a language even if they'd never heard one spoken before!" She gesticulated wildly with her hands. "Isn't that just fascinating? Not too long ago, like only twenty years ago or so, a whole nation of Joyans was discovered, completely contained in a small mountain range on the northern side of their country. Anyway, it turns out they speak a brand new language no one had ever heard before, completely unaffected by the established languages of the outside world."

Levy paused as she felt the heat of another person at her back, only moments before a large set of arms surrounded her. She tilted her head back enough to look back and up into Gajeel's eyes with a smile. "I think that's what happened to all of us on the island back in the Stone Age! Which is why I can't find evidence of that language we were speaking anywhere! If only I knew where that island was. I would love to do field research and be the first person to decipher an isolated, never-before-heard ancient language!"

"That would be pretty incredible," Erik chimed in, eyes alit with amusement that darted quickly up to Gajeel's and back before continuing. "I bet mastering your flashbacks to that era would be really helpful in your research too…"

Gajeel glared at the redhead over his girlfriend's head.

"Yeah. It is a pretty incredible resource...but how the hell could I put that into a scholarly article? 'I know this because I lived it through a past life regression as a result of experimental drug use and a mystical, unexplained bond? Yeah, pretty I'd be exiled by the scholarly community for that," Levy sighed, staring into the air in front of her. "But at least it's not out of the question that I could get there again!" She locked eyes with Erik, leaning back into her boyfriend in the same breath. "I've got lessons with Porlyusica again later this afternoon. This could be the day I get down to the bottom of it all." As quickly as they'd appeared, the arms enclosing her disappeared, leaving Levy to stumble and catch her balance.

"That pizza guy is taking forever. I'll just go pick it up," Gajeel muttered. He was out the door before she was stable again. The little blunette stared after him, watching his progress down the street through the front windows until she couldn't see him anymore. Then she sighed and turned back to her other coworker.

"He's still upset…" she mumbled as her whole body lost its energy. She slumped against the firm leather cushions and closed her eyes. "Of course he is. Why can't he see how important this is? It's like he doesn't even care about his soul… I'm starting to think he'll never come around."

"I think...he just needs a little more time. He'll come around."

Levy sighed again. "You think?"

Erik just snorted back. "You kidding? He can only resist your powers for so long, mere mortal that he is. I'm telling you, it's just a matter of time."

"My all mighty powers of persuasion, you mean?" Levy grinned back with a speculative gleam in her eye.

Erik nodded with a laugh, but his eyes were serious. "You're the master interrogator, right? Just remember, with great power comes great responsibility, Little Blue." He reached out and ruffled her hair fondly, prompting a pout from the bluenette. "Seriously though Levy, do what you need to do. I mean, don't be stupid, but get to the bottom of it all." The door chimed a series of chords, signaling Gajeel's return with a large pizza box. Erik immediately switched to Spanish. "No te preocupas, Azulita. El tendria tu espalda sobre todo, a pesar de todo lo que dice al contrario."

"Speak in fucking English when I'm around," Gajeel grumbled, setting the pizza on the counter and reaching for the stash of paper plates under the register.

Waving him off Levy replied in kind to Erik, the discomfort on her face mellowing out into resignation, with just a hint of hope. "Tendria que terminar los mas pronto possible." Then she got a whiff of the pizza and her eyes narrowed, immediately switching to English. "Whose bright idea was it to order _another_ Hawaiian pizza? How many times do I have to tell you, pineapple does _not_ belong on a freaking pizza!"

The two men immediately pointed at each other, biting into their first slices unapologetically.

Levy's eyes narrowed. _Cowards._

* * *

Not for the first time in his life, Mystogan Fernandes wished he had been born an only child.

With a frustrated growl, he spun the long wooden quarterstaff, stopping a half an inch from hitting his opponent.

Which happened to be his desk chair.

He immediately stepped back into a defensive stance, smoothly transitioning into another maneuver his body remembered for him, halting a hair's breadth away from the unoffending piece of furniture again. His body hadn't forgotten, even if his mind tried its best to do exactly that.

It had been years since he touched the weapon. It reminded him of the darker days, when he'd made the mistake of seeing his brother as an ally, but he'd never been able to part with the polished length of teak. If only because it had cost their parents a fortune.

Not that that had stopped Jellal from pawning his katana. The anger he was trying to burn off bubbled up his throat again, and he lost all restraint, letting his body take over.

The lamp on his desk shattered into pieces.

The plaster bust of Einstein on his desk was the next victim, flying into the wall he shared with Laxus.

On the other side of the wall, the hulking blonde looked up from his computer screen, pulling his headphones off his ears just in time to hear a series of crashes from the room next door. Raising an eyebrow, he banged on the wall a couple of times and put his headphones back on.

As far as he was concerned, Mystogan could do whatever he fucking wanted to his room, just as long as Laxus couldn't hear it.

Mystogan paused at the sound, breathing hard in a circle of destruction. His books were salvageable, and the crystal orb Ultear had given him just after graduation had survived its flight across the room, landing harmlessly in his hamper, but the pieces remaining of the model rockets he'd competed with over the years and the awards he'd won were beyond repair. He couldn't bring himself to care. The loss of useless, sentimental objects felt insignificant.

" _So, you're going to help me escape. Or I'll hurt Erza."_

Mystogan ground his teeth remembering what had happened next.

" _Hurt her and I'll…" Mystogan had spat out, sputtering out when he realized he didn't have a threat he could reasonably level. He couldn't hurt him, not without hurting Erza. And himself. He couldn't report him to anyone...who would believe him? He was stuck. And his brother knew it. A sly smile spread across Jellal's smug face._

" _Check and mate," he crooned through the phone receiver._

 _Mystogan froze in fury, longing to jump through the glass and wrap his hands around his twin's throat. Why hadn't he just left him to die when he had the chance? "What do you want me to do exactly?" he hissed through gritted teeth._

" _Well, a number of things actually," Jellal continued, spine straightening as though he was enjoying a cup of afternoon tea instead of extorting favors to aid in a prison break. "But the first item on the docket is fairly simple. I need nitroglycerin."_

" _I'm sorry, what?" Mystogan immediately responded, accidentally dropping his disinterested mask in his surprise._

" _Nitroglycerin. You said that non-human substances could be passed through the skin. This Friday, you're going to send me some. Well, you and Miss Scarlet I should say. I doubt even you would be able to explain away liquid explosives coating her skin," he mused._

 _Mystogan's mouth hung open. "You can't be serious. Where the hell would I get my hands on something like that in two days!?"_

" _I have arranged for a vial to be delivered to you. My contact will call you to set up the drop."_

" _What the hell, Jellal?! Didn't you_ just learn _we can even transfer stuff like…" his gaze flickered around the visiting room, reassuring himself that no one would hear their conversation. ".._ that, _anyway? Or...no. You knew that already didn't you." Mystogan felt like a fool. Of course Jellal knew. If there was one thing he had in his favor, it was his devoted followers and their willingness to do just about anything for their leader. Well, the ones that didn't think he was engaged to them...or dead. It wasn't a stretch to believe they had uncovered all the blog had to offer at least._

" _Of course I did. It really was incredibly convenient that you came to visit on your own accord though. Saved me the trouble of threatening you via skin." He pointed to his arm, as though Mystogan needed any more clarification._

" _I won't do it." Mystogan couldn't imagine a worse person to give volatile chemicals to. His moral compass was stubbornly pointing him north._

" _Oh? I thought I made it clear what would happen to Erza if you didn't."_

" _You wouldn't hurt her. Not really." Mystogan prayed he was right. There was a small chance that his brother really did care for the redhead. Something in his eyes when they met again had hinted at it. And, as much as he hated the idea in general, it could be the only thing standing between Erza and his psychopath of a brother._

 _All amusement left Jellal's face, leaving only fury behind. He leaned forward until he glared Mystogan straight in the eye only inches from the glass. "You don't seem to understand. I cannot remain in this prison any longer. And I will not hesitate to hospitalize everyone you've ever held dear if it gets me out. If you do not follow my instructions, there_ will _be consequences. Potentially fatal ones." He stood up suddenly, taking the phone with him. "Midnight Friday. I'll be waiting." The inmate dropped the receiver onto the cracked countertop and strode to the door, banging on it sharply until a guard came to open it for him._

 _Mystogan hung up the phone slowly, stomach churning. He couldn't do it. He just couldn't. Who knew how many innocent people would suffer if he did?_

 _But Erza..._

His alarm clock exploded into components that scattered around the small table beside his beloved queen-sized bed. He panted, worn out by his frustration and ire more than the actual physical exertion it had taken to destroy the device. A peaceful silence fell around him, bringing little actual solace.

Then his phone rang and broke the silence. He didn't recognize the number.

His blood pressure spiked. _It's him. Jellal's source._

He hesitated, letting it ring. Once. Twice.

Sighing, he answered.

"Alright, where are we doing this?"

* * *

Lisanna Strauss was bored out of her mind. It was presentation day. Which basically meant that exactly four people were engaged in what was going on, and the rest of the class was simultaneously relieved it wasn't their day to go and praying for literally anything interesting to happen in order to free them from the chains of tedium.

Lectures on animal behavioral patterns were bad enough when they were presented by an expert. Force a novice speaker with a presentation ripped straight off Wikipedia and the subject matter became un _bear_ able. The platinum blonde co-ed snickered to herself at her mental pun (the current presenter was explaining the mating habits of sun bears...which were exactly the same as those of all the other bears they'd heard about that day) and checked the time on her phone again. She internally groaned. Another two hours. _Just shoot me up with tranqs and feed me to the Grizzlies already. It would be a more merciful way to go._

Then, a flicker of movement at the front of the class caught her attention. A smile lit up her face.

 _Salvation!_

"Lisanna Strauss! Where are you?" Two familiar figures stood in front of the class. Even with their faces concealed, she would recognize the scarf wrapped around the head of one of them anywhere. With a grin she stood and raised both hands over her head in surrender.

"Right here!" she chirped with a smile. She could always depend on Natsu and Gray to make a dull day bright again.

"Awesome. You're being kidnapped. Get your shit." Gray's calm deadpan was easy to decipher even through the grayish-blue scarf around his face. Lisanna suppressed a giggle as she hurriedly stuffed things in her backpack, racing against the boys closing in on her. She just barely got the bag zipped before it was pulled from her hands and she was picked up and thrown over Natsu's muscular shoulder.

As they escaped the classroom to the sound of catcalls and laughter from the other students, Lisanna waved goodbye with both hands and a stunning grin, blowing a kiss to the hot blonde girl in the front row.

Never pass up an opportunity, she always said.

Once they were out of the building, Natsu dropped Lisanna back down and Gray handed her bag back. Together, they sprinted away from the building, regrouping with slightly labored breathing behind the library. A group of faux intellectuals, standing around the back door smoking, suffered a glance in their direction before blatantly ignoring them.

"So...to what do I owe...this pleasure? It's…been...awhile since...you guys…'kidnapped' me! I was...having high school...flashbacks..." the petite blonde panted, still catching her breath as Natsu and Gray unraveled the scarves from their heads, barely breathing hard at all. She dropped her arms from the air quotes she'd made to her knees for support. "Shit...I'm not that out of shape." She eyed their casual stances and lean torsos. "You guys need to spend...less time at the gym." She hacked a cough out around the dry spot in her throat.

"Naw, you're just slacking off. Seriously Lis, we ran like, twenty yards," Natsu said as he gave her a hug with one arm around her neck and roughed up her hair with the other. He ignored the odd burn in his muscles that just carrying around Lisanna didn't account for. What the hell was Lucy up to? He resisted the urge to slip into her eyes to see.

She squirmed out of his grip with a mock glare. "You smell rank Natsu, did you just come from the gym?"

Natsu shrugged and sniffed his shirt collar. He did smell a bit sweaty. Maybe Lucy was working out?

"Gods, you guys are such Neanderthals. Some people have better things to do than do pushups you know. Like actually go to class?"

"Oh shut up. You were bored out of your skull," Gray said with a grin, leaning against the building, eyes locked on the smokers about ten feet away.

"Touché. But I still don't know what merited such a fortuitous intervention. Gonna fill me in any time soon guys?" She narrowed her eyes at Gray and straightened up to turn his head back to face her with a firm grip on his chin. "Hey! You quit for a reason, remember? Leave that shit alone."

Gray narrowed his eyes and poked at her ribs, causing her to squeak and jump back. He smirked at her as she glared back.

"Lis, we need your help," Natsu cut in before she could retaliate. Her eyebrows went up, her face immediately losing its glimmer of ire.

"Okay. What's up? If you need that tranq gun again, I'm gonna need a few hours. And no, I really don't want to know what you're doing with it…" Lisanna rattled off, trailing into silence at their shaking heads. She waited for them to speak up, surprised to see that neither of her friends would meet her eye and Gray had already undone all the buttons on his shirt. Something was making him nervous. "What?"

"We need...girl help," Natsu muttered.

Lisanna blinked in silence for several seconds before dissolving into giggles. "Seriously?! You two!?"

Gray glowered at Natsu, shucking the top half of his clothing smoothly. "I told you she'd laugh."

"Put your clothes back on, ya fucking stripper," Natsu replied irritably before returning his attention to the giggling girl doubled over in front of him. "Lis, come on, we're serious here. This whole actually trying to be in a relationship thing is kinda new for us."

"Natsu, we dated for like, what? Two years? You were a decent boyfriend then. What's the problem now?" Lisanna replied still grinning. Even taking into account the stupid running part, they had certainly made her day exponentially more amusing.

"We were basically just kids then. I mean, we couldn't even drive yet. It's totally different now. And I really don't want to screw this up. She's _it_ , Lis." Natsu's words halted his ex-girlfriend's chortles. She took a second to _really_ look at him.

Over the past few years, she'd grown used to seeing what she thought of as 'Lesser Natsu'. It wasn't that there was anything really lacking or wrong with him that she could put her finger on, but just, overall, he seemed to approach life with...less. Less energy, less joy, less caution, less interest...just, less. The flame of excitement that had always burned in his soul had been reduced to embers.

Lisanna had always assumed it was a symptom of maturity, or grief - that Igneel's death had killed that part of him too - but seeing the way his face lit up and his whole body hummed with energy just from _mentioning_ a girl...it was like the boy she'd wanted so hard to love was finally back completely. She almost couldn't look at him straight on, his happiness was so radiant. Her gaze slid to Gray and was surprised to see him staring at Natsu, jealousy and longing written clear as day on his face. "Ok. So, what about you? You trying to tell me that you've found the love of your life too?" _What if he's in love with Natsu?!_ Lisanna's brain immediately rejected that thought. There was no fucking way. Gray was straighter than the bullet Hitler swallowed. Plus, Loke was really more his type.

Gray hesitated, but eventually shook his head. "No...but, I think it's time I maybe start actually looking for her."

Lisanna stood in surprised silence for another beat before taking a deep breath and letting it out. "Well, shit guys. What do you want to know?"

* * *

As the door of Black Steel swung closed behind Levy, her relief was palpable. Something was off with Gajeel. She didn't know what it was, and he wouldn't admit to it (because of course she'd asked), but it was definitely there. Every look, every touch he gave her was...weighted. And Erik totally knew what was going on. The little shit wouldn't tell her though. Not even in the privacy of Spanish. The whole tense mess had been getting unbearable, so the release of tension when she finally left was like a breath of fresh air. While also actually being a breath of fresh air.

Levy headed slowly down the street, the late afternoon sun heating up her back as she went. It really was ridiculously pleasant out for October. Too nice to be inside.

Ok, that was a lie. It was never too nice to stay inside and read. Ever.

But days like these did seem to coax her into venturing out into the wide world of nature more than she otherwise might. Maybe Porlyusica would let her work outside today. She wondered if that would make difference in the types of flashbacks she could access...

She pulled out her phone and checked the time, quickening her step. Time was marching forward, and she had to march with it, so she set her shoulders and walked with purpose, running through her plan of action in her head.

 _It's...Wednesday, so, that means an hour in the Bookworm Cave at the library to do quick refreshers for German and Italian (thankfully Erik already chatted in Spanish with me for a bit today, so I can check that off!), fifteen minutes to eat something quick and microwavable for dinner, and then twenty minutes to walk to the Dragon Lady's house. Plenty of time...if I stay on track. Now if only Gajeel, or even Erik, would just tell me what the hell is up so I can stop worrying about it..._

Levy turned the corner irritably, glancing up. A tall man was walking towards her on the sidewalk, the back lighting of the sun making it impossible to identify him. For just a split second, the all-too-rational terror that came naturally to every woman walking on darkening streets alone shivered through her. Levy's footsteps faltered as she opened her eyes to darkness.

 _Tears cleaned tracks down her cheeks as her gun trembled in her hands._

 _Present Levy immediately searched the scene frantically for clues. Trash cans held shut by straining chains lined the alleyway, eventually giving way to stacked bags that buzzed with flies. Her past self recognized that the garbage collectors' strike had started a week ago and showed little sign of being resolved. Chicago lay under a cloud of foul odor made stronger by the summer heat._

 _She concluded she was back in the 80s. A spike of adrenaline hit her at the realization. At what point in that life was she? Was this the moment she discovered the murderer?_

 _Amid the heaping refuse at her feet, an unforgettable image was burned into her sight: the mutilated body of a young woman, painted with her own blood and bloated with the heat. Deeper in the alley, she could see the outline of a man, but couldn't make out his features._

 _Her knees betrayed her, quaking with fear as the vaguely familiar shape sidled cautiously towards her down the dark passage. Her heart was in her throat, choking her. She drew in a breath and coughed at the putrid air that lay stagnant over most of the city. She struggled to keep her watering eyes on the threat, falling back on her academy training to keep her planted where she was when her instincts were yelling at her to run._

 _The dark shadow made a sudden move and she reacted in an instant, pulling the trigger on her weapon._

The sound of a blaring horn and the feeling of her hip hitting the ground marked her entrance back into her own skin. She gulped in huge amounts of oxygen, trying to offset the air that had forcefully left her lungs as she hit the ground. But, even when her lungs had recovered, she kept on gasping.

The image she'd seen was burned into her brain, making the disgusting pineapple-covered pizza she'd consumed try to make its way back up. She swallowed again and again, still failing to feel like she was getting enough air.

The next thing she knew she was no longer on the ground, arms cradling her carefully and depositing her on the grass. It had to be that man. The one she'd seen walking toward her. Levy couldn't tell what he was saying...it seemed important. She gasped in breaths, tears running down her face as her head got lighter and woozier. It was too much. It was all just too much… Her phone rang almost continually, unnoticed.

The girl. The man. The gun. The car almost hitting her. The stranger tackling her out of the way. Suddenly, all she wanted to do was find Gajeel and forget all about the shit her past-self had gone through. She felt so...tired. Why couldn't she just be a normal woman, spending time with her normal boyfriend?

"...Levy? Levy?! Come on, say something Lev, you're freaking me out!" Finally, the man's words made some kind of sense. And she recognized his voice. Making an effort, her eyes came into focus.

"Jet?" she gasped out.

"Thank the fucking gods. Are you okay? What were you doing walking into a busy street with your eyes closed?! Are you suicidal?" His tone was angry, but the hand supporting her back as she sat up was gentle, and the worry in his eyes was genuine. With his other hand, Jet fished in her bag for her ringing phone and turned the volume off. The following silence made the ringing in her ears seem louder.

"It's...I'm…" she tried to get out between hiccuped breaths. "I'm ok." The rational part of her brain, finally waking up, told her she was hyperventilating. That was why she couldn't breathe. Hazily, she closed her eyes and covered her mouth with her hands, trapping the air she had just exhaled for her to breathe in again.

"What the hell happened?" Jet carefully pulled her hair back from her face, brows furrowed in concern.

Steadily, her breathing evened out, as the carbon dioxide in her blood stabilized. Her head stopped swimming. She looked up at her rescuer and opened her mouth, ready to explain.

But found she couldn't. Her eyes swam with tears again just thinking about what she'd seen.

"I...I...no, I cant…" She dissolved into sobbing again. The bluenette didn't even hear the fast approaching footsteps. Until he was within earshot.

"Shrimp! Levy!" Gajeel came running up, with red, but dry, eyes for nothing but the trembling blunette. The minute she saw him, she threw her body towards him, barely avoiding hitting the hard ground again as he swooped down to catch her, falling back on his tailbone with a grunt. Pain shocked up his spine. "What happened?"

After a moment of nothing but sniffling and sobs, Jet answered for her. "She was walking into the street with her eyes closed! She almost got run over. You're just damn lucky I was there." He leveled an accusing gaze at the noirette, who immediately bristled.

"You…" his gaze sharpened on the ginger. "Every time you're around she starts crying. Why won't you just leave her the fuck alone!?"

"P-p-please. Gajeel...it's not his fault," Levy stuttered out, opening her eyes and looking up enough to see the swimming image of the men glaring at each other over her head. "He saved me. It was a fl-fl-flashback." Levy bit her lip to keep another sob from escaping.

"A flashback? What the hell does that mean?" Jet demanded, a look of deep sadness settling on his face as he watched Levy burrow deeper into Gajeel's arms.

Gajeel ignored him. "I swear to the gods Levy, if you were practicing flashing on your way home..." he growled.

"Flashing?! What does that have to do with anything?" Jet tried again.

Levy ignored Jet too. "I wasn't! I swear! It...it just happened. One minute I was walking, the next I was…" She sniffled deeply as a fresh wave of tears overwhelmed her. "I was in...oh gods what did I do? I can't...I..just…"

Gajeel's face went white at her words. "Don't...don't try to talk about it. It doesn't matter. It wasn't you. Whatever she did then, it wasn't you, ok?" He kept his voice steady and strong, even as his heart jack-hammered in his chest. He stared down at her, willing her not to feel it. Not to notice his panic.

Which was when he realized it.

She was crying.

And he wasn't.

* * *

Lucy willed her hand to pick up the pen sitting next to her tea.

It did nothing.

She tried again, this time going for the warm, gooey chocolate croissant resting next to it, temptingly, on a pretty porcelain plate.

It still did nothing.

She gave up.

"Erza, can you call Natsu and tell him that I will not be able to make our date tonight, since he was indirectly responsible for you murdering me today?" she muttered, one side of her face pressed against the cool tabletop of the bakery they (that is Erza) had decided would be a good reward for their hard work. Lucy's eyes went wide in horror just thinking about the things her body had been made to do that day.

Erza held out a chocolate croissant for Lucy to bite into before pulling out her phone and dialing.

"Come on, it wasn't that bad. You did far better than I expected you would," she replied conversationally while it rang.

"Bury me with my writing notebook. No one must know how terrible I am," she groaned into the table. "Croissant me."

Erza held the croissant out again as Natsu picked up the line.

"Hey Erza, what's up?"

Lucy sat up at the sound of his voice through the phone.

"Your girlfriend would like to reschedule your date for this evening due to not feeling well," Erza said politely as she tore off a piece of her own croissant.

"HELP NATSU! SHE'S TRYING TO KILL ME!" Lucy screamed at the top of her lungs, making everyone else in the cafe jump at the sound. Thankfully, they were the only customers. And the employees were all well-acquainted with the ways of Erza Scarlet.

"Oooooh, you took her to the gym didn't you? That explains the ache."

"As a matter of fact I did. You're spending too much time and effort worrying about her, so I have decided to teach her self-defense so you can focus on your studies again. Luckily, she has a very solid understanding of the basics."

"ACHE? ARE YOU FREAKING KIDDING ME?! DAMMIT NATSU! I CAN'T EVEN USE MY ARMS TO STRANGLE HER! GET YOUR ASS OVER HERE AND EXACT MY REVENGE! AND THEN KICK YOURSELF IN THE BALLS BECAUSE THIS IS ALL YOUR FAULT! "

Erza and Natsu continued their conversation as though there wasn't a mentally unhinged and violently exhausted blonde girl yelling death threats at them both.

"Why isn't she calling me on her own phone?"

"SHE'S CRIPPLED ME! I'LL NEVER WALK AGAIN!"

"She left it at home, I believe. And her arms aren't really what you could call...functional at the moment." Erza held up the croissant to Lucy again.

"I'M BEING HELD AGAINST MY WILL!" Lucy yelled towards the phone before taking another bite of pastry.

"Ah, gotcha. Well, tell her we can postpone until Friday, but it's gonna cost her."

"I HEARD THAT YOU SON OF A BITCH! YOU'LL POSTPONE AND YOU'LL LIKE IT! I EXPECT TO BE TREATED LIKE A FUCKING PRINCESS-Noooo Erza, bring back the croissant! I won't cuss anymore, I swear!" Lucy quickly switched tunes as she saw her only means of sustenance being confiscated. Her eyes welled up with tears. As if she hadn't suffered enough, now she had to be deprived of sweet chocolaty goodness too? What had she done to deserve this?!

Natsu's tone changed immediately. "Where are you guys? I'll come pick her up and take her home."

"The bakery across from Metalicana's. I don't think she'll be able to ride your bike though."

"Yikes. Alright. I'll get Gray to drive. We'll be there in ten or so.

Lucy sniffled. "Can he bring me a jacket or something? I don't know where you put my clothes…" she mumbled, the fight going out of her. She just didn't have the energy to keep it up.

Erza scanned the sports bra top, fitted workout capris, and bright new sneakers they'd purchased at Heart Kreuz for Lucy to work out in. "Natsu, did you hear her?"

"Yeah, I'll grab something. We'll be there soon. Just, for the love of Bellona, let her have the croissant back. I can feel her stomach growling from here!"

"Very well." Erza held the phone out to Lucy. "Do you want to say goodbye?"

Lucy glared tearfully at her, but tilted her head so she could talk into the microphone. "Can we get real food on the way home?"

"Luce, we can get anything you want. You ok?"

"No. I want to kill you all."

"Seriously?"

"No. I'm just really really done with today. And I'm sad we don't get to go on a date."

"Me too. I'll make it up to you Friday, ok?"

"Ok." Lucy agreed as Erza held out the remains of the croissant to her with a look of concern. "Gotta go Mr. Matches, I've got flaky deliciousness to consume."

Natsu chuckled at the use of her old nickname for him. "Ten four, Weirdo. See you soon!"

"Yeah. Bye."

Erza hung up the phone as Lucy took a bite.

"Better?" she asked.

"I'm gonna need at least two more before I can think about forgiving you."

The redhead nodded seriously. "Fair enough...you really did do great today. I'm sorry if I overdid it. You kept up, so I thought you were good. Until we stopped moving. I should have been more observant. Please, forgive me for my lapse in caring for your well-being."

"You heard me: two more croissants if you want me to forgive the Scarlet Menace," Lucy said with a twitch of her lips.

Erza smiled back with an "Aye sir!" and went to go buy more croissants.

Natsu and Gray showed up a few minutes later. Lucy didn't even notice until Natsu was dropping a leather jacket over her shoulders.

"Jeez Erz, couldn't you at least get her a whole shirt? She's gonna get sick walking around sweaty like this."

"Nonsense, we rinsed off the sweat earlier."

Gray raised an eyebrow, lifting a lock of Lucy's damp ponytail. "So...she's just half-naked and wet with actual water then?"

Erza opened her mouth to defend herself, but was cut off by Lucy.

"Doesn't matter. Need to go. Bed. Bye." The blonde proceeded to lean over in what could have been an attempt to stand. Gray caught her before she fell off the chair

"Did she hit her head or something?" he asked, concerned, as Natsu wrapped his scarf around her neck and bent to pick her up.

"No, she has not suffered any head trauma recently. I suspect she's just tired," Erza speculated.

"So...tired. French fries Natsu. French fries…" Lucy kept mumbling incoherently into his scarf as she leaned her head on his shoulder.

He grinned down at her. "No problem Rocky. We'll pick some up on the way."

"Yeah, you'll be swimming in them if you want," Gray chimed in as he grabbed Lucy's bag and held open the door.

"Ug...no swimming…" she groaned, making them all chuckle. She was quiet as Natsu carried her outside and leaned over to set her down in the backseat of the car, back muscles screaming.

"Shit Erza, overdo it much? _I_ can barely move!" Natsu complained, attempting to keep Lucy upright. Every time he let go of her, she fell over.

"Language Natsu!" Erza yelled from the door of the cafe, sidling through it with five or six cake boxes stacked in her arms.

"Bad Erza...don't hurt my Natsu!" Lucy mumbled, eyes half-closed and arms limp in her lap. Natsu picked them up to put the seatbelt on her. "Ouch. That hurts."

"I know Luce, sorry. You'll be home in no time." He gently settled her arms back in her lap, tucking a stray hair behind her ear, frowning when he found it was still damp. Nice or not, it was still October...

"French fries!" she responded, mouth coming out over his scarf and dilated eyes popping open to make sure he heard. "Then we can go home. And sleeeeeep. You're coming home too right?" She closed her eyes again before he could answer and hummed a bit to herself.

Natsu grinned as he felt warmth spread through his torso at her words. "Yeah, I'm coming home too. After we get french fries." He closed the door and reached for the front passenger side door, but saw Lucy fall over in the seat again, cringing in pain. He redirected his course to the other side of the back. "Gray, I'm gonna ride in the back with Luce."

"What, am I a chauffeur now?" Gray snapped back, pulling open the driver's door and getting inside, despite his words. He rolled down the passenger window. "Want a ride back Erza, since we're headed that way anyway?"

"No. Thank you. I feel like a walk would be nice," she replied, balancing her boxes in one arm to wave him off.

Gray shrugged. "Ok. Have a good night."

In the back of the car, Natsu pushed Lucy back up to sitting and scooted into the middle seat so she could lean on him.

"Homeward driver!" he trilled in an atrocious attempt at a British accent.

"Fuck you," Gray shot back without heat.

Lucy smiled sleepily. Her body was shutting down hard core. When had she last eaten again? It felt like forever. "No thank you! He's got me for that!" She giggled at her own joke.

Natsu and Gray locked wide, laughing eyes in the rearview mirror as Gray pulled away from the curb. "Did that even make sense?" the noirette asked with amusement.

"Hey, you heard the woman, Señor Pantsless. I have no use for your fucks. Take them elsewhere!"

"Yes! And drive us to the french fries!" Lucy chimed in, eyes brightening a bit at the thought.

"Very well milady, I present, for your review, either, to your left, the Monarch of Burger joints, or to the right, the fine dining of Monsieur McDonalds. What is your pleasure?" Gray said with a passable French accent that put Natsu's to shame. He grinned, bolstered by Lucy's musical laugh in response to his nonsense.

"McDonalds s'il vous plaît gentil monsieur." Lucy responded smoothly, snuggling her face into Natsu's neck.

"Did you know she speaks French?" Gray asked Natsu as he pulled into the McDonald's drive thru. Natsu seemed as surprised as he did.

"Nope."

Lucy tilted her head back so she could whisper in his ear. "Je t'aime."

Natsu turned his head and grinned down at her. Even he understood that much French.

* * *

Erza strolled down the sidewalk, enjoying the sound of leaves rustling in the wind. She loved the fall: the colors, the weather, the boots and scarves.

Her phone vibrated and she shifted the cake boxes back to one hand to fish the device out of her pocket. It was a number she didn't recognize. With a shrug, she answered the call.

"Hello?"

"Will you accept the collect charges for a phone call from Era Penitentiary?"

Erza stopped in her tracks, dropping all but one of her boxes. She hardly noticed the spilled cake across the sidewalk, swallowing the lump that suddenly appeared in her throat. "Um, yes?"

"Hold please."

A moment later, the line clicked and a familiar voice came over the line.

"Good evening Erza."

She inhaled sharply. Of course, she'd known it had to be him. Who else could it be? But...she still wasn't ready to hear his voice again. Especially when it sounded so much like the one that had greeted her so warmly just that morning accompanied by a caramel mochaccino. Her body trembled in response.

"Jellal."

"Yes."

"What do you want?" she managed to get out, almost choking on the words. She stumbled over to the grassy hill of a nearby yard and sat down hard, setting down her one remaining intact cake and dropping her head between her knees. She felt sick to her stomach as her mind screamed questions at her. What was he calling her for? Was this how it was going to be now? How had he even gotten her phone number?! Was she shaking because she was upset, or because she was...excited? Why couldn't she tell the difference?! She ended up voicing the simplest one: "Why are you calling me all of a sudden?"

"Hmmm. Could it be my dear brother hasn't told you about his recent visit to see me? That's very interesting…"

"Mystogan came to see you again?" Erza parroted back numbly.

"He did. Can I ask you something?" The pleasant conversational tone of his voice confused her ears. He really did sound just like Mystogan.

"Um, ok."

"Do you love my brother?"

Erza was silent for a beat too long. "Why?"

"Ah. I see. Interesting." He sounded almost disappointed, but resigned too.

"Why did you ask me that?" Erza tried again, feeling like she'd already lost at a game she didn't know she was playing.

"I'm sorry Erza."

"For what?!" She could hear the desperation in her voice, unable to exercise the iron control she was famous for when she really needed it.

The only answer she got was an empty dial tone.

 _Sorry for what?!_

* * *

 **So... _things_ happen next chapter. I thought I'd get to them this chapter, but it turns out some other thing had to get played out first. It's all slated to go down on Friday...hmmm, maybe we should actually get a glimpse of their classes next time...thoughts? Anyone care that much?**

 **Stuff and Translations and Shit**

 **Athena Nike** -Athena was worshiped by the Greeks for many facets of her character. Wisdom, war, virginity, and victory, to name a few. Athena Nike is the goddess depicted as victory and there is a temple still standing on the Acropolis in Athens in tribute to her. Within that temple, there was an amazing piece of art by the same name showing the goddess as the embodiment of victory. It was removed many years ago (possibly as part of the Elgin marbles, but that's a story for another day). It's actually my favorite sculpture, depicting a woman (now headless and arm-less thanks to wear and time) with outspread wings and draped garments. Seeing it in real life at the Louvre was one of the highlights of my life Anyway, when Erza goes all heaven's wheel? I always think of Athena Nike.

 **Only cabrónes pull that kind of shit. Para de hacer tan cobardé.** -translation from Spanish: "Only assholes pull that kind of shit. Stop being so chicken!"

 **abuela** -grandmother

 **"No te preocupas, Azulita. El tendria tu espalda sobre todo, a pesar de todo lo que dice al contrario."-** "Don't worry, Little Blue. He'll have your back regardless (literally: above everything), despite what he says to the contrary."

 **"Tendria que terminar los mas pronto possible."** -"I'll just have to finish as soon as possible."

 **All Spanish translations provided by the epically helpful Grimnack!**

" **with great power comes great responsibility"-** mwahahahaha, Spiderman reference...because I can.

1 **980s flashback Garbage strike** : There was a strike of the trash haulers in Chicago, but it occurred in 2003, not in the 1980s. For the purposes of my story, I used it. I really like the mental image of putrescence stinking up a city more and more as a serial killer does his work, each kill helping to make the city getting dirtier and dirtier...wow, that got dark. Ahem. uh...happy things! Puppies! OH GOD SERIAL KILLING PUPPIES! WHAT HAVE I DONE?!

 **Bellona** -Roman goddess of war, similar to Athena, but less about learning, and more about winning the fuck out of wars and favoring those for whom fighting is life.

 **McDonalds s'il vous plaît gentil monsieur-** Mcdonald's please kind sir

 **Je t'aime** \- I love you

 **EDIT:I went back and changed the amount of nitroglycerin involved in Jellal's plan to better fit the research I've found on the substance. Because he is seriously not going to need a whole lot, and there is no way he'd get them to pour this stuff on themselves more than once...-Riot out**


	43. The Voice in the Darkness

**HEY! It's me! I'm alive! I'm sorry for disappearing! I SWEAR! Let's just all quit lying to ourselves and accept the fact that vacations do not actually equal efficient writing times for me. I write mostly at work, and without that routine, I just suck at maintaining my ridiculous chapter publishing rate.**

 **But anyway, now I'm sort of trapped at the bottom of a very deep hole filled with Miraculous Ladybug fanfiction. It's been weeks and I can't seem to get any closer to climbing out, but luckily some kind soul threw my laptop down a couple weeks ago so I could attempt to write the next chapter.**

 **Not gonna lie, this chapter was really hard for me to write for some reason. I just couldn't get my motivation going. But, the ending that I ended up came out of FUCKING nowhere (ok, so it might have come out of some crack ideas I sort of played with doing for shits and giggles, but still), so now I'm pumped and ready to bring it all together.**

 **Hold onto your hats folks, this one's an 18k doozy! (Complete with citrus** _ **and**_ **fluff, hehe)**

 **Now, read, enjoy, and express your shock, awe, and frustration through reviews to keep my motivation from slipping again! Seriously, it's really turning into a problem for me!**

 ***cue sad Sarah McLaughlin music and pathetic pictures of crying animals* For only 1% of the time it will take you to read this chapter, you too can post a review and keep this author from sliding back into procrastination. Post a review. Save a chapter. Today.**

 ***silently shuffles inconspicuously away as the lights come up on the opening lines***

* * *

It is a truth universally acknowledged by all those pursuing upper level education that there are some days when the need for sleep outweighs the necessity of classes and lectures.

And, to Lucy and Levy, Thursday was one of those days. Some things just transcended the thirst for knowledge, even for them. In this case: the disinclination to remove themselves from their beds. Plus, Lucy basically owned the school and it was Dead Week, so what difference was one fucking day really going to make? Denial was strong with them all that semester.

So, the blonder of the two slept the day away, waking up far into the evening still feeling like one big bruise clamped into the vise of her boyfriend's unconscious arms, while Levy poured through book after book, reading constantly, but internalizing nothing, as she sought to rid her mind of her waking nightmares.

As a result, when Levy opened her door Friday morning, in response to her blonde friend's unenthused knock, eyes still sore from crying into the shoulder of her knight in tattooed armor and clothed in nothing but a stray shirt of Droy's (doing laundry was also not their forte that semester), she looked how Lucy felt: tired as fuck.

The shadows under the blunette's eyes told the story of sleepless nights. And not in a fun, oh-yeah-I-totally-stayed-up-reading-all-night-and-my-eyes-are-glazed-but-still-blissful kind of way. Or an I-totally-got-laid-as-fuck-last-night-and-can't-keep-my-eyes-open-but-I-can't-bring-myself-to-regret-it kind of way. No, more like, an I've-been-haunted-by-the-ghost-of-Christmas-future-and-was-afraid-to-close-my-eyes-all-night kind of way.

What? Levy's eyes were very specifically expressive (blood-shot or not).

At the sight, Lucy hummed in sympathy and hastily shoved the cup of coffee she'd brought into the blunette's tired hands, letting her arm fall limp at her side again with a sigh of relief. Her arms had recovered considerably from her torture session courtesy of The Scarlet Menace, but were still sore, and the pain meds were taking their time processing in her system. Why weren't there magical healers who could wave their hands and make all her pain go away? Oh right. She lived in the real fucking world. Bummer.

"Gajeel here?" she queried numbly, not even bothering to crane her neck and see if he was present somewhere over her friend's shoulder.

Levy shook her head, eyes beginning to close on their own as she sipped her sugared-up elixir of life. She broke off with a slurp. "Nope. Mr. Tsundere _was_ here, but he went to work already."

Lucy shot her a weary grin. "Well, that explains the bags then…" she trailed off teasingly, running a finger under her own eye in illustration. To her surprise, though, Levy didn't return her grin. Instead she looked...uneasy. And sad. "Or not...what's wrong?"

Levy sighed. "I...I had a flashback on Wednesday."

Lucy waited for further information in vain. "...okay...I'm assuming this one was special...since you've kind of had _a lot_ of them lately…"

"It was bad Lu. Like really bad," the blunette said seriously, Her eyelids pulling back painfully to reveal the depth of her horror. As Levy stared right through her, Lucy couldn't resist drawing her friend into a hug, carefully avoiding spilling either of their coffees in the process. Her arms screamed silently at the motion. She silently entreated them back to leave her the hell alone. Some things transcended pain too.

"Oh Lev, why didn't you call me?" she murmured softly, rubbing her friend's back through the ache in her limbs. Levy broke down into sobs as she clung to the blonde. Lucy's grip tightened instinctually. What had her friend witnessed to react in such a way?!

As though responding to Lucy's thoughts, she started babbling, barely coherent. "I k-killed someone! In my last life! Just sh-sh-shot them! In a freaking _alley_ s-somewhere! And I think it w-w-w-was...oh gods, I can't...I think it was someone I…" She broke off with a sob. "And Gajeel isn't crying when I cry anym-more and I don't even know what that m-m-means. And it happened while I was walking and I just kept walking and I almost g-g-got hit by a car Lu!" she wailed, breaking to sniffle pathetically, tears streaming freely down her face. Lucy held her tighter, eyes going wide as she processed what her friend was warbling. It only took her a moment to understand the severity of the situation and steer Levy back into her apartment, looping her foot around the door as she went.

"Ok, we're definitely not going to class today," she said firmly as Levy's door swung shut behind them. "Let's start from the beginning."

* * *

A few blocks away, Gajeel paused in his early morning struggle through payroll (the shittiest part of being a boss) as he felt Levy's eyes tear up and sobs rip through her throat. His fingers immediately went to his eyes, seeing if they came away wet, but not surprised when he felt only skin. He sighed heavily. It had been like that all night. He could feel her crying, could feel the tears racing down her cheeks, but his body wasn't duplicating it. One full day and two nights of worrying over her was starting to take its toll.

His brow furrowed and he sat back in his chair, closing his eyes and breathing deep. Carefully, he tried to focus on nothing but Levy, particularly on what she could hear. If the fucking pyro could do it, then, dammit if he wasn't going to figure out how.

It was several minutes before he heard anything, and even then, it was muffled: female voices definitely though...one upset...probably Levy, the other soothing… Lucy. Gajeel sighed again, but in relief. Maybe she could do something where he had failed. Leaving his exhausted little Shrimp had almost killed him that morning, but spending the last couple of nights with her hadn't seemed to help anything. So, he thought he'd try leaving her alone, but he felt better knowing she had someone there that she might be able to open up to. Even if it wasn't him.

At least this little experiment answered one question...they were definitely still bonded. He just still had no fucking clue what had changed to keep his body from mirroring hers. Granted, he wasn't complaining. The less crying he did, the less fucking pictures his jackass of a new employee would take to blackmail him with. He hummed as Lucy's voice soothed his and Levy's nerves alike, keeping his eyes closed. He was tempted to get a little nap in before his first appointment showed up.

Because, shit, he was tired. Worrying was fucking exhausting.

You know what else was fucking exhausting? Getting no fucking sleep. Go figure.

"Sleeping on the job? Make sure the boss doesn't see ya," a familiar voice dripping in sarcasm commented as the hanging chains in the doorway were set swinging. It broke him out of his reverie, the feminine murmurs in his ears instantly gone. It did surprise him, though, that he hadn't heard the front door alarm go off when Erik came in. He was even more out of it than he thought.

"Shut the fuck up. Employees should be seen and not heard," he grumbled, peeling one eyelid open to glare at the ego he could already see expanding to fit the room.

"Tough shit, bossman. My _charming_ banter comes free with the rest of the package." And after a short pause and over-exaggerated hand gesture, "You're welcome," Erik chirped cheerfully. He dropped the messenger bag he kept his sketchbooks in unceremoniously on the floor next to him and pulled out a new set of pens. He smiled cheerfully at them. It was his first purchase that wasn't food or rent since he started working for Black Steel, and God, it felt good to have money in the bank. Or even a fucking bank account again, for that matter. "What's got a stick up your assumedly tattooed ass this fine morning? Did Levy finally hear you warbling and kick ya to the curb? I knew it had to happen sometime. That girl is way too good for you," he teased as he dropped down onto his customary wheelie stool and pushed off into a slow spin.

Gajeel peeled back his other eyelid to add a second eye to the glare he was leveling at the (begrudgingly amusing) Puerto Rican menace that worked for him. Or the cheeky juvenile delinquent he had unwittingly adopted and stole all his money every two weeks. It was becoming harder and harder to tell the difference. "Was 'shut the fuck up' unclear to you? And fuck you, I'm a karaoke god."

"Uh huh. Sure," Erik replied, settling his sketchbook on his lap and flipping through his recent doodles to see if there was anything worth refining. Gajeel grumbled and closed his eyes again. Silence reigned for another couple of minutes until Erik looked up noticing the weary lines on his friend's face. "Bro, seriously, what's up? You look like shit."

Gajeel grunted in response. Which Erik took as permission to pursue the topic.

"Does it have something to do with you jumping up and running out of here Wednesday without a word and never coming back? Or why you were a fucking mess yesterday too? We were so in the weeds I didn't push it, but you look even worse today, so maybe it's time to fess up." His tone changed from confrontational to suspiciously _helpfu_ l as he added, "You forgot my overtime for last weekend by the way." At some point he had rolled his chair over behind Gajeel and was now looking over his shoulder at the payroll program open on his laptop.

Gajeel's eyes popped open and he looked back at his screen.

"Fuck. You're right," he sighed as he leaned forward and retyped some of the numbers he'd inputted earlier. This shit was just not his thing. "Fuck accounting. Maybe I can get the stripper to do it…" he mused. The place was finally making enough money to consider hiring someone who actually knew what they were doing. The thought of never entering in another time sheet sounded like bliss.

"You want to hire a stripper to do your accounting? How progressive. I know a few if you don't have anyone in mind already..."

"Gray," Gajeel barely clarified as he re-read his other entries, hoping he didn't have any more mistakes. He suddenly felt another of Levy's sobs in his throat and gritted his teeth. _Come on Bunny Girl, do that thing you do and cheer the Shrimp up already!_

"Ah. That makes more sense. I heard he was getting some sort of math degree. That is just so fucking weird. I would have thought he'd major in...I don't know, ice sculpting or something."

Gajeel raised an eyebrow at him. "Why the fuck would he do that?" Who the hell became an ice sculptor? Or went to college for it if they did? "Do they even have degrees in ice sculpting? Who the fuck would pay for a degree like that?"

"I don't know. Just seemed like something he'd do." Erik shrugged. "He's _your_ weird-ass friend."

Another pained and distracted expression crossed his boss/friend's ugly mug and the redhead's eyes narrowed. Since he definitely wasn't that invested in Gray-Bare-It-All-Fullbuster, it didn't take much for Erik to speculate as to his discomfort and connect the dots.

"Something's wrong with Levy." It wasn't a question.

So Gajeel didn't grace it with an answer.

Erik's belligerent snark took a vacation as he stared Gajeel down. "Is Little Blue okay?"

After another beat or two of silence, Gajeel sighed. "Physically, she's... _fine_. Which, considering she almost walked in front of a moving car is a fucking miracle. But emotionally…" His expression darkened again as he swallowed hard. "I think you were right. She saw something from our last life. She won't tell me what it is...she couldn't talk about it at all without breaking down, so I just quit askin', but right after it happened, she said something that made it sound like… I think she did something real bad in our last life. And she can't forgive herself." He scrubbed his face with his tired hands before casting a weary gaze back at his friend. "She didn't sleep at all. I barely slept. And I felt fucking useless when I was awake. She's with her best friend now though...I think. Maybe she'll be able to help." Hope struggled to get through his sleepy haze, coming into focus just a bit when he realized Levy had at least stopped crying for the time being.

"Whatever it is, you guys will get through it."

Erik's serious words of encouragement startled Gajeel into raising an eyebrow. At the prompt, the man in front of him ran a hand through his dark red locks and smirked.

"You and Lev are two of the strongest and most stubborn people I know. And as much as you're wrapped around her tiny little finger, she's equally devoted to what you need, whether you recognize it or not. I mean, don't get me wrong, you'll probably still be arguing about what kind of pizza to order even after you've lost all your teeth, but you'll definitely still be together. And disgustingly content."

Gajeel couldn't help but chuckle at that, the simple gurgle of laughter doing wonders on his frayed nerves. His shoulders relaxed and he breathed the first full breath he felt like he'd taken that morning. "Naw, I'll just keep ordering Hawaiian without asking her first." He smiled imperiously at that.

Erik groaned. "Fuck no, man. Count me out. I am not tempting fate with her _vengeance_." He cringed thinking of the little blunette's latest threat of what she'd do if they pulled that shit on her even one more time.

"Pssh, she wouldn't really cut off all our hair while we're sleeping. We'd wake up long before she got anywhere. And she doesn't even know where _you_ live," Gajeel laughed, unconcerned.

His friend, however, was shivering at the thought.

"The little devil would find a way. She's so fucking resourceful it's scary."

Gajeel sobered up a bit again at that thought. "Yeah." He could feel the tension returning to his jaw as his thoughts drifted back to what she was trying to find a way through recently. It was what had landed her in this damned situation in the first place. His hands curled into fists in frustration.

Erik noticed the change and suddenly had a brilliant thought. Like fucking _blinding_ it was so brilliant.

"You seriously need to punch something."

See? Nailed it.

The broody fucker was just lucky he had Erik around to make such _incandescent_ observations.

"..." Gajeel opened his mouth to respond, but nothing came out. He closed it, thought for a moment, and opened it again. "You know...you might have something there."

"I _absolutely_ have something there. We should close up early and hit the gym this afternoon! Lily would have fucking kittens he'd be so excited to see you, not that he'd show it. You've been MIA ever since you opened this place and I could use a decent sparring partner for once. With you, Natsu, Gray, and Erza busy with all this fucking soulmate drama, I've been forced to settle for Orga. _Orga,_ Gajeel. The man is a goddamned bodybuilder for fuck's sake. He cares more about looking at himself in the mirror than actually landing a punch." Erik shut up long enough to gauge his friend's reaction and then grinned at him. "Maybe Lil will even get back in the ring with you himself."

Gajeel had to admit, the thought was pretty tempting. And he really did feel like punching something. Or someone. For a brief moment he indulged in the daydream that the skinny ginger who kept making his Shrimp cry might be there and his eyes glinted momentarily with satisfaction at the thought of knocking him solidly unconscious. "Alright, I'll come with you. _After_ work," he added sternly, slipping back into boss-mode.

Erik groaned and rolled his eyes. "Fiiiine. After work then. Whatever. Just get back in the ring. You were fucking born to fight and it's killing you slowly not to."

Gajeel waved him off, pulling out his phone to send a group text to his two favorite punching bags.

* * *

 **Gajeel: Boxing tonight. you in?**

He got responses almost immediately.

 _ **Gray: Seriously? You choose TONIGHT to come back, you asshole?! I've got a date.**_

* * *

Gajeel rolled his eyes. When did Gray not have a _date?_ He was typing a reply to tell him to fuck whatever girl it was some other night, when Natsu's response came in.

* * *

 _Natsu: YES! FINALLY! im so there_

 _ **Gray: Hey, Flaming Douchebag, last time I checked, you had a date too.**_

 _Natsu: Ill resched Luce will understand_

 _ **Gray: Wanna bet?**_

 _Natsu Dragneel added Lucy Heartfilia to the group._

 _Natsu: hey Luce! can we push tonight to tomorrow? ive got an appointment to break Gajeel's face_

Gajeel snorted at that.

 **Gajeel: Yeah right salamander. more like you'll break ur own on the floor when u bow down in defeat.**

 _Natsu: fat chance! you havent been in the ring in forever. itll be easy as fuck to floor you_

 _ **Gray: HA. I'm so pissed I'm going to miss this.**_

 **Gajeel: You can fuck the girl another night. come with us so I can kick ur ass**

 _ **Gray: Sorry. It's not that kind of date. I'll just have to let Natsu school you instead.**_

 _Natsu: AHA! c? Im totally gonna own your ass! you'll have to write me another victory song. just please for the love of Andarta don't fucking sing it again. my ears have finally finished healing._

 **Gajeel: Naw, you're remembering that wrong. you had to write me a victory song so you must be thinking of your own shitty singing. I guess your brain's blocking it out to save you from remembering the shame…**

 _Natsu: naw...im pretty sure youre the one who lost…_

 _ **Gray: huh...I honestly can't remember who won that...you both suck at singing so much…**_

 **Gajeel: Shut the fuck up stripper!**

 _Natsu: shut the fuck up freezer burn!_

* * *

Erik, still looking over his shoulder, exclaimed at that, "See, it's not just me! That guy _does_ have some kind of weird obsession with ice!" He shut up though when a new message popped up on the feed, distracting him. "Who's she?" The picture on Gajeel's phone for her was of a blond pulling a face at him over her shoulder.

* * *

Lucy: …

Lucy: Sorry, why am I a part of this group?

* * *

Gajeel replied absentmindedly, "Levy's friend. And Natsu's girlfriend."

Erik's eyebrows went up. "Shit. Lucky son-of-a-bitch."

* * *

 _Natsu: Luce! I need to push our date to tomorrow. gaj is gonna be at the gym tonight for the first time in FOREVER and I need to kick his ass!_

Lucy: Oh gods, PLEASE don't mention the gym...I'm still sore in places I didn't know I had.

 _Natsu: oh, right…_

 _Natsu: hey! we should invite erza!_

Gajeel choked on his spit, fumbling to respond in time.

 **Gajeel: What the fuck?! NO! WHY? are you insane?!**

Lucy:OMG DON'T INVITE HER! SHE'S A MOTHERFUCKING DEMON! WEREN'T YOU THERE LAST NIGHT?! WITNESSING MY MISERY?!

 _ **Gray: Your funeral.**_

 _Natsu Dragneel has added Erza Scarlet and Mystogan Fernandes to the group._

Lucy: I'll pray for your souls.

 **Gajeel: Thanks we'll need it**

 _Natsu: Hey Erz! Gajeel finally feels like boxing again. Are you in?_

Lucy: What the hell Natsu? You can use proper grammar for her but not for your own fucking girlfriend?!

Erza: Sorry, can't make it today. Mystogan and I have plans later. And Lucy, I expect better language from you, no matter how sore you are.

Lucy: You're a demon, woman. A DEMON! I'll say what I want!

 _Mystogan: Wait, what? We have plans?_

 _ **Gray: Uh oh.**_

Erza: Yeah. The plans where I rip you a new one because you visited your brother and didn't tell me about it?

 _Natsu: Oh shit. Run Mystogan. Just start right now and don't look back._

Erza: Because then he called me. From prison.

 _ **Gray: It was nice knowing you man. We'll honor you forever in the Hall of Fairy Tail Legends…**_

 _Natsu: Aye Sir._

 _ **Gray: Aye Sir.**_

Lucy: Aye sir? What? Have you guys joined the navy since I last saw you?

 _Mystogan: It's a Fairy Tail thing._

 _Mystogan: You guys just totally did the hand motion too, didn't you?_

 _Natsu: Of course we did, what do you take us for? Disrespectful heathens?_

 _ **Gray: Indeed.**_

Lucy: Ooooooh. Gotcha.

Lucy: So stupid fraternity bullshit.

 _Natsu: Hey!_

 _ **Gray: Hey!**_

 **Gajeel: So, who is actually going to the gym tonight? Erik's gonna be there btw.**

 _ **Gray: Cobra? DAMMIT! Why are you doing this TONIGHT? I haven't sparred with either of you in forever! This is bullshit.**_

Erza: Language Gray.

 _ **Gray: What, Lucy gets to say bullshit and I don't?**_

Erza: You're right. Lucy, you owe me ten laps tomorrow for your improper language.

Lucy: Gray, I'm LITERALLY going to kill you.

 _ **Gray: Sorry Lucy.**_

Lucy: And then bring you back to life.

Lucy: And kill you again.

 _Natsu: I'm in!_

 _ **Gray: Yeah, only if Lucy lets you out of your date…**_

 _ **Gray: I said I was sorry!**_

Lucy: And then I'll track you down in our next lives and kill you again.

 _Natsu: Luce? We good for switching our date to tomorrow?_

Lucy: Slowly.

 _Natsu: Pretty please?_

Lucy: Painfully.

 _Mystogan: Well, that looks like a big fat no to me. lol._

 _ **Gray: Did you seriously just 'lol'? Why aren't you running?! We weren't kidding.**_

Lucy: In a video I will post on youtube so every girl you've ever slept with will see you scream like a little girl and hang their heads in shame and regret.

 _ **Gray: You know what, I should probably join you. Want to be roommates in our new country of residence? I've always thought Iceland sounded like a nice place to live!**_

Erza: Lucy, would you like some help with that?

 _ **Gray: Shit!**_

Lucy: Back fiery-headed demon! The power of Christ compels you!

 _Natsu: Luce, I swear, I'll make it up to you!_

Lucy: The power of Christ COMPELS you!

 _Natsu: Again…_

 _Natsu: And I'll punch Gray in the face for you._

 _ **Gray: Hey!**_

 _Natsu: A lot._

Lucy: THE POWER OF CHRIST COMPELS YOU!

 _Natsu: Lucy?_

 _Natsu: LUUUUUUUCY!_

Lucy: Oh, for the love of Mavis! Fine. Whatever. Go punch people. I don't care anymore. Just don't get me all bruised up. I have enough shit to deal with right now. I do not have time for this.

* * *

Which reminded Gajeel of where she (probably) was.

* * *

 **Gajeel: Hey bunny girl, how's she doin?**

Erza: Who?

Lucy: Levy. And she's...better. But Gajeel, we really need to talk.

Lucy: And don't call me that.

 **Gajeel: Yeah**

Erza: Did something happen to Levy?! Do I need to hunt someone down and make them pay?

 _Natsu: Wait, Luce, what's up with Levy?_

Lucy: No Erza. You don't need to go RoboCop on anyone.

 **Gajeel: Well actually...Erza, since you mention it, do you know a guy named Jet?**

Lucy: BAD GAJEEL! No siccing Erza on guys you don't like who haven't done anything to deserve it.

Lucy: Well...recently.

Erza: ...recently?

 **Gajeel: Fine. but thats debatable.**

Lucy: Ok, guys, I really can't do this right now...

Lucy: But I guess it does kind of concern all of you…

Lucy: Is everyone free after my boyfriend kicks Gajeel's ass? Or before maybe?

 **Gajeel: Your lack of faith is disturbing bunny girl.**

 _Natsu: Have I told you how much I love you today? And how hot you look in that skirt?_

Lucy: He's my boyfriend Gajeel, who did you think I was going to root for? And no, Natsu, as a matter of fact, you haven't

Lucy: Since I haven't seen you

Lucy: How the f*** (There, I'm censored for this entirely adult conversation. HAPPY ERZA?) do you know I'm…

Lucy: You know what? Nvm. Doesn't matter. You f***ing creeper.

 _Mystogan: I'm free later. But not too late._

Erza: Me too.

 **Gajeel: Yeah, I'm good later. and I'll drag your stalker's unconscious body over with me when I'm done handing him his ass.**

* * *

"Hey, are you guys getting together to talk about the whole bonding thing? And visiting Levy?" Erik's voice coming over Gajeel's shoulder made him jump. He'd completely forgotten the sneaky bastard was there. "Can I tag along? Help cheer up Little Blue a bit?"

Gajeel rolled his eyes. "Fine."

"Awesome." After that Erik rolled away and went back to sketching. Gajeel turned his focus back on his phone.

* * *

 **Gajeel: Erik is coming too. He wants to visit the Shrimp.**

Lucy:...

Lucy: Ok, Levy says that's cool.

 _ **Gray: Hey, Loke's gonna tag along too.**_

Lucy: Why?

 _ **Gray: You really don't want to know.**_

Lucy: Ok…

 _Natsu: He can't come._

Lucy: Natsu...it's seriously not that big a deal. And he did help save me.

 _Natsu: No._

 _Natsu: I don't want him anywhere near you._

 _ **Gray: Possessive much?**_

 _Natsu: Fuck off Gray._

Erza: Language Natsu.

 _Mystogan: Where are we meeting tonight?_

Lucy: My place. 8 sound good to everyone?

 **Gajeel: Yep.**

 _ **Gray: Yeah, I might be a bit late, but Loke can fill me in.**_

 _Natsu: You are not telling that perv where Lucy's apartment is!_

Lucy: Natsu, you're being ridiculous. He's harmless.

Erza: Actually, I agree with Natsu on this one. The fewer people that pervert visits at Fairy Hills the better. But I'll be there with my knives, so it's not like he'll be able to pull anything.

 _Mystogan: Yeah, we'll both be there. But maybe the deadly weapons should stay behind._

Erza: What? Why?

 _Mystogan: You know why._

Erza: Like hell I do.

 _Mystogan: Erza, I'm not doing this on a party chat. Call me._

Erza: Fine. We still have your actions to discuss.

Lucy: Okaaaay...so, my place at 8 then? Great. Bye.

* * *

Lucy promptly left the conversation (because fuck group messages and the ridiculous number of notifications her phone would be getting otherwise) and tossed it onto the counter, picking up the plate of nachos she'd made out of the paltry findings of Levy's barren kitchen.

"I thought Gajeel was going to get you all stocked up? You've still got pretty much nothing but cheese and condiments," Lucy chided teasingly as she picked her way through the book stacks to where Levy sat on the floor, leaning against one of her loveseats.

"He was. Then he realized I don't have any pans or anything to cook with either and decided it would be easier just to spend all of our time together at his place. You know, before I had a mental breakdown and stuff. And I have more than condiments! There are probably some pop tarts left in there! Somewhere…" she trailed off, the hint of a smile curling up the side of her lips. Lucy smiled sweetly back. It was amazing how much better she looked already, just from getting everything out in the air. Speaking of which...

"Ok...now, where were we?" Lucy pondered as she resumed her own seat across from the blunette, leaning up against a settee of her own. "Before my phone blew up with all that nonsense."

"Gajeel wasn't crying."

"Oh gods, that's right! What the hell? Did you guys get de-bonded? Dis-bonded? Non-bonded? James-Bonded? Torn asunder from your erstwhile bonds of fate?"

Levy shook her head at Lucy's antics, her smile growing. "Un-bonded probably? And no… We both thought that might be it at first...but writing still transfers. And we can still _feel_ each other, you know?" She sniffled and grabbed another tissue from the box Lucy held out helpfully. It was almost empty at this point, the corpses of the tissue's comrades littering the floor around Levy like gross little sheep. The blonde offered up the plate of nachos when the blunette's most recent victim joined the other cotton carrion.

"Huh…" Lucy pondered on it for a minute, grabbing a cheese-smothered chip for herself to chew while she thought it over. "Well...it's not necessarily a bad thing, is it? Especially if it goes the other way too. Like, if he gets punched in the face, do you still feel it? And get a bruise?"

"We didn't see fit to test that one, oddly enough. Plus, I was kind of too much of a wreck to think about it," Levy murmured morosely, shoving three chips in her mouth at once to push down the sobs again. Cheese had always been a comfort to her.

Lucy squeezed her hand and decided it was finally time to push her a little on the one topic she hadn't elaborated from her friend's grouping of initial shocking confessions.

"Levy-chan, you said you shot somebody in your last life… Who was it? Did you know them? I know you don't want to talk about it, but that might be just what you need…" Lucy kept her hold on her friend's hand as she tried to pull it away. "And it could help me too. Well, us, really..."

Levy looked up at her at that, curiosity breaking through the sadness, "Help you? How?"

Lucy bit her lip. "You haven't been over to my place in a few days have you?"

The blunette's eyebrows furrowed as she thought about it. "No...I guess not. Why?"

"Well, it's kind of easier to show you…" Lucy got carefully to her feet, set the rapidly diminishing plate of nachos aside, and offered a hand to her friend. Together, they went across the hall and into Lucy's apartment. It didn't take Levy long to figure out what Lucy was referring to, as she was immediately drawn to the blonde's living room area, where, covering a good portion of one wall, dozens of pictures and printed pages of text had been push-pinned along three straight horizontal lines of red yarn. The bottom one only had a couple of items attached on each end of the string, while the middle one had things scattered fairly evenly across it, and the top was stuffed to the brim, longer than the other two as more room had clearly been needed. Every so often, a vertical red yarn branch broke off of a line, sometimes attaching to one of the other horizontal lines.

More papers sat in a neat stack on the little dining room table provided with the apartment. Lucy had shoved it into an unoccupied corner of the room and it was clear some large project was underway; her laptop was open but off, push-pins and spare yarn was arranged as neatly as the stacks of papers, and a brand new printer sat next to the whole setup. She must have bought it sometime in the last couple of days, because Levy had definitely never seen it before.

"Lucy...what is this?" Levy asked, already stepping up to look closer at the wall of...timelines. Because it was pretty damn obvious they were timelines. Now that she was closer she could see that Lucy had even lightly penciled dates onto the bland beige wall at irregular intervals. She started on the far left top string automatically, going to 'read' the story Lucy had painstakingly laid out from the beginning. She gasped when she realized what she was exploring.

"I borrowed your notes for most of yours, and did some research on my own," Lucy blurted out, shifting nervously on her feet as if Foucault himself, or her Great Great Grandma Anna (a famous historian in her own right, and the black sheep of the Heartfilia family tree) scrutinized her efforts. "But I'm mostly just guessing on some of them."

"When...?" Levy breathed, not looking away as her fingers ghosted lightly over pictures, neatly printed newspaper articles and typed up descriptions. Her attention was caught on an engagement announcement dated 1964 with a post-it bearing a big question mark on it. Similar post-its were scattered across the wall, but this one had caught her eye. She smiled. Gajeel's eyes stared back at her from the picture, looking oddly at home in a stranger's pale face. And she would recognize the mini dress her past self was wearing anywhere. She carefully peeled off the uncertain post-it and stuck it off to the side. "When did you possibly have time to do all this?"

"In between classes and when Natsu manages to tear himself away from me. Plus I had trouble sleeping last night...since I slept all day." She smiled sheepishly at that. "I'd been planning to organize it all at some point, and I really needed something to take my mind off all the...stuff that happened. I figured I'd show you when I had everything up and ready. Gajeel knows I'm doing something, but hasn't seen it yet. After you told me all about the flashbacks you had the first day with the Dragon Lady, I got really excited and came back to borrow your notebook later, but you were already asleep, so he got it for me."

Levy moved away from her past-self's engagement picture and froze as she saw the headlines of the newspaper articles pinned up next. 'Chicago Killer Still At Large' screamed at her from the page. She lost her breath, frozen in place.

"We never…" she trailed off softly, a single tear uncontained by the corner of her eye slid down the salt-stain skin of her cheek. "We never caught him...did we?"

Seeing Levy's downturned face and once again falling tears stabbed Lucy's heart with pain. She instantly embraced her friend, comforting her in her tears yet again, as she had all morning. And just like before, she had no comforting news to give. "No," she whispered. "I couldn't find any record of anyone being arrested. The police files probably have more, but details of the case were never made public. And I can't even figure out what your name might have been. FBI records are fucking impregnable. Even with significant bribes." Lucy hugged her devastated friend to her body and rocked slowly back and forth, wishing she'd found more. "I'm so sorry Lev. I know what this means to you."

"B-but then...who did I shoot?" she stuttered out suddenly, pulling back and looking at Lucy with those haunted eyes again. "It was bad enough when I thought I got the killer...but..oh my GODS Lucy! What if I shot someone innocent?! What if…"

"Sssshhh. Levy, calm down. No matter what your past self did, I know she didn't do it on purpose! She couldn't." Lucy held out Levy by her shoulders at arms length, not taking her eyes off the watery ones in front of her. She ignored the pathetic appearance of her best friend. It was unsettling to see the tiny, but always larger than life, woman like that. The one who had been the glue that held her together when she felt like she'd fall to a million pieces. But this was her moment to pay her back, and she refused to fold under the pressure. "Your soul is beautiful and joyful, and energetic. I don't believe for a second that you could intentionally kill anyone in cold blood. Not unless there was a good reason. But, even if, _somehow_ , you did ended up killing someone, it's NOT YOU. Not the _now_ you. _You_ haven't done anything wrong." And with that, she drew the blunette back into her arms and sunk onto the couch, cradling her friend as her tears flowed freely again.

Because, as the blunette in her arms had shown by her stellar example, that's what friends did.

* * *

Erza and Mystogan sat in a secluded area of picnic tables staring each other down. Thankfully they were alone (perhaps because there was a feeling of danger emanating from the area where they sat, keeping anything that valued its life far, far away).

"You lied to me," Erza said stubbornly.

For the fifth time.

"Not telling you is not the same as lying," Mystogan replied again, as he had the first four times. "And, it's not like I wasn't _going_ to tell you!" He raised his voice in frustration. Dammit, he was a patient guy, but the conversation was going in circles with no sign of escape. "I don't know what you want from me here, Erza. Something about that egomaniac worried me enough to get in the car and drive to see him. I have no idea why I did it, but I did, okay? I visited him, the sadistic bastard _threatened you_ ," he explained, again, through gritted teeth, "and then I left. End of story." His eyes slipped away from hers at the last second, looking down as his hands dropped from the wide gestures he'd been making.

"You lied to me!" Erza suddenly gasped.

"OH, FOR THE LOVE OF-" Mystogan started again as he leapt to his feet, at the end of his rope, only to be cut off by Erza standing and leaning towards him with rage glowing behind her eyes.

"No, you idiot! Not yesterday. I mean right freaking NOW! You JUST lied to me! And not by omission this time either!" His eyes slipped away from hers again for a second, one hand coming up to run through his hair, but keeping his glare back at her steady. "See! There! 'End of story' my ASS Mystogan! Why are you keeping it from me? What could you two possibly have talked about that I'm not entitled to hear?! It's not like I'm his and your freaking soulmate or anything! Oh wait, I bloody well AM! " She climbed the picnic table as easily as stairs, leaping off the other side. Planting a hand on each of his shoulders she pushed him down with all her not insubstantial might to a sitting position and towered over him, eyes still blazing. He swallowed a wince at the pain of her fingers digging into his shoulders."Now, I swear to every single god that can hear me and twice as hard on those who can't, you _will_ tell me what Jellal said to you right _fucking_ now, or this will be the last time I will even acknowledge your existence!"

With that, she leaned back and waited, arms crossed under her sizable chest. Mystogan sat shell-shocked by the whole thing, his eyes stuck in a glare out of habit, but internally marveling at how so fierce and scary a woman could also be so fucking beautiful. And for half a second, he considered lying to her again.

Because as afraid as he was that she would follow-through with her threat, he was infinitely more terrified of Jellal destroying the beautiful creature in front of him. He wanted to protect her with every molecule that made up his body and soul.

But, she was also right.

"Jellal is blackmailing me to help break him out of prison."

Erza paused, mouth still open from the breath she'd taken to respond to whatever he said, and then closed it, staring down at him. "Sorry, what?" she finally managed.

"Jellal threatened your life so that I, and you by necessity, would help him fulfil his more than likely unnecessarily intricate 40-step plan to escape from Era Penitentiary." Mystogan paused for a moment to let his words sink in before continuing. "And the first step in said is for us to transfer a vial of nitroglycerin to him through our skin, tonight at midnight."

Erza was dumbfounded. "You're kidding."

Mystogan just looked at her.

"Ok, you're not kidding. Well that's not melodramatic or anything. Where does he expect us to get liquid explosives on such short notice? And should we even be touching chemicals like that? What does he plan on doing with it? Will people get hurt?" She was taking it all surprisingly calmly. Although, she _was_ Erza. He didn't know why he had expected any different.

Mystogan couldn't help but smile a little, despite the situation. Part of him still wished he could keep her from getting involved with what would surely be an illegal and potentially explosive (no pun intended) undertaking, but the other part of him was relieved he no longer had to make a decision on his own. He held up a hand and started ticking off fingers as he answered her questions.

"I picked up the nitro from an associate of his a couple of days ago. I've been looking over my old notes for when we studied it, but it's hard to say. It's a vasoconstrictor, and that shouldn't do any permanent damage to our hands, but there are so many things that could go wrong instead. I think it's safe to say he's going to use it to blow something up. And I always assume people will get hurt when Jellal's involved, in one way or another." He had a question of his own though. "With that in mind, how can we go along with this? Knowing that people could be seriously injured if we do? It's all I can think about."

"But if we don't...do you think he'd really go so far as to injure us somehow? I mean, he'd get hurt too, right? He'd hardly injure _himself_ on purpose."

"Normally, I would say self-preservation is at the top of his list at all times. But...it's not like he's on death row, or has a life sentence or anything. Breaking out of prison is not exactly a great way to preserve his life and safety, so perhaps he's changed. All I know is that _I_ believed him. He will hurt us if we don't help him. He's been talking to someone who knows about the bond, because he knows as much as we do, if not more. It could be possible he's found some kind of loophole. Maybe he can hurt us without hurting himself or something…" Mystogan trailed off in thought, his brow furrowed.

"So, the real question is, do we save ourselves from certain pain and injury, or do we prevent possible pain and injury to others?"

"Yeah, that's the crux of it."

They sat in silence for a few minutes, each lost in their own thoughts. Then something occurred to Mystogan.

"Erza...what did Jellal say to you when he called? I'm really surprised that he went out of his way to contact you."

Erza stopped breathing, Jellal's icy voice ringing in her ears.

' _Do you love my brother?'_

Her heartbeat doubled. Mystogan's eyes widened.

' _I'm sorry Erza.'_

"Erza?" It really was uncanny how alike they sounded saying her name.

"Nothing important."

* * *

Natsu grinned to himself as he threw his backpack over a shoulder and practically skipped out of the Humanities building, heading toward Lucy's apartment. He had an hour before he had to be back in Toto-moron's class and even his excitement to box against Gajeel that night wasn't enough to completely sooth the itch he got when Lucy wasn't around.

He'd forgotten what it felt like to be in love with someone. If he ever really had been. And he was beginning to doubt he had. Not even with Lisanna. Which, of course, made sense now. She hadn't really loved him either. Love was like any team activity; it never worked quite right when just one person was fully invested.

Every other girl he'd been involved with had fit into his philosophy: if they don't want to stay, they aren't worth having around. Never mind that none of them had managed to stick. Or give him a reason to really care about them. But Lucy...if she left?

He'd follow her anywhere.

Find her anywhere.

No matter how far it was. It wasn't even in question for him.

Which probably should have scared him shitless, but instead gave him a warm tingly feeling in his fingers (well, that, or Lucy was holding a cup of coffee or something; these days it was hard to tell where his nerves ended and hers began). Most moments of most days, his mouth stretched wide into a dopey grin he couldn't wipe off if he tried.

Because he knew she loved him too. Fuck, he was almost making himself nauseous he was being so sappy.

But while thinking about her made his feel all gooey (seriously, what the fuck was wrong with him?) her necessary temporary absences seemed to leave a gaping void that he couldn't begin to fill with anything else. His body seemed to physically _need_ to be touching her or he couldn't concentrate. He'd started sneaking over to her apartment the last few nights because he just couldn't sleep without knowing exactly where she was. And that that place was with him.

But all of that was normal, wasn't it? Wasn't that how everyone really in love felt? He assumed so and shrugged it off. Something that felt as great as Lucy did in his life couldn't be...wrong. Plus, they were soulmates, what more proof did he need?

Before he knew it, he was standing outside his perky blonde girlfriend's door, his hand poised to knock. But he never got the chance, as the door swung inwards and Lucy herself walked right into him.

The surprise of colliding with him had set her off balance, almost falling backward but instead overcorrecting and slamming into him with her full body weight. That, combined with the gravity-pulling-mass of the chemistry books strapped to his back, sent him crashing to the floor, arms automatically wrapping around Lucy to keep her from hitting the ground.

"Shit!" she cursed as they collided with the crappy apartment carpeting.

When the proverbial dust had settled, a squeak escaped from the face buried in his chest, prompting him to loosen his arms a bit. Lucy still couldn't move her arms in his tight embrace, but she managed to tilt her head up to look at him.

"Uh...ouch," she finally squeezed out with the remaining air in her lungs.

Natsu couldn't help but sheepishly chuckle, hands sliding up her back to gently rub the pain out her shoulder blades that he could feel spasming in his own back. He'd kind of forgotten that she'd feel it if he hit too. "Sooo, standing upright is just too much for you to handle, huh?"

Lucy narrowed her eyes at him and tried to find somewhere that wasn't Natsu's distractingly toned chest or stomach to put her hands so she could see him better. "Shut up, I'm not that bad."

"Well, it wasn't a 12-foot drop off a fake pirate ship this time, so I suppose you're at least showing signs of improvement..."

"Hey! That wasn't...I mean...dammit! That was just the one time!" she stumbled to get out in her indignancy. Gods, she was cute when she got tongue-tied.

Fuck that, she was cute all the time. Her little scrunched up angry face was just icing on the proverbial lava cake that was Lucy: unnecessary, but totally welcome.

"True. I guess you _have_ sent me more topless pictures before we met than you have fallen off of tall things into my arms…at least so far. You sure do have you kinks..."

"Oh for the love of...are you ever going to shut up about that?!" She gave up on getting her hands to the floor and planted them forcefully on his chest, the hard muscle rising slightly under her fingers as he breathed. Her gaze trailed down from his face, flickering over the better-than-Beckham body she remembered was under that cotton t-shirt somewhere. "Besides, you sent me topless pics too…"

 _Where did those end up?_ , Lucy thought hazily. _I should get them printed. And framed. My bedroom walls could use a little pepping up. Or my shower...there has to be a laminator on campus somewhere, right?_

"That I did. And if you stop perving out on me in the hallway, like the freak you are, I'd be happy to send you some more," he teased snidely, holding back a snicker at the dazed look on her face. At least, until she pushed herself up further and he was suddenly confronted with a really impressive expanse of cleavage. "Or, you know, you could just stay right there. Forever. I'd be cool with that too."

Lucy's eyes snapped up to his face again at the tone of his words, following his line of sight. She felt her face flush with heat, but her first instinct (to push away and chastise him) was quickly replaced by a hot wave of satisfaction and excitement. After all, it wasn't like he didn't have the right to look. They _were_ dating (*cough*soulmates*cough*). And she _had_ been ogling him only seconds before. But most of all, the look on his face made her feel powerful. Which immediately went to her head.

Biting her bottom lip, she arched her back a tiny bit and rotated her arms just enough to push her chest forward an inch or two. Watching Natsu's face closely, she was amazed to watch the pupils in the center of his beautiful dark green eyes expand, her own vision blurring as they mirrored the action.

Natsu's eyes slid back up to her face just in time to see a smirk curl up her lips.

 _Did she just...she just fucking did that on purpose!_

Never say he was one to turn down an open invitation.

Natsu shifted his hands quickly from her back to her thighs and used them to hike her up quickly, staring into her eyes. His shirt rode up, catching on her legs and exposing his defined abs for her thighs to immediately clamp down on as they straddled him. Then, while she gasped, he leaned forward, buried his face in her chest...and blew a giant raspberry.

"DAMMIT NATSU!" Lucy screamed, immediately bursting out into peals of laughter and squirming away. Or rather, trying to. Unfortunately for her, Natsu's strong arms locked her solidly into place and she was at his mercy. He could feel her eyes starting to tear up as he struggled to keep from laughing himself. It really was a fucking weird feeling (as he could now attest to)...but not necessarily an unpleasant one. However, it didn't even compare to the feeling of her silky thighs sliding against his sides and the pangs of arousal the friction was sending through her. His playful attack slowly morphed into open-mouthed kisses as he gave into the urge to taste her.

Natsu could barely keep a smile off his face long enough to keep kissing her. For the first time all day that annoying itch was gone. The relief of having her in his arms, paying homage to her insanely hot body in the process, sent a calming warmth flooding his system. _How can one person make such a huge difference?_

Somewhere in the back of his mind, he dimly realized it probably wasn't the best idea to make out in the apartment building hallway, but instead of stopping, found himself tugging her low neckline down further and running his tongue under the lace edge of her bra.

He dimly noticed that her laughter had turned into soft panting and her hands had buried themselves in his hair, repeating the action just to hear it again.

Until a door opened down the hall, causing them both to freeze, jerking away from each other with wide eyes and guilty faces turned to their unexpected audience.

A petite, pigtailed noirette stepped into the hallway, a garment bag slung over one arm, and stared open-mouthed at their compromising position for almost a full minute.

Natsu cleared his throat pointedly at her, seeming to dislodge the mental block tripping her up.

"Oh-um, I'm s-s-s-sorry. I'm going just-I mean, I'm just going- I mean, crap, nevermind, you clearly don't care." Her face flamed red and she spun the other direction, bolting for the stairs. Unfortunately, she tripped along the way, sprawling across the hall and dropping her garment bag. Before Natsu or Lucy even had time to move, she leapt back up, scooping up her things and sprinting into the stairwell.

Natsu and Lucy stayed frozen staring after her for another minute before slowly looking back at each other. The minute their eyes met, they burst out laughing, Lucy tumbling down beside him on the floor as she struggled to breathe between guffaws. The whole thing was just so ridiculous.

"D-D-Did you...see her...face?!" Lucy gasped, curling toward Natsu until her forehead rested against his shaking shoulder, her arms wrapped around her middle as though that would halt the almost painful clenching of her muscles.

"Oh yeah...I saw...it. I think...we scarred...her...for life!" Natsu replied, turning on his side to mirror her as he clutched his spasming abdomen and tried desperately to stop the laughter. "Stop...laughing! Your stomach...is killing me!"

Which only made Lucy laugh harder. "You stop! Oh...man…it hurts so bad!" She burst with laughter several more times, reaching out a hand to Natsu like he was her lifeline. "D-d-don't say anything...else! It's...just...too….funny!"

They laid like that for what felt like a lifetime, but was in truth only moments, heads curled together and laughter roaring out of them. They were just winding down again when another door down the hall opened and someone stuck their head out, setting them off again.

The door closed again as Lucy's neighbor huffily told them to get a room.

Eventually, it was Levy's bleary eyes and shuffling step from inside Lucy's open apartment door that got their attention. Lucy immediately breathed in sharply, suppressing her amusement with remorse as she sat up.

"Oh Levy! I'm sorry! We must have woken you up." She breathed deeply a few times, her now sore abdomen finally responding to her wishes and providing her with sufficient air.

"Hey, Cyan! What's up?" Beside her, Natsu sat up too, one thrown casually over Lucy's shoulders as he grinned up at his girlfriend's best friend. She smiled back with little genuine enthusiasm.

"Too much, _Pink._ And don't worry about it, Lu. I was having a nightmare anyway…" she turned around then, dragging her feet (and the rest of her) back into the apartment. She wore her fatigue like a cloak weighing her down. Natsu suddenly recalled Lucy saying something about the blunette in the group chat earlier and inquired with an eyebrow what was going on.

"Let's get inside. It's a long story," Lucy said wearily, understanding his eyebrow like it was her own. She shifted slightly as she prepared to haul herself up off the floor and winced as her sore muscles protested. "Fucking red-headed demon…" she mumbled under her breath.

Natsu smiled in sympathy for his girlfriend and sprang into action, feeling the burn in her muscles, but ignoring it with years of practice. He got his feet under him and got behind her, grabbing her under the arms to lift her to a standing position. However, just when he got ready to let her go to pick up his bag from the floor, she went limp, leaning back against him playfully as she fluttered her lashes.

"Carry me Natsu...my muscles hurt too much…." she whined. Natsu rolled his eyes.

"Luuuucy...I can _literally_ feel your pain, remember? And you're _fine_."

She stuck out her bottom lip in a pout as he changed his grip on her deadweight to keep her from falling yet again. She was actually pretty damn heavy for a girl. It had to be the boobs. He stared dryly down at her over her shoulder, finding it harder to resist that petulant bottom lip than he thought it would be.

Then his annoyance parted for a mischievous twinkle in his eye. "Alright, but you asked for it."

He twisted around her and hauled her over his shoulder, ignoring her squealing protests as he kept her steady with a hand on her ass, he looped his foot into his backpack and dragged it behind them as he carried her into her apartment.

Levy closed the door behind him and lifted his bag onto the kitchen counter with a more sincere looking grin on her face than before. Natsu took Lucy all the way to her couch, giving her butt a good squeeze before he dropped her unceremoniously on the cushions.

Her face was red and her pout had turned into an embarrassed frown, but her eyes sparkled with amusement. "That's NOT what I meant! What's wrong with carrying a girl like the princess she is?" she huffed, folding her arms and sticking her nose in the air.

"Pssh. Whatever. I thought you gave up the royal life, Luce, rememb-" Natsu cut himself off as he straightened up and saw the wall in front of him covered the result of Lucy's research. "What's all that?"

Lucy rolled her eyes at his short attention span and rolled onto her stomach to keep watching him approach her wall of research over the arm of the couch. She opened her mouth to explain, but Levy beat her to it.

"It's everything we know about our past lives. Lucy's been busy putting it all together." There was an undertone of pride in her voice before Levy left the living room then, heading for the small bathroom off of Lucy's bedroom.

Natsu's eyebrows went up and he whistled low, running a hand over the papers on the wall, pausing when he saw a picture of a man in front of a really beautiful antique car. One he recognized.

"Holy shit…" he whispered under his breath. He'd known that their flashbacks were to past lives and those lives had been real people, but he'd never even entertained the notion of trying to track them down. He followed the string that was clearly he and Lucy's timeline (their pictures were all the way on the right side), surprised at how many dates she had. "Geez Luce, you've been holding out on me. Have you really had this many flashbacks?"

The thought made him frown. Glancing at the timeline above theirs, he saw even more. Was everyone having more flashbacks than he was? What he figured to be Erza and Mystogan's timeline below his and Lucy's even had some papers and pictures tacked to it. And they'd _just_ gotten bonded, hadn't they? Like a few days ago?

Seeing his frown, Lucy's brows went down and she reached down to her own waist, pinching herself sharply. She hated to see him frowning. It just rubbed her the wrong way. Natsu yelped at the pinch, hand going to his side with irritated look in her direction. "What the fuck?! What was that for?!"

"Payback," Lucy said with a smirk, glad to see amusement in the curl of his lip, behind the obvious annoyance, as he narrowed his eyes and slowly, deliberately made his way back to the couch, signalling that she would regret goading him. "What are doing? Natsu…"

When he was almost there, he jumped into the air, pretending to go for a bodyslam, but instead, catching himself on his arms right above her and then dropping his full body harmlessly as dead weight on her.

"Natsuuuuu!" her strangled voice whined.

"Carry me Lucy! My muscles hurt too muuuuch! " he whined back, imitating the tone of her previous demands with eerie accuracy. Lucy blushed at how silly she must have sounded.

"Ha. Ha. Very funny," Lucy got out, still having trouble drawing a full lungful of air. He was SO FUCKING HEAVY. She squirmed, trying to push him off the couch, or roll them both off with no luck. "I can't...breathe Natsu!"

His only response was to scoot his body lower, freeing her chest to breathe as he snuggled his nose against her stomach. She immediately sucked in the flat surface further, heart speeding up. Levy was just in the other room, did he really intend to...

And then he blew a raspberry into her stomach.

"DAMMIT NATSU!"

* * *

Gray thought the date was going...ok? Well, even? Maybe?

He had met her at the fountain, complimented her outfit, and received a smile and blush in return, so all things considered, not a bad start. It all would have been a lot less nerve-wracking if Natsu hadn't bailed on Lucy's behalf from making it a double date, but luckily nothing terrible had happened yet. The problem was, nothing great had really happened either.

It just felt like they were stuck in small talk mode. They'd covered every mutual friend they had (not many), the weather (surprisingly warm for October), and the upcoming midterms (still procrastinating their asses off) all before they even finished walking to the multicultural festival Lisanna had all but shoved down Gray and Natsu's throats. Gray found himself wondering if driving the short distance would have been less awkward.

Apparently, MU had partnered with the Magnolia City Council to host the festival as a show of support for the recent waves of refugees being sent to Fiore and the surrounding countries. It was a nice idea. Magnolia itself hadn't gotten many, but the college had so many foreign exchange students that there had been more than enough interest to make it happen. Lisanna had assured them it was the perfect dating opportunity.

" _It's perfect! You guys can wander around together, holding hands so you don't lose each other in the crowd, and it has something for you to do physically in case the conversation lags! Plus, who doesn't love a festival?! Tons of different foods, meaning there has to be something you both like to eat, a double date gives you the opportunity to stick together with your dates, or easily find time to be alone, and, my piece de resistance: the added benefit of your favorite built-in wing-woman if you're failing miserably because I'm volunteering at one of the booths! Perfect, right?!" Lisanna had chirped out, eyeing up their waitress with a friendly grin and a wink as she dropped off their orders._

Taking one's hostage to lunch in apology was standard practice for a ninja kidnapping per Fairy Tail Rule #169, established Mirajane Strauss' freshman year at MU...for obvious reasons. Both sisters had seen their fair share of kidnappings over the last few years, so pretty much every guy in the house knew where they preferred to be held against their wills.

And, in this particular case, the cost of her lunch had been absolutely worth it. It was a great first date idea; there were contingencies upon contingencies built into the plan, guaranteeing at least a chance of a fun evening.

When they actually made it to the festival, that is.

He had not considered the possibility that he and his date would run out of things to say to each other before even getting there! _Fuckin' Natsu. Of all the nights to bail on me…_

"Um...sooo...it's a multicultural festival?" Her soft words brought him out of his thoughts, focusing again on the pale-haired girl next to him. "So, what's your cultural background? My family has been in Fiore for a long time, but before that they were immigrants from Switzerland."

He raised a hand to scratch the back of his neck and tried not to wince. They were going to a fucking festival about it, how had he not considered she'd ask about his background? Did he really want to get into that kind of baggage on a first date? He swallowed hard. "I'm Croatian. I immigrated to Fiore as a kid." _Refugee_ _orphan,_ he corrected in his head. His shoulders tensed as he prepared for her to somehow guess what his past entails.

"Oh wow! That's so cool! So, do you speak Croatian then?!" His shoulders relaxed. Ok, maybe it wasn't the crisis he was thinking it was. "Do your parents still speak it?"

Gray tensed up immediately again. _Out of the frying pan…_ "Um, I'm adopted actually. But Ur, the woman who adopted me, thought it was really important to remember where I came from, so she learned to speak Croatian with me. She's also part Japanese, so I took that in school for a while too. I'm not very fluent in that though." He ducked his head, pretending to be looking for uneven places in the sidewalk as they neared the area of lights and noise ahead of them where the streets were closed off.

"I bet she loved that," Yukino replied, giving him a big smile. "Do you have any siblings? I've got a sister, but we've never been what you would call...close." Her mouth twisted wryly at that, making him wonder what was being remembered behind those honey brown eyes. But she hadn't pried for details, so he didn't either.

"Ur has a daughter, Ultear. She's...well, she's unique. My only living blood relative I know of is my cousin Leon. We immigrated together. But I wouldn't say I'm really close with either of them. Natsu and Erza are more like my siblings than Ultear and Leon have ever been."

"Natsu and Erza? Wait, do you mean Erza Scarlet?!" Yukino's eyes went wide at his nod. "I've heard of her! And you're...friends?"

Gray couldn't help but laugh at the stricken look on her face. "More like she's the older sister I couldn't shake even if I wanted to. And I guess that would make Natsu like my little brother, though we're actually the same age. We're roommates at Fairy Tail now, but we've known each other since we were kids." _And have all gone through more shit than any normal person should._

"Oh! The fraternity? That must be fun! I've thought about joining one of the sororities, but figured I should get used to living on my own and passing my classes before taking anything else on," she wrinkled her nose up at him with a smile. "I think living in a house full of women would be kind of distracting."

Gray couldn't disagree. Sororities always seemed like drama factories to him.

They reached the entrance to the festival area then, Gray handing over the tickets he'd bought through Lisanna and following his date into the area surrounded by temporary plastic orange fencing. It was a lot more crowded than he'd thought it'd be.

"Wow, there's so much to do! Where do you want to start?" Her eyes roamed the crowds and she stepped a little closer to Gray.

His heart did a little leap toward his throat as her arm brushed his. Steeling himself with an internal eye roll (because dammit, he wasn't some fucking virgin getting flustered over touching a girl), he grabbed her hand and gestured toward the sparcer lines around the food booths. "Let's start with the food. It's still early, so maybe they won't be as busy."

She nodded readily and clasped his hand more firmly. "Alright, let's go!"

Together they set off into the mass of people, hand-in-hand.

Yeah, not bad at all for a first date.

* * *

Erza stared down at the small rubber tote in front of her with a frown. "That's it?"

"That's it." Mystogan stared up at Erza, face stoic. He resettled himself on his desk chair and rested an ankle across his other knee casually.

"Is it safe to touch it?"

"Yeah. Just don't shake it or anything. I lost ten years off my life just getting it in here without killing anyone."

Carefully, Erza pulled back the lid of the box on his desk, sharply inhaling when she saw the small bottle surrounded by neat layers of packing material. "Well...that's…"

"Clinical?" Mystogan supplied, remembering his first thoughts at viewing the explosive contents of his brother's 'gift'.

"Yeah. You'd think it was from a lab or something instead of delivered by a drug dealer." She leaned in a little closer and Mystogan almost had a heart attack. Thankfully, she didn't touch the bottle.

"He deals in morphine and pharmaceutical stuff mostly I think. And delicate explosives. Apparently." Leave it to his brother to indoctrinate the only crossover volatile chemical and drug dealer in Magnolia to his weird little cult of followers. How the fuck did anyone get into that line of work in the first place?

"Ah, well, that makes sense then." Silence fell around them again as she carefully put the bottle back and Mystogan replaced the lid of the box. The conversation had been a bit sparse since their discussion on the picnic tables. He gritted his teeth instead of repeating the question she still hadn't satisfactorily answered. And wouldn't answer. _Dammit Erza, what did he tell you?_

She had flat out refused to tell him. Which immediately got under his skin, though his temper wasn't as quick to spark as hers had been. He was used to Jellal's bullshit. But Erza wasn't. And _something_ his bastard of a brother had said to her had been important enough that she was stubbornly refusing to discuss it.

"Erza," he started.

"Stop asking Mystogan. It's really not important," she cut him off harshly. He jumped to his feet at that.

"Then it shouldn't matter if I know! Could you _be_ anymore hypocritical right now? Whatever he told you, he's not the kid you used to know, ok? He's manipulative, and selfish, and _cruel_. And…" he took a deep breath before continuing, "I'm scared shitless that he'll drive us apart before I even know what's happening." As her eyes met his, he dropped the facade he wore most of the time and let his desperation show. His eyes pleaded with her to reconsider.

Erza stifled a gasp at the unexpected amount of raw feeling in his features.

She was being foolish. And hypocritical. She knew that, deep down. But part of her still stubbornly wanted to keep her conversation with her childhood comrade to herself. It had been so...intimate. It felt like a weakness she didn't want to reveal. Like she'd made a mistake she couldn't pinpoint. But that wasn't fair to Mystogan either. She had enough shame to admit that.

They stood toe-to-toe, not touching, but feeling each other's heat. Carefully, her hand came up and caressed his cheek, the blunette closing his eyes at the sensation for a moment. He was so different from everyone else she knew. Even her strongest friends had such weakness in them, whether it was emotionally, or psychologically, or even physically. All weaknesses they had learned over years of practice to hide. She had vowed long ago not to let the world take advantage of their weaknesses; to protect them and help them learn to protect themselves. But Mystogan was the first person in a long time who made her feel like the weak one. And that it was ok to be weak for a while, because he had her back. Even in his raw moments, he knew what he wanted and refused to settle for less. They had that in common.

His eyes snapped open, like he could sense what she was thinking and his resolve was strengthened by it. Before she knew is, she heard herself telling him everything.

"He apologized. That's it. Nothing significant or important. He asked if I loved you, and then he said he was sorry and I don't know why I didn't just tell you. Except, it felt...personal and-"

"What did you say in response?" Mystogan cut her off, brows furrowed.

"What? When he apologized? Nothing, he hung up the…" she trailed off as he shook his head.

"No. When he asked you about loving me, what did you say?"

"I...I asked him why…and he said 'I see, that's interesting'. Then he apologized and wouldn't tell me why. And that was it. See? Unimportant!"

Mystogan pulled away from her then, sitting back down in his chair. What the hell was his brother playing at? Why did it matter if she loved him or not? How did that make any difference to anyone but himself? How would that make a difference in this stupid plan of his brother's?

"Thank you for telling me," he muttered, preoccupied with trying to figure out his twin's twisted logic. Why had that question merited arranging a phone call from prison? Especially when he knew he could easily communicate through their skin instead?

It felt like Mystogan was playing a game of chess where his opponent's pieces were invisible. He was second guessing every move he made, waiting for Jellal's queen to come out of nowhere and win with a single swift attack. They were at a distinct disadvantage, and Jellal knew it. Was the phone call just psychological warfare? Getting into Mystogan's head through Erza? Or...Erza's through him? "Erza, you're right. It doesn't matter. I'm sorry for getting worked up about it." He stood up quickly and stared straight into her eyes.

His words surprised her. "Um, ok...I'm sorry too...for not just telling you when you asked. Will you forgive me?"

He smiled at her as she straightened her spine and held out a hand. Like they were going to shake on their mutual forgiveness of each other.

It was so ridiculous it was cute.

Instead of taking the offered hand, he leaned down and kissed her. It was sweet, and simple, and really nothing special as far as kisses went, but it took everything he had to pull away from her again. Her eyes fluttered open slowly as he watched, surprised to see her cheeks were a shade pinker than they were before. "Only if you forgive me," he murmured, leaning in to brush the tip of his nose against hers. He could feel her warm breath meeting his and heating up the small amount of air between them.

Erza leaned forward and kissed him back, using a little more force than he had, but pulling away just as quickly to say, "Then you're forgiven." Their eyes met for an instant and then she had Mystogan up against the wall, pressing her body into his and invading his mouth. His brain shut down completely, focused on nothing but the intoxicating taste of his girlfriend's tongue. Well, that and one simple question: why the fuck had they waited so long?

She bit at his lip harshly, pulling away to run her tongue over the identical bruised swelling now gracing her own lip, as she pulled her shirt off over her head. He followed suit at a demanding look from her and they came back together, hands running everywhere at once in their heated frenzy.

Her skin was like heaven, better than he could have dreamt. Every inch of her was taut and flushed, the blood flowing under her exposed flesh a visual cue that she was as eager as he was. She kissed down his jaw to his neck, one hand sliding just under the back waistband of his jeans, using the leverage to pull herself closer. His hips bucked into her in response and he groaned at the feeling of her pressed against the growing hard-on making his jeans less comfortable by the second. She shimmied her hips confidently against him again with a smile and he bit back a groan. He should have known she'd be a tease.

He took a moment to catch his breath, holding her body closer against his and staring down the practically glowing expanse of skin pressed against him. His fingers slid over her back, stopping at her bra clasp to pop it open. Pausing infinitesimally to see how she would respond, he was thrilled that she sucked his earlobe into her mouth and ran her teeth over the sensitive flesh.

The feeling of her boyfriend's hand sliding unimpeded down the smooth plane of Erza's back was exhilarating. She shimmied out of her bra straps without letting go of his ear, but pulled away a moment later to let the restricting garment fall to the floor, immediately pressing her bare skin against Mystogan's again with a happy sigh when it was gone. She smiled slyly at the glazed aspect of his eyes as they roamed her body, following the motion with his hands.

Their lips met in a lazy parody of the rush from only a moment before; the frantic clawing at each other's clothes seeming less necessary when they both knew what the eventual outcome would be. With teasing slowness, Mystogan watched Erza pull away from him, seductively unzipping her jeans and sliding them down her hips as she backed towards his beautiful, _beautiful_ bed. Because that bed (his pride and joy) had honestly never looked so wonderful in Mystogan's whole fucking life as it did with the prospect of a naked Erza Scarlet spread across it.

In a daze he shucked his own jeans and followed her, mesmerized by the realization that his girlfriend hadn't been wearing underwear for the gods-only-knew how long. The week? The month? The entire time he'd known her? The thought of her walking around bare beneath her clothes aroused him like nothing else. And then there was her golden _skin._ Every inch of her was evenly tanned, from her trim ankles to her freckled breasts. I reminded him of their first real conversation: the game of twenty questions. _Thank the gods for nude beaches._

He stalked after her, barely noticing his own nudity as he bent to kiss her neck, then her chest and on to her stomach, dropping to his knees to pay homage to his newfound goddess the best way he knew how.

The heat of Mystogan's mouth traveling down her body had her holding her breath in anticipation. No one had ever... _oh gods, holy Aphrodite, that felt amazing!..._ no one had ever... _taken the initiative_ like he did. His tongue swirled where no tongue had swirled before and her legs shook. Firm hands coaxed her back onto his bed, lifting her legs over his broad shoulders as his fingers joined in on the action. There could be no mistaking the fact that he _definitely_ knew what he was doing. Erza was vaguely aware of pleasured moans falling from her lips, but couldn't find it in her to be embarrassed, because the next instant he was _sucking_ and she losing control in the best way possible. Her fingers clenched, her legs shook, and her muscles spasmed, but he persevered, drawing out the experience as long as he could. When she finally stilled, self-awareness reminding her that he still had a front row view to certain parts of her, she grabbed fistfuls of his disheveled blue hair and dragged his surprised and gleeful face up for a kiss. The taste she could have done without, but found her urge to express her appreciation more than enough motivation to ignore it. Plus, she wanted more.

Her hand slid down his chest and found the hard proof that he wanted it just as much as she did. With a sly smile, she turned the tables, flipping him onto his back. Like everything else in her life, Erza had fully dedicated herself to diligent training at the art of seduction, so when she slid down his body, raking her nails lightly down his chest, her eyes never left his, and they promised an experience he would never forget.

And, as she ran her tongue up his hardened length without breaking eye contact, Mystogan took her at her word. Because watching the prideful, confident woman in front of him _fucking servicing him with her mouth_ was a sight he never thought he'd see, and he had no intention of ever forgetting it. Mystogan couldn't contain the awestruck grin spreading over his face as he looked down at her.

Then she took him into her mouth, still somehow smirking up at him, and he felt dizzy, a moan getting strangled in his throat on the way out. "Fuck, that's amazing," he finally managed to get out before losing the ability to think because she hummed around him in response.

She took her sweet time, dedicating herself completely to the task. Each swirl of her tongue coaxed him up another stair towards heaven. Each well placed suck jumped three. So when she finally found a rhythm, bobbing her head as he watched himself entering and leaving her, it took everything he had to keep from coming immediately like he was sixteen again and getting his first handjob in the back of his first shitty car. Because _damn_ she was good at this.

Finally, he felt his control slipping, his breath coming in short controlled pants to make it to the end of the excruciatingly sweet marathon they were running together. "I'm...gonna…" he forced out, prompting her, inexplicably to pull herself away and lick her lips. To his shame, a whimper left him the same time her lips did.

"Condom?" she panted, giving him a slow stroke or two to keep him where she wanted him. To his surprise, he found her eyes just as fevered as his and a brilliant flush to her skin.

It took him a second or two to process what she'd said as her glorious fucking hand kept distracting him, but when he did, it made him freeze, hands clenching on her arms harder than he intended.

"Shit."

Erza immediately stopped what she was doing with an critical look. "Seriously?"

He closed his eyes and prayed for divine intervention. "Yeah. _Fuck._ Any that I had got stolen during the Moon Drip party, and I haven't gotten around to, uh, restocking." His head fell against her shoulder in utter defeat. And then he did it again, banging his head against her shoulder repeatedly as he continued to pray for but a single condom to materialize in front of them.

Then his mind worked through the despair and aroused fog and came up with a solution.

"Hold on." He hopped off the bed. "Don't move. Just stay, right there. Ok?" He backed away as though Erza were a scared animal ready to make a break for it any moment. She couldn't help but laugh.

"I'm not moving. Just hurry up with whatever you're doing!" She smiled radiantly, her long red hair falling over her shoulder as she propped herself up. He paused in his backwards journey across the room because he just couldn't help raking his gaze over her again.

"You know you're fucking gorgeous, right?"

"Seriously, if we're doing this right now, you've got about thirty seconds to make it happen."

With the clock running, Mystogan wasted no more time darting through the door to his bathroom and stinking his head through the adjoining door to Laxus' room. The blonde looked up from his desk, pulling one side of his headphones off as he stared at the blunette, who he could see was at least naked from the waist up.

"Laxus," he began.

"What could you possibly be doing talking to me, while I know for a fact you have a very willing and probably naked woman in your room waiting for you?" he asked irritably.

Mystogan tried not to think about the fact his neighbor knew exactly what was happening in his room and cut right to the chase. "For the love of all that is holy, spot me a condom right now, and I will clean our bathroom for the next month."

Laxus smirked and pulled a box out of his desk drawer and threw it at the blunette. "Deal. Shut all the doors on your way out."

Mystogan disappeared triumphantly around the corner, box in hand as the blond moved to put his headphones back on again.

He didn't take them off for the next few hours. Whoever Mystogan had in there had some serious stamina.

* * *

Gajeel stepped through the door at Metalicana's and sucked in a deep breath of stale, funky gym air and chemical cleaner. It was good to be home, gym stank and all.

"Lily! Get your ass down here and fight me!" he bellowed out at the top of his lungs, catching the attention of every fighter in the place, and the grins of those who knew him. Before anyone could utter more than a 'Hey' or 'Welcome back', the current owner of the establishment had emerged from the office and started trotting his way down the stairs to meet his favorite sparring partner halfway across the floor.

"Gajeel! Was that a challenge I heard?" he said calmly, his tone belied by the twinkle in his eye.

"Well, that's what I was thinking, but you're looking like such an old man these days, I'd feel bad to hit ya," Gajeel ducked the right hook Lily sent his way immediately following up with a shadowboxed one-two to the gut.

"I'm sure I could still give you a run for your money...after your recent lack of discipline, but I'm sure there are a few people here who could teach that tongue the manners I never could. Do the Wonder Twins know you're back?"

Gajeel chuckled at Lily's latest nickname for his friends. "What, in the form of a match and a tray of ice cubes? Yeah. Natsu should be here soon, but Gray's got a date." At the skeptical look from Lily he elaborated. "A _real_ one, apparently."

Lily's eyebrows inched further up his shiny, dark-chocolate-colored scalp at the implications as he snorted. "What, like he'll buy her dinner first?"

"Who fucking knows? He thought it was important enough not to bail on though." Gajeel dropped his bag on a random bench and grabbed a jump-rope off one of the hooks on the wall.

"Hmm. Well, good for him. About time he stopped behaving like a child and grew a pair," Lily mused as he watched Gajeel warm-up.

"Psh, no kidding."

A few minutes later, the gym door flew open as a grinning pinkette spun through the door, lost in his thoughts. He took long strides around other fighters, hardly noticing as some reached out fists to bump or hands to slap. Gajeel raised an eyebrow at the goofy look on his face.

"What the fuck have you been doing?" he barked, finally catching Natsu's full attention. "Or should I say who?"

"Not much," Natsu responded, ignoring the second half of the question. "Just hanging out with my perfect, hot-as-fuck, girlfriend. Oh, and yours too." He wiggled his eyebrows suggestively in a way that had Lily doubled over laughing and Gajeel glaring at him. "Made it so much easier to sit through Totomaru-the-Douche's posturing asshattery."

"You gonna fucking warm up or can I just start hitting ya now?" the noirette growled, tossing his jump-rope aside and starting to stretch out his arms.

"I'm good. I ran from campus," Natsu explained with a shrug, not even breathing hard. He pulled off his jacket and his t-shirt, already sporting loose basketball shorts. Gajeel did the same, staring down the pinkette.

Outside the front windows two girls walking by happened to glance over and simultaneously face-planted on the sidewalk as they tripped all over themselves. Neither topless male noticed, though a few of the other gym patrons did.

"Alright, well hurry the fuck up then, there's a line waiting to get a round in with Black Steel," Erik commented apathetically as he leaned against a padded pillar close to the ring.

"Cobra," Natsu acknowledged with a nod. "What's new with you?"

"Working at Black Steel with Gaj at the moment. You? Still blowing shit up?" he returned smoothly.

"You know it! 'Cept now I'm paying them to teach me how to make it look pretty while I do," he said with a grin.

Gajeel raised a brow at him. "Don't you mean your new sugar mama's paying for it?" he baited the pinkette as he stepped into the ring.

Natsu's eyes flashed with something beneath the humor, but it was gone before he finished ducking into the ring. "Because you can fucking talk. Like a motorcycle is a _perfectly normal_ gift between friends," he said, with an eye roll.

Gajeel grinned back at him. "You're just jealous that your girlfriend and I have that level of friendship in the first place."

Leaning forward, Natsu spoke in an undertone only Gajeel could hear. "You just haven't thought it through. How you gonna hit this mug knowing your _friend's_ pretty face is getting hit at the same time?" Natsu strapped on his gloves and framed his face with his gloves.

Gajeel shrugged. "I saw her text message., She's a big girl who can take care of herself and she knows what she agreed to." He finished strapping on his second glove too and took his bite guard from Erik, while Lily handed one to Natsu. Then both men settled padded headgear more comfortably over their ears. For once, neither of them argued to go without. It was bad enough the girls would be putting up with their hits in unpadded areas.

By now, a crowd had gathered around the ring. Those who had seen the pair fight before were grinning in expectation. The rest were happy to take a break to see what Metalicana's infamous son could do.

"You boys ready?" Lily asked, one hand ready to strike the bell on the wall.

"Oh shit, one sec!" Natsu exclaimed after scrambling to remove his mouth guard. Then he stood there, closing his eyes for a second, an oddly peaceful smile coming over his face. His mouth moved as he whispered something no one else could hear. Then he waited for another beat.

"What's he doing?" someone muttered.

"Who fucking knows?" someone else responded as he eyed the size of the pinkette's opponent, at least half a head taller and torso covered in ink. He shivered as the panther across the huge man's shoulders seemed to follow him with its eyes. "Praying? I would be…"

Gajeel questioned Natsu with skeptical eyes before he figured out what he was doing. Shit, how was he fucking talking to her? When had that become a thing?

Unfortunately, he didn't have time to find out, because Natsu had gotten whatever response from Lucy he was waiting for. He popped his guard back in and nodded at Lily. Gajeel did the same.

The heavyweight boxer/gym owner struck the bell and the match began.

* * *

Lucy sat on her couch with her eyes scrunched closed in a wince and her shoulders hunched. Beside her, Levy wasn't much better, her leg bouncing at an alarming speed as she flinched every few seconds.

"Why did we agree to this again?" Levy asked, her hands curled into compact little fists.

"Because we love them?" Lucy responded awkwardly, trying to remember that the bulky shape she felt in her mouth wasn't really there. "What are _you_ worried about? You probably won't even feel it." She pouted for a second before she felt the wind over her sweaty face as something whooshed past Natsu's head. "Eeek!" She ducked instinctively (and uselessly) and pulled a blanket over her head. She felt Natsu take another couple of hits on his forearms, though thankfully those weren't that painful. If he could stick to that, she might escape without completely ruining her ability to wear sleeveless shirts for the season. Spousal Abuse Barbie was not a good look.

"Yeah, but it could come back at any time! The ink still transferred and I totally felt him run into the corner of a counter or something at work yesterday, so who fucking _knows_ anymore?!" she wailed, adding biting her lip to the list of fidgets she was coordinating throughout her body. She turned her face back to the open book on her lap and proceeded to stare blindly at it as her fingers folded and unfolded the corner of a page. Lucy half expected to see her start rubbing her stomach and patting her head at any minute.

"It wouldn't be so bad if we could just figure out when it was gonna happen. Then it wouldn't be much worse than sparring, you know? It's the total lack of warning that's driving me nuts!" Lucy rambled, ducking the feeling of a fist past her face again.

"Speak for yourself! It all sounds terrible to me!"

Lucy felt Natsu's adrenaline spike and she shot up from the couch as her legs responded with fervor. It took her a minute to figure out why she was even standing and growled out her frustration. "There has GOT to be a better way to do this!" she exclaimed, hopping back and forth between her feet and shaking her hands to try and get rid of the feeling that she should be fighting something. Or running away. If she just _knew_ when it was coming… "Wait!"

"What?" Levy's voice was muffled as she stuck her head between her shaking knees and tried not to throw up. The anxiety was excruciating. She quickly prayed for a quick and painless death. Because pain was definitely not her thing.

"What if I do that thing that Natsu does all the time?"

"What, feel you up and start making out with yourself somewhere inappropriate?"

"No! Obviously not. I meant, like...get in his head! Or, maybe, even his eyes! Then I would at least know what to expect instead of this terrib- OW! DAMMIT NATSU!" Her hand flew up to her shoulder, startled by the pain blossoming from the spot. "Son of a BITCH that HURT!"

After rubbing the pain away to a dull ache (to the sympathetic sounds of Levy gagging in fear), she closed her eyes and tried to concentrate on Natsu. It was a good plan. It would _totally_ work.

She hoped.

Lucy started with his heartbeat: quick and fluttery in her chest. Then his breathing: deep, even, and burning in her throat. She could feel the bounce of his feet under him, and his arms raised in front of him. Without realizing it, Lucy mimicked what she felt, letting her muscles guide her through his motions. The movements were familiar, similar to what she learned in her defense training, but...heavier somehow, maybe?

Still, no matter how hard she tried, when she opened her eyes all she saw was her living room. So she gave up on that for the time being and focused internally, letting every synapse and motion flow between them with her eyes closed.

Then, _something_ clicked into place. Something transcendent and important.

Lucy breathed simultaneously with Natsu, releasing the breath as they both shot forward sharply and back again. She still couldn't see Gajeel, but with her eyes closed she could picture him, feel his presence near her. In her mind, he felt cool and hard, almost metallic. Unbreakable, but also...somehow...gleeful? His joy was faint though, like the faded smell of cleaning products that lingered on the maids at the Heartfilia Hotels. Just a whiff of something expected to back up the impression.

They dodged a hit from Natsu's opponent and was immediately consumed by the sensations surrounding her soulmate _._ If Gajeel's presence was a glint of moonlight, Natsu was the sun. Every move of their muscles, every minor adjustment and deft block, sent hot flames of happiness surging through them. And Gajeel's glee was nothing compared to the incredible joy warming his heart. The level of bliss radiating from him stole her breath.

Back in her apartment, Lucy's face broke out into a huge grin, moving in perfect harmony with the pink-haired boxer. Their feet danced together on the mat, their shoulders rolled, their fingers clenched, surrounded by padding and sweat, and their eyes glinted with intention. In that moment, her reckless, beautiful, pyromaniac of a soulmate was her entire world.

Until, in a flash, she felt a confident wave of triumph coming from Gajeel (somehow?) and instinctively reacted, twisting their bodies and springing away as his glove slid past Natsu's ribs, chafing his skin on its velcro strap as it went by. Natsu took control again and immediately followed with two punches to Gajeel's ribs, connecting solidly. Neither of them knew who instigated the next punch, a shoulder shot, or who knew to brace against a fierce blow to their right arm. Stepping back, they shook out the arm in question. Gajeel hit like a hammer.

Then, somewhere close by, Lucy heard a faint noise and slipped out of synchronization for an instant.

A few blocks away, Natsu stumbled a bit at the sudden sense of loss, disoriented by a loneliness he wasn't expecting. But, Lucy was back almost immediately, making Natsu back away and pause as he realized there was more involved in his movements than he had been actively noticing.

Levy (while all this was going on in Lucy's head) had finally looked up from her lap and was watching, distracted from her own worries, as her friend lightly bounced back and forth on her bare toes. Her eyes were closed as she circled an invisible enemy. Levy had long since pulled the small coffee table out of her way after a few close calls with her dainty shins.

It was fascinating to see her friend moving purely on instinct. She wondered if she and Gajeel would ever get to that level of synchronization. Or if they even wanted to. She thought about pulling out her phone and filming it for posterity, but in the space of a moment, it became less fascinating and more painful as Lucy twisted gracefully and busted out two quick punches before the blunette realized what was happening.

Pain blossomed across her ribs, stealing her breath away. Her eyes immediately teared up as she shivered in response to the pain. "Ow," she squeaked out. When she looked up, Lucy didn't seem to have noticed what happened. She still moved smoothly, her eyes closed with a huge, unfamiliar, almost predatory grin on her face. Natsu's grin.

Levy saw Natsu get in another hit at the same time the pain hit her shoulder. Doing the only thing she could think of, she reached over and pinched her own forearm as hard as she could, praying that Gajeel would feel, understand, and...hell, she didn't know, stop? Run the fuck away or something? Levy's brain did not function logically under the influence of the abundance of messages her pain receptors were channeling to it.

Thankfully, he seemed to get the message and did...something. Granted, not what she was expecting. As suddenly as the hits had landed, the pain was gone. It was as though the past few minutes had never happened. The pain was _completely_ gone, like it was turned off with a switch! She looked up in surprise, hands running diagnostically over her previously tender abdomen, to see Lucy still very much engrossed in Natsu's movements. So she could assume the game (was that even the right term? Set? Match? Whatever. Sports were not her forte) was still on. So...did Gajeel...what?...switch off the link somehow or something? Could he even do that? Was it up to _him_ what she felt or didn't, or could she do it too?

"What the hell…?" Levy muttered to herself, looking down at arms that had been red and inflamed only a minute before, but were pale and cool again.

"Lev?" Lucy's breathless question distracted the blunette enough to notice her friend frowning down at her, body still moving as though on its own. "You ok?"

"Yeah. Better than ok, actually," she replied, beyond relieved. "Gajeel did something! I can't feel the hits at all now!"

Natsu was distracted for a split second as he heard Lucy speaking to someone. Which gave Gajeel an opening.

"See? Told you. You've got nothing to worry abo-son of a BITCH, NATSU!" She stopped moving as her hand came up to cup her cheekbone. "It's called ducking you idiot!"

On the other end of their bond, Natsu winced behind his mouth guard. Lucy was going to give him hell for getting hit later. Especially in the face. But his stubborn streak won out.

 _Like I'm not fucking trying? I can't dodge everything, Luce!_

Lucy froze, slammed out of her connection with Natsu in shock. On instinct, she spun around searching the mostly empty room, but seeing only Levy.

But...it had sounded like he was _right next to her._ Or, somehow, even closer than that.

 _His words were so clear..._

"Natsu?" she tried hesitantly with no response. She tried louder, but also got nothing back. With furrowed eyebrows, she concentrated on matching him again, shaking out her arms at the dull ache from moving them around so much. They had actually been feeling a little better as her muscles warmed up, but the number of hits Natsu had taken on his fists and forearms were finally taking their toll.

Wearily, she raised her fists and zeroed in on Natsu's heartbeat. She fell into it almost instantly, the resistance she'd had to fight through only moments before completely gone, replaced by an overwhelming explosion of what she could only think of as... _feelings_.

She gasped in air, reeling as her own tiny pool of confusion was drowned out by elation, pride, and just the slightest hint of remorse, tinged dark around the edges by sadness and angry memories. Emotions that were not her own swamped her. Lucy's eyelids clamped down and she clutched her head in her hands in a vain effort to lessen the pressure. Vaguely, she felt Natsu's body keep moving in familiar patterns. He didn't seem to feel it. Or realize that she was feeling it even.

Levy leapt toward her, eyes wide at the pain on her friend's face. "Lu? Lucy?! Are you ok? Talk to me! LU!"

"I…" she gasped. "I...I can't..." she ended in a confused whisper. He was always the one with all the weird stalker-y body-bonding breakthroughs, right? Was he causing this? Could he be if he didn't seem to know it was happening?

"Natsu?" she whispered in fear, with just a little bit of awe thrown in.

The moment her quiet voice reached him, the ocean of feeling inside of her shifted to include concern, panic and a veritable tidal wave of adoration that washed away everything else. She gasped again, releasing her head and relaxing as she found refuge in the warmth and safety of what was maybe the purest thing she'd ever felt: _love._ But more powerful than any love she'd ever felt. It fizzled at her nerve endings, heating her up and bubbling up her throat like laughter.

 _Natsu? This is all just...you?_ she thought, faintly aware of Levy's arm supporting her shoulders as she swayed on her knees. He was reacting to something...was it just her voice? Or…

Something from their first phone conversation shifted conveniently to the front of her mind and she was thrown into a flashback.

" _ **Wait, sorry, can you just back up a minute? Put that thought on pause. And, uh...say it again?" He had almost sounded sheepish. She'd never heard him like that before. He was always so...sure of himself. Reckless, but confident..what was the word she was looking for? Cocky. Definitely cocky. But he was never...sheepish.**_

" _ **Say what again? That you're a great fighter? Really? I mean you are almost freakishly good, but this hardly seems like the time-"**_

" _ **No, uh, not that. Though..freakishly good? Really? Wait, shit! No! I meant the other thing. Where you..you know...uh...said my name?"**_

 _ **Lucy had to smile. God that was cute. She cleared her throat and tried to make her voice sound more...fuck, she didn't know...mature? Deep? Feminine?**_

" _ **Natsu." His name started on the tip of her tongue, barely existing before hissing through her puckered lips like an airborne kiss...dissipating instantly. Lucy could hear his breath catch.**_

" _ **Fuck," he breathed, just loud enough for her to catch before he cleared his throat. Then he cleared his throat again and went on in a dazed tone at his previous volume. "I mean, thanks, but just...shit. That does really weird things to my stomach."**_

Lucy gasped. This. All this _magnificent_ emotion was just because she'd said his name? How did he have the capacity to _feel_ that much? Especially with what he'd been through? Was this even all him? Or was the bond amplifying it all somehow?

 _Natsu...is this all just...you?_

Then she heard a voice echo in her head and she sat up stock still, drawing herself to a height and rigidity Miss Aquarius would have approved of. Because she hadn't voiced a word.

 _Is that Luce? Is what me?_

For one dizzying instant, it felt like she was in free-fall, nothing solid under her feet, and nothing left to ground her to reality. Then she was standing across from Gajeel, her hearing muffled by something and a piece of hard plastic in her mouth. The shock of the change in venue, and the weird heavy feeling of her body had her frozen and swaying on the spot.

Gajeel took the opening with his favorite match finishing shot.

* * *

Natsu swayed in time with her as he suddenly found himself in Lucy's apartment, eye to eye with Levy. She was saying something to him.

"Lu? Are you okay?! Lucy!"

Before he had the chance to ask why Levy was calling him Lucy, something hit his head with what felt like a steel piston.

And then everything went black.

* * *

 **So...remember when I said this arc would focus on Mystogan and Erza and Jellal? Yeah, I'm not gonna stand by that apparently. Because Nalu just got all up in that chapter and took over. Lets just say, this chapter ended a little differently before my beta got a hold of it and we brainstormed what crazy shit I can do from here on out. Not gonna lie, I'm excited. Stay tuned! I AM planning on getting the next chapter out in a week. It will be shorter, but it will be done, goddamnit!**

 **THINGS THAT HAPPENED AND WHAT THE FUCK THEY ARE**

 **Dead Week-** a term used in the United States for the week before finals, or sometimes, midterms. All professors are required not to give homework so their students have time to study and rest before their tests.

 **Ghost of Christmas Future-** on the rare chance there's anyone who doesn't get this, it's a reference to Charles Dickens' A Christmas Carol. Which happens to be one of my least favorite pieces of literature. Of all time. Blech.

 **Tsundere-** I'm sure most of you know this, but a Japanese term for a character development process that describes a person who is initially cold and even hostile towards another person before gradually showing a warmer side over time. Just couldn't help poking fun at our in-canon favorite tsundere...or second favorite if Gray's your particular flavor...hehe

 **Andarta** -In Celtic polytheism, Andarta was a warrior goddess worshipped in southern Gaul. Inscriptions to her have been found in southern France and in Bern, Switzerland. (courtesy of Wikipedia because I'm feeling lazy…) I really liked the idea of using a warrior god worshipped in Gaul, since I picture Fiore and France sharing a border in my crazy mashed-up world, so I went hunting!

 **The power of Christ compels you!-** a phrase made famous in the movie, The Exorcist. Which I definitely haven't watched or I would still be awake. I seriously can't do scary shit.

 **RoboCop-** Dear GOD why haven't I used this reference for Erza yet?! I haven't, have I? Because a half robot cop intent on justice seems pretty fitting doesn't it? If you haven't watched this movie (RoboCop...in case you've been living under a rock...or avoiding terrible 80s movies…), or spent a significant amount of time in Detroit, then none of this will make sense to you. Go educate yourself. And then roll your eyes at the ridiculousness. Actually, watch Escape from New York first, then RoboCop will seem like a logical film.

 **Your lack of faith is disturbing bunny girl.-** Obviously a play off Star Wars. A New Hope, to be specific. Not to be confused with The Force Awakens, which has the same plot with slightly different and more racial diverse characters.

 **James-Bonded?-** someone slap me. Did I really use that? Yep..yep, that actually happened. *hangs head in shame* I'm clearly super not well in the head. Or...just the right amount of not well….hmmm…

 **Foucault-** referring to famous French historian (and philosopher) Michel Foucault. Since I picture Fiore near France, he would be a particular historian that both Lucy and Levy would know and revere.

 **The Wonder Twins-** ok, here's where I start to feel old. The Wonder Twins are a couple of old school cartoon superheroes, a brother and sister, who gain power through their rings that allows them to transform when activated together. And they always saved the day with ridiculous transformations. For example, they would stretch out their hands with the rings put them together and say something like, "Wonder Twins Activate! In the form of a bucket, and water!" I shit you not, that is an actual transformation from the show. So, seeing Natsu and Gray as the Wonder Twins in the form of matches and ice cubes tickled me in a nostalgic silly place.

 **And, one final note, YES, I freaking wrote Marinette into this story. She goes to MU now. Don't question it. I told you, it's really dark down here in this hole! And it's taking everything I've got not to start writing an ML fic, because SHIT that fandom is addicting, so instead of pushing this story even further off deadline, I'm throwing them in. Now, where will Adrien turn up I wonder? hehe.**


	44. Bombing Runs and Sword Dances Part 1

**Ok, first off, GUEST! YOU! The one (or ones) that left me all the amazing reviews!** _ **Please**_ **sign in or tell me your username if you have one, because we seriously need to be friends, and I would love to respond to your messages! Thanks!**

 **Second, did I completely manipulate the plot of this story in order to make the chapter title I stole from the manga (like all the other ones) work? Yes. Yes I did. It's a sickness. I know. Judge me. Judge me hard.**

 **And third, yeah, it's a two parter. I know I keep responding to reviews that things will be explained next chapter and not delivering...but no matter how hard I tried, I just COULDN'T quite get the group meeting in this one. Again. But that's basically all the whole next chapter will cover so...shit! I jinxed myself again! DAMMIT!**

 **EDIT: Thanks to Ki, who clarified the Polynesian dancing terminology for me! I did workshops in both when I visited Hawaii and the Polynesian culture center, but it has been years, so I appreciate your help! It has definitely been corrected! And it's totally awesome that you do that, you must have super hips, that shit is HARD!**

 **Now, enough nonsense. Let's read some shit that isn't me losing my rational mind through my fingertips...or is it?**

* * *

 _A little earlier…_

Gray was starting to think Yukino was driving him crazy on purpose.

Only minutes before she had leaned over the booth selling Greek evil eye charms and little blue and white flags, back arched, smiling a megawatt smile at the girl in front of her and rolling her shoulders back just that little bit (making her chest shout loud and clear, "Hey! I'm here! Admire me!") In consequence, he hadn't been able to take his eyes off of her as she and the girl in the booth talked animatedly about the origins of the symbol and she agreed to buy a couple of the glass ornaments, one of which she immediately clipped into her hair. ('Because it couldn't hurt to have something watching my back!'...Seriously, he couldn't make up the hokey shit that came out of her mouth).

But...at the same time, it looked so natural on her. Was she really just that excited to be at the festival? Because she wasn't giving _him_ any blatant signals that he should sweep her off to a (semi)private place and pipe her eclair (ok, yeah, her corny comments were getting to him, and there was a Patisserie booth nearby, shutthefuckup). Before he knew it, his body was already going through the motions of seducing her: walking just a little too close, looking for secluded areas in shadow where it would be easy to forget themselves for a while, and casually touching her on her shoulder, waist, and back. Standing close, his height gave him the perfect view down her low-cut top, and it would be so easy to pull her close and...

 _DAMMIT, the whole point of this is NOT to keep behaving like a dog in heat!_ Gray straightened abruptly and stepped with a slightly longer stride than he had been to put some distance between them.

He scrambled for something normal to talk about that wasn't 'Let's get out of here and fuck the night away' and landed in relief on a safe topic. "So...a friend of mine is working a booth here. Lisanna Strauss actually, the one you look so much like."

"Oh! Really?! I would love to meet her! Which booth is she working at?" Yukino turned her sweet gaze up at him with genuine curiosity. Fuck. Why did he have to have such a thing for brown eyes?

"At the very least I'm obligated to meet my doppelgänger while I stroll down the Fuß _gänger_ platz, don't you think?" She had a hell of a lot of power in those chocolate peepers if she wanted to use it. He struggled to look incredulously down at her, just barely resisting the draw of her stare by focusing on her terrible jokes instead. A tall attractive blond guy walked past and snickered, catching their attention momentarily, but he was gone before they saw who it was. Gray just rolled his eyes at her words and whoever thought they were actually funny.

"Did you really just make a _pun_ in German?" That was a whole new level of dorky. He suddenly understood why she liked Levy so much.

She just put on a secretive little smile and shrugged as she danced away, turning with a bounce in her step. "It's my new favorite word from German class and it means 'pedestrian square', or, like, 'pedestrian walking place'! Perfect, right? How could I NOT use it?"

Again Gray was struck by how physically similar she was to Lisanna. The way she moved sometimes, the swing in her step: from behind he wouldn't have known the difference.

"So, where is this paragon of beauty then?" she teased, hands framing her own face in teasing vanity as she turned back toward him. He couldn't help but chuckle. Why had he ever thought she was shy again? If anything, she had an impish flicker in her features now.

"My sources say the Aussie BBQ booth."

Yukino crooked an eyebrow at him over her shoulder as she swaggered through the people. "Wait, seriously? Like, 'put another shrimp on the barbie'?" she quipped, doing an honestly _horrendous_ attempt at an Australian accent.

He paled slightly and held a finger to his lips. "Ssssshhhh! Don't say that anywhere near their booth if you value your life! The Strauss siblings take their barbeque very seriously, and _hate_ that particular stereotype. Like pretty much every Australian ever."

"Huh, I didn't even realize they were Australian," Yukino replied thoughtfully.

"Yep. Aaaand, here we are!"

Their walking legs had brought them right up to the booth in question, a couple of people in line ahead of them grabbing little paper trays piled with delicious looking (and smelling) food. Mira looked up from where she was checking out a customer and caught his eye, smiling. But she turned back to finish what she was doing before addressing him.

"Ok, Adrien, I still think you're nuts for eating all of that before the shoot tomorrow, but it's your money. And your head if your dad finds out. That'll be a thousand Jewels," she gently scolded.

The blond (who looked oddly familiar) just grinned and handed over a 10,000 Jewel note. "Totally worth it. And keep the change, it's all going toward helping the refugees right?"

Mira smiled sweetly back at him. "Yep! We're donating our profits to the city fund they started. But are you sure? That's a lot of change!"

"Of course, Mirajane. What else am I gonna spend it on? Clothes?" For reasons Gray definitely didn't get, they both laughed heartily at the suggestion. "See you tomorrow!" The customer slipped off into the crowd with a catlike grace and a polite nod goodbye. Then Mira turned back to Gray. Her face lit up at the sight of the petite platinum blonde beside him.

"And who is _thiiiiis?"_ she sing-songed. Gray suppressed an internal groan. At least she didn't have an excuse to try setting him up this time.

"Mira, this is Yukino. Yukino, Mirajane Strauss." At the sound of his voice the other two occupants of the tented booth looked up. Elfman just tossed his frat brother a smile and wave, but his younger sister sprang into action.

"Gray! You made it! Where's Natsu? I've been dying to meet his new girlfriend!" Lisanna exclaimed as she pulled off her gloves and joined her sister with a cheeky pout. Her eyes slid from Gray's to Yukino's then, and they both froze in place. Gray didn't notice, plowing forward with the introductions.

"Yukino, Lisanna, Lisanna, Yukino. Natsu bailed for a boxing match with Gajeel like the fight junkie he is. Don't worry though, you'll meet Lucy eventually. He practically never lets her out of his sight these days."

Lisanna snapped out of the weird eye-lock first. She blinked a couple of times, holding out a hand with leopard print polished nails.

"Nice to meet you!" Then, she smiled broadly and tilted her head at Gray. "Geez, Fullbuster, I had no idea you've really been pining after me all these years. You're dating my evil twin! If I'd only known! Who knows what those abs of yours could have done to my conviction…" She leered playfully, poking him in the stomach with her other hand.

Yukino realized they were still holding hands and blushed, suddenly shy. Everyone sure hadn't been kidding; they really did look an _insane_ amount alike. "I don't know...from what I've heard, I'm pretty sure you're the evil twin."

Gray just snorted. "Yeah, Lisanna's definitely the evil one. Like a sneaky, charming kind of evil. And _please_ : if Natsu's abs didn't keep you on our side of the fence, there's no way mine would make a difference. Don't you dare tell him I said that, though! Now Erza's on the other hand…"

Lisanna shuddered, finally dropping Yukino's hand. "Yeah, if there was one woman who could scare me straight, it would definitely be Erza." Neither saw Yukino's eyebrows shoot upward, or her lips tighten.

"Hell, I think she could probably scare me gay if she wanted to..." Gray shuddered back. His date's mouth popped open.

"But it's not like being straight or gay is something you choose!" Yukino suddenly blurted out.

Gray and Lisanna both cocked an eyebrow, first at Yukino, then at each other. They could feel the irritation around like waves of heat off a summer street. The message exchanged in their gaze was clear: Where the fuck had that come from?

"Um, yeah, we're just kidding around-" Gray's amused response was interrupted by Lisanna.

"Sorry Yukino," she said abruptly. "Since you don't know us really well, that probably came off pretty insensitive." Her focus sharpened on the eerie almost-mirror image of herself and suddenly wondered just _how_ similar they were. There was something in her demeanor that reminded Lisanna of the early days after Natsu, when nothing made sense, and every comment stuck pins into her conviction. When she had constantly doubted every move she made. "We've known each other a long time, so we rarely take each other seriously. Trust me, no one would ever accuse Gray of being prejudiced."

"My adoptive mom is gay, so it's nothing but normal to me," Gray explained, nodding back at Lisanna for the assist.

"And he was the first person I came out to." Lisanna shared a bittersweet look with him. That hadn't been a great day for either of them.

Yukino looked uncomfortable as her head tilted downward. "Oh, sorry…I didn't mean to...um..."

"Don't worry about it! Trust me, I'll take comments like that over the derogatory bullshit that comes out of some of his fraternity buddies any day." Lisanna reached out and tapped the other girl's nose playfully, startling her into looking up again. "No worries, Lisanna 2.0!"

Gray watched the whole exchange with amusement. Lisanna always had a way of putting everyone at ease.

"How do you know you're not Yukino 2.0?" she shot back, smiling again. Which led to a pleasant argument about birthdays and dominant clones and more corny jokes. Gray loved every minute of it. It felt so natural to stand there talking with them, like they'd both known her forever. She slipped right into the conversation like someone had clicked on the table organizing Gray's life and inserted a new column just for her, right between him and Lisanna. So when Lisanna invited herself along, it didn't really phase him.

"Hey, since I'm done with the booth for the night, do you mind if I walk around with you for a while and stretch my legs?"

But Yukino ended up answering before he did, a little sparkle back in her eye.

"Sure! I really should get to know the girl I keep getting mistaken for on campus."

Lisanna chuckled at that. "Sorry about that. Maybe I should grow out my hair or something," she said with a casual flip of her head, sending her silky white bob gliding around her head.

"No!" Yukino protested. "It looks so good on you like that, if anything I should change my hair." She grinned. "Maybe I'll go for a pixie cut!"

"Oooo! That sounds adorable! Maybe I'll do it too!" Lisanna crowed back, grabbing a chunk of her hair and bringing it in front of her face as though staring at it would show her what it would look like if it wasn't there.

"It would look great on you! And then we could match!" Yukino laughed back.

It was moments like these that made it blatantly obvious that Gray would never fully understand the way women thought. Wasn't the whole point to _not_ look the same?

Eventually the two women realized his eyes were glazing over as they traded hair product notes and tactfully changed the subject.

"Anyway," Lisanna cajoled. "We should head toward the performance stage! They've had some really cool shows all day. Apparently the Tahitian dancing performance and workshop were a huge hit! I wish I could have gone. But…" She pulled a folded piece of paper out of her back pocket and her face lit up with a mischievous smile. "...it looks like the Russian Sword dancing will be starting about now! Let's go!" And with that, she grabbed each of their hands and dragged them behind her, enthusiastically chirping out 'excuse me' right and left as they plowed through. Gray tried to catch Yukino's eye to commiserate with her about being prey to the famous energy of Lisanna Strauss, but found her grinning broadly ahead instead.

There was something ridiculously attractive about her when she smiled. It was like she glowed or something.

As they barreled their way down the street courtesy of Lisanna, Gray noticed the booths lining each side of the street were opening up to a large square that usually housed the largest farmer's market of Magnolia on summer and fall weekends. Right in the middle, a large high-tech looking stage had been erected, where bright lights spun dynamically and a group of men in red and black costumes milled about the stage setting up. Another group, Indian women by the bright silks and midriff-baring tops, exited carefully down the rickety portable stairs leading from the stage.

"Oh man! I can't believe I missed the Bollywood Dance exhibit! Shoot! I was thinking that was _after_ the sword dancing...I bet it was awesome too…" Lisanna pouted as she let go of their hands, pulled her schedule out again to scowl at it. Her mood picked up, however, when she looked up again as a tall, broad shouldered man in black and red stepped forward on stage. Grinning, she cupped her hands around her mouth and yelled loud enough to have Yukino and Gray shrinking back out of embarrassment.

"Hey Laxus! Is that a sword or are you just happy to see me?"

Gray internally groaned. So many terrible jokes... Chuckles scattered through the crowd, heads turning in their direction.

Laxus Dreyar looked up and scanned the crowd, finding them easily and gracing his best friend's little sister with a rare smile and a nod. It swiftly turned smug when he saw the noirette behind her. Gray just smiled smugly back. Being the new keeper of the Fairy Tail book of secrets had its perks...one of which was knowing that Laxus' greatest fear was his supermodel best friend finding out he was head over heels in love with her.

Unbeknownst to him, Lisanna gestured with her head for Laxus to meet her at the side of the stage. He nodded with a raised eyebrow and started over.

"I'll be right back guys!" the youngest Strauss assured them and then took off through the crowd, slipping almost magically quickly through the throng of people. Gray and Yukino exchanged glances again, shrugged and looked around at the new area of booths they hadn't hit yet.

Before either could say a word though, an arm was slung over Gray's shoulders and the distinctly grape-y smell of Moon Drip wafted into his face. He cringed on instinct.

"Heeeeeeellllloooo hottie! Long time no see, my tall, dark drink of whiskey!"

"Whiskey?"

"Psshh, like I'd drink water?"

Gray just rolled his eyes and shrugged off the arm, incredibly aware of Yukino staring at him as the black and red bikini-top wearing brunette ran her fingers through his hair. "It's only been four hours, Cana. And why the fuck are you wearing a swimsuit in October?"

The Master of Fairy Tail (hehe, she didn't think she'd ever get tired of calling herself that) just waved her hand like his logical concerns were the flocking males eyeing her up from every angle: flattering, but not worth her time. "I do what I want. And who's _this?"_ she squealed gleefully. "Are you on a _date?_ Damn. There went my best option of the night, now I've got to blow someone else's-"

"This is Yukino! Yukino, this is Cana, the house mom for Fairy Tail!" he interrupted hurriedly. Cana might be a hell of a lot of fun, but she had not fucking tact. Apparently.

-mind!" Cana finished cheekily before turning to the petite blonde and taking another swig of the light purple liquid swirling in her bottle. However, her words were still directed to her erstwhile fuck buddy. "And that's Master to you, subjugate."

Without a blacklight, her beverage of choice wasn't glowing, but that didn't make Gray any less wary of it.

"Cana, I can't believe you're drinking that stuff." His fingers pulled at his collar as he felt Yukino's eyes flitting between them. Shit. He really should have considered the very real possibility of running into a past hook-up and prepared a contingency plan. Where the fuck was Lisanna!?

"You know it's the only thing that comes close to getting me drunk! Who cares if I forget half of what I do? Or who I do?" She threw her head back and laughed, her loud words attracting the attention of everyone in a twenty foot radius.

Great. An encounter with the only past hook-up who was also an exhibitionist (well, except for that one girl who was an _actual_ exhibitionist...what was her name again? Whatever, not important…). What was important was the weird look on Yukino's face as she gave Cana a once-over.

"Aaaaaand, there goes the shirt! Ow-ow! Take it off! Gray, you have no place to judge _me_ on public nudity! Not one bit! And you!" She threw an arm around the shorter girl's neck next and leaned in close, almost brushing her lips on her ear as she spoke. "You are one lucky girl tonight...Yukino was it?" Distracted by her actions, Gray didn't even process what she'd said until the cold air hit his bare chest, making him pretty much instantly nip out. At which point, his eyes went wide with panic and instantly locked onto his date, who suddenly looked like she'd spent too much time standing outside staring directly at the sun. Or, to put it simply, her face was red as fuck.

Whether that had to do with Gray's subconscious strip tease or the fact Cana was practically smothering her in her sizable chest was debatable. He looked around for his shirt, but somehow it was already gone.

He was beginning to feel like someone was fucking with him on purpose.

And that's when Lisanna came back. "What the fuck? I leave you for like five minutes and you're getting naked and signing up for a threesome with Cana Alberona? Without me?! Where is the justice in this world?"

Yep. Definitely on purpose. The gods were sadistic assholes.

Gray was thankfully saved from attempting to untangle the clusterfuck his date had become by the sound of music steadily growing from the speakers on either side of the stage.

"Ooooo, it's starting!" Lisanna chirped, turning to the stage as the group of men drew their swords, the lights flashing on the well-polished fake blades. Yukino immediately turned her attention to the stage, clearly awed as the blades spun expertly around their bodies.

"Wow, that's incredible," she said with reverence in her voice. "They're so talented."

Gray shrugged, a smug smile slipping onto his face as he put his hands behind his head and leaned back into them a little, his bare abdomen flexing to keep him there. _Well, I'm already half-naked, might as well make the most of it._ Several feminine sighs and a girly squeal went up from behind her (and more than a few behind him too) as he smoldered down at his date. "It's actually not that hard. Laxus made us learn as pledges."

Yukino smiled back up at his face, not even glancing at his ridiculously well-displayed abdomen. "Really? It looks like fun."

Lisanna snorted, the intense gaze she leveled at Yukino contradicting the nonchalance of the sound. "Easy for you maybe. Elfman couldn't get it down to save his life."

Gray frowned as Yukino swung her head quickly to look at Lisanna again. Most of the time, he found women's tendency to lose their shit around his naked torso a little annoying, but a fact of life that had always worked in a pinch to seal the deal for him in the past. But Yukino hadn't even glanced at him again since his shirt came off. Was she trying not to look on purpose? Or was she really just not interested?

"Your brother shouldn't feel bad. I don't think I could _ever_ do that," Yukino finished sympathetically. "But they _are_ really fun to watch."

As though her words were a directive, they all turned back to the stage and paid attention to the show.

After the second song, one of the performers grabbed a microphone.

"And now, while we grab some water, for your viewing pleasure, a true display of Russian strength! Laxus Dreyar!" Laxus stepped forward and flexed his considerable arm muscles.

As though she'd been waiting for his words, Cana baited him over the crowd with a holler: "I don't know! You don't look that strong to me!"

Oh wait. She had been waiting for it. Now the weird black and red bikini top made sense at least.

Laxus bellowed back, "Then come up here and see it firsthand! Bring your blonde friends with you!"

Which seemed to be Lisanna's cue. "Come on Yukino!" she squealed before, her, Cana, and his date made their way through the quickly parting crowds to whistles, cheers and catcalls.

Gray just stayed where he was, confused as fuck. _What the hell? Did I miss something?_

"Hell yeah! This couldn't be more perfect!" Laxus boomed in his stage voice again. Gesturing to the two petite, almost identical platinum blondes. Lisanna hopped into place, guiding Yukino to follow. Then Laxus came up behind them, squatting down so his arms were level with their thighs.

Realization finally dawned on the accounting major. He'd seen that party trick so many times, it actually surprised him that he hadn't seen it coming.

In one swift move, Laxus lifted the girls onto his shoulders and stood, Lisanna reaching out for Yukino's hand to steady her as she screamed in surprise. The two of them giggled as the crowd went wild.

Still using her phony stage voice, Cana responded, "Ok! You've convinced me! I'll never doubt you again!"

Soon after, Laxus set the two girls back down and quietly thanked Yukino for playing along. She grinned and waved him off, turning to giggle with Lisanna as they went down the stairs, still hand-in-hand. Cana followed them, unable to resist turning a one-handed cartwheel (pssh, like she was gonna set down her booze for a cartwheel) on her way to another roar from the crowd.

By the time they made their way back to where Gray was standing, being stopped every few feet for a high five or catcall, another sword dance was underway and the girls were flushed.

"So...that was...interesting," Gray started, raising an eyebrow at Lisanna. "I'm assuming it was your doing?"

"Oh come on Gray, it was perfect! I saw him do it at rehearsal last night and couldn't resist!" She smiled at him, but there was discomfort under the grin, not quite reaching and lighting up her eyes. "And Cana played along perfectly!" The sparkle was immediately back as she high-fived the smug brunette already taking another drink. With a mock bow, she accepted the praise and started backing away.

"And now that I've played my part, I'm off to the Biergarten! Have fun! Don't do anything I wouldn't do!"

 _Like that limits us in any way._

"Alright, it's 8:45, what now?"

Gray jumped at Lisanna's words. "Wait, seriously? I didn't realize it was that late!"

"Do you need to go?" Yukino tilted her head up to him with a smile. "It's ok, I don't mind."

He didn't know if that made him feel better or worse….

"Don't worry, I'll take good care of her Gray! Go do what you've gotta do!" Lisanna grinned at him, that slightly _off_ note still there, muddling his brain.

"Uh...yeah, if that's ok with you guys. It's pretty important or I'd stay…"

"We already said we understand. Now go!" With that parting missive, Lisanna physically pushed him away. "I'll, uh...text you later, ok?"

"Sounds good." There was an awkward moment where Gray lingered, gaze bouncing between them, before he stepped forward, leaned in and kissed Yukino on the cheek. "This was fun. I'll call you."

She just nodded, grinning back at him.

Then, he turned and took off in a swift walk to the exit, pulling his phone from his pocket. Apparently it had gotten bumped to silent at some point, because he was met with a handful of new text messages.

* * *

 _ **That Asshole I Live With: about to kick gajeels ass! u no ur jelly**_

* * *

Natsu had sent a selfie of himself just outside the gym, a little blurry like he hadn't even stopped moving to take it. Gray wondered how that had gone. He was actually surprised the idiot hadn't sent a victory text by now. Unless he'd gotten his ass handed to him.

But, scanning his messages, he didn't see anything from Gajeel either. Maybe that was what was in the group message...there were a ton of new messages there. He clicked on Loke's messages first.

* * *

 _Loke: Which apartment is Lucy's again?_

 _Loke: nvm. Found it._

* * *

Nothing meriting a response. There was one from Mira. He raised an eyebrow and clicked on that. What could she possibly have to tell him? They just saw each other.

* * *

 _ **Mira: YOUR BABIES WILL RULE THE WORLD WITH THEIR UNCONTROLLABLE CUTENESS!**_

* * *

Oh, right. Because Mira.

Finally, the group chat was the only thing left to check.

It took him a minute to scroll back up through the dozen or so messages that had been added during his date, but he eventually landed on the new content, his heart leaping into his throat as he read the first line. His feet stumbled under him.

* * *

 _Lucy Heartfilia has rejoined the group_

Lucy: HELP! SOMEONE! Can you meet me at Fairy Hills? I need help ASAP!

Lucy: This is Levy. Something's wrong with Lucy!

Lucy: GUYS?!

Lucy: Nvm. I figured out something else.

Erza: Is everything alright? What's wrong with Lucy?!

 **Gajeel: Is she ok? Natsu is still unconscious.**

 **Gajeel: Shrimp?**

Lucy: What the hell happened?! She was acting super weird and then suddenly she was unconscious! What did you DO?

 **Gajeel: HE WAS SUPPOSED TO BLOCK! he always blocks. idiot got distracted or something. they'll be fine in a few minutes. quit freaking out.**

Erza: Mystogan and I will be over soon.

Erza: More like an hour. Mystogan.

Erza: No, we'll be over as soon as possible. Sorry, he took my phone. Which will never happen again.

 _Mystogan: Do you still need us Levy? Is she breathing normally?_

Lucy: Yeah. I called Porlyusica. She's on her way here. I needed help to get Lucy there, but now...I don't know what else you could do, except sit around and wait for her wake up.

 _Mystogan: Then we'll be there in an hour._

Lucy: Whatever. Come whenever.

A few minutes later.

 **Gajeel: Salamander woke up.**

Lucy: So did Lucy. Get him over here. Something is still wrong with her.

Lucy: Look at his eyes.

 **Gajeel: Shit, Natsu too. on our way.**

* * *

The messages ended there, Gray, frantically swiping up for more information, fruitlessly, as he picked up his pace into a full out sprint. That had been nearly two hours ago.

 _SHIT! What did Natsu do now? If that jackass fucking hurt her, he's gonna be waking up to ice water every morning for the rest of the semester..._

* * *

 _ **A little bit more than two hours ago…**_

 _Fuck I'm out of shape,_ Gajeel thought raggedly as he pushed another burst of energy into his legs and ducked Natsu's right hook, trying for his own counterpunch. Sitting on his ass all day was taking a toll on his muscle memory, but it spoke to how great he really was even just a year ago, that his faded ass could keep up with Natsu at all. Or to how much the pinkette was also lacking lately with Bunny Girl's no-fight agreement holding him back. They'd spent a more than acceptable amount of time pawing without their usual vigor before really getting down to it. Gajeel was honestly still awed Lucy had been able to rein Natsu in so effectively. It was fucking unprecedented.

But, even not at 100%, his childhood friend was a weapon disguised as a mauler; a fine-honed, ultra-precise, laser-guided missile with a hit like a sledgehammer and the tenacity of a cornered beast. Calling him an amateur boxer was just fucking stupid at this point. Why he _wasn't_ boxing professionally for one of the fucking alphabet groups by now was a godsdamned mystery.

Actually fuck that. _Everyone_ knew why. The idiot just loved fire more than he did hitting people. Simple as that. If they ever created a sport that somehow combined flamethrowers and MMA, he was sure Salamander would be the first one signed up. Gajeel remembered his dad talking to Igneel about it once: how he'd make one hell of a bombardier in the corps. But Igneel had immediately shut him down.

" _His demons will haunt him his entire life as it is! He doesn't need to meet any new ones! Over my dead body will that boy ever join up!"_

Turned out, he wouldn't even then.

Gajeel narrowly avoided getting hit in the eye, raising his fallen guard at the last minute and parried, angling so the full force of the hit slid off his glove. He threw out a quick cross, missing as the wily bastard narrowly slipped it, Gajeel's glove whistling past his ear. At least his instincts were still sharp. It wouldn't take _too_ many more days of training to bring him back to what he was. He caught Natsu's right hook with his arm and went in for a quick combination of jabs, the pinkette going on the defense with a cover-up to catch all of his blows on his gloves and arms. It was a more conservative approach than he'd always taken in the past. Natsu usually favored attacking full force, (which was putting it lightly, considered he'd been in matches where the other guy had barely been able to get a hit in…), but then, as a brawler, so did Gajeel, and he was doing more bobbing and weaving than he cared to admit.

Shit, the things being bonded to the fucking love of your life could do to a guy. He mentally added 'boxing like a fucking pussy' to the list.

Without consciously making the decision to do so, Gajeel started mentally blocking off times in his schedule when he could fit in regular workouts again. Erik wasn't wrong. This was just what he'd needed: an outlet to release his pent up energy and frustration (or, you know, punching shit). He narrowly blocked the left hook Natsu had thrown and threw out another jab, not surprised to see Natsu pull from that one as well. They were narrow misses though, perfectly timed to barely miss, giving the frat bro the maximum amount of time to analyze and strategize before moving. His dodge turned smoothly into a shot for Gajeel's gut. The larger man dropped his hands belatedly to block, but the shot never came.

 _Shit, feint._ His arms came back up, but he took a glancing hit to his arm, hopping away and shaking out the impact. Luckily, there wasn't much pain. His thoughts sprung to Levy, dimming the grin behind his gloves. Would she be able to take a hit? Would she even feel it?

His thoughts were thrown as he was backed into a corner as he tried to avoid a ridiculously quick combination of jabs. Then he saw it, a small opening in Natsu's guard as his arm dropped the slightest bit. Feinting with his left, he hooked with his right, landing a solid blow on his opponent's shoulder.

Surprisingly, instead of powering through the pain, and pursuing his cornered prey, Natsu backed off, shaking out the shoulder and grimacing with an eye roll. It took Gajeel a moment to realize what had happened.

 _Right, Lucy._ Natsu's head shook a little, like he had water in his ears or something. _Keep him busy Bunny Girl,_ Gajeel thought with a grin, following up on his advantage. He darted forward, forcing Natsu back until he had him on the ropes, painfully aware of the distracted lack of focus evident on his face. It made him hesitate. Gajeel pulled his next couple of punches, suddenly reminded that there was a more delicate, friendly face to be considered too when he threw a jab.

Apparently even the ones you weren't bonded to could make you do shit.

He took a small step back, falling back on the length of his arms to fight on the outside, to keep Natsu off-balance. The pinkette has always been more of an inside fighter, so he'd have to make up the distance if he wanted to regain any ground. And Gajeel didn't plan on giving him an inch. Glee bubbled up in him as he saw a lag in Natsu's movements, his concentration clearly broken.

But then, just as he was narrowing in for a knockout (Bunny Girl'd be fine...probably), a renewed fire lit up Natsu's eyes. He leapt forward, clarity having returned and fought fiercely toe-to-toe, light on his feet as he came back at the tattoo artist with a vengeance. Whatever Lucy had been doing to distract him, she must have gotten over. It was all Gajeel could do to keep blocking. Then his own zeal kicked back in, he saw his chance, and triumphantly went for a low bolo, his arm swinging around and up in the exposed lower part of Natsu's guard, feeling the connection of his movements that guaranteed, at the very least, to set his opponent off his guard, if not deliver a world of pain.

As though Natsu did it on intuition alone (since his focus was centered on his opponent's torso), he stepped away just in time, Gajeel's glove grazing his side. Quick as lightning, he followed up with two very hard hits to Gajeel's ribs. He didn't recover quick enough to block another hard blow to his shoulder, but his fury at being hit spurring him quicker to deliver a hard left hook to the pinkette's bicep.

Natsu stepped back away from him, grinning, shaking out his arm and narrowing his eyes, delight and fury somehow fused in his expression. Gajeel grinned back through his mouth guard, moving in closer follow up, but just as Natsu stumbled, giving him an opening, he felt a sharp pinch on his arm. The pain cleared his head enough to make him step back, chancing a glance down at his arm.

A little red mark sat there as though someone pinched him. He connected the dots in seconds.

 _Shit, Levy._ For a split second, he considered ending the match. But his competitive spirit screamed at him to keep going, enjoying the adrenaline running through his system. Which left one option. Tapping into the ironclad discipline his father had drilled into him time and time again, he willed his body to shut her out. To shut down that little part at the back of his brain that was still worried about her. He willed his body to do what he wanted, tensing his muscles and relaxing them, feeling the tightness in his arms and legs dissipate momentarily. With that tension gone, he felt somehow lighter.

Natsu, seemed to have regathered a bit and was coming back at him on dancing feet. Gajeel saw the punch coming, but didn't completely dodge it, taking it on his shoulder and rolling with the punch instead. This time, there was no accompanying painful pinch.

 _Mission accomplished._

He swung a feint at the pinkette, his opponent sluggishly going for it, allowing Gajeel to land a solid blow to the side of his head. The force behind it knocked him to the side a few steps. He winced with an annoyed look and Gajeel wondered if it was more the pain or Lucy that was bothering him.

Then his whole stance softened the slightest bit, his gaze seemed to turn internal and affection swept over his features.

 _Definitely Lucy. He looks like a fucking puppy getting a treat. Now the real question is, am I above taking the advantage she's giving me right now…_

Natsu stumbled back a couple of steps, eyebrows furrowing, but his body automatically threw another punch, landing one on Gajeel's padded helmet hard without even looking at him.

 _Nope, this shit is every man for himself._

With a growl, Gajeel put everything he had behind his signature haymaker-the one that had knocked out every fighter the gym had to offer while he was growing up at some point-fully expecting Natsu to dodge or block, even if just on instinct. He'd only fallen prey to it once before.

Except, he didn't duck it.

And the instant before the hit landed, they locked eyes. Gajeel was startled to see not the idiot's cocky green gaze, but a strangely familiar, scared, brown one instead. At that point, it was too late to pull the punch.

Natsu's head and mouth guards flew off at the force, his body falling to the canvas to the faint countdown of their fellow gym rats. Gajeel just stood there in shock for a minute, trying to sort it all out. Then he spit out his mouth guard.

"What the hell? You got a glass jaw now or something?" Gajeel growled out in shock, expecting to see his opponent jumping up after taking a dive, in hard denial that he had seen what he thought he'd seen. But Natsu was well and truly out.

Lily ducked through the ropes, dropping down to check Natsu's pulse. He looked up at Gajeel with open respect in his eyes before letting a small smile slip out. "He's out cold but stable. I don't think I've seen Natsu go completely down since high school."

Gajeel ripped off his padded headgear, dropping into a squat next to him with a frown, his sweaty bangs plastered to his forehead. "Lil, as much as I would love to say that was all me, I think Lucy had more to do with it."

Lily started to ask what the hell he meant, opening his mouth, but thought better of it, putting a pin in it for another time. With all the crazy shit in Gajeel's life at the moment, that kind of conversation called for a bottle of something with a proof in the high double digits. Lily sighed instead.

"Well, let's get him out of the ring. I have to look after him before I can fight with you myself, but I'm assuming you've got another willing opponent somewhere around here."

"And that would be me," Erik said as he stepped into the ring. He was stretching from his quick warm-up. "I'm sure he'll wake up and demand a rematch like the little shit he is, so I'm taking my shot while I've got the chance."

Gajeel grinned and put his mouth guard back in, kicking his headgear out of the ring. With the Levy issue handled and the only other bonded fighter catching some forced Z's, he could finally let loose a little more. Plus, despite his cocky attitude, his ex-gangbanger friend wasn't half as good as Natsu. Probably because he'd spent more time holding up convenience stores than putting in hours at the gym.

Whatever, to each their own. The better to beat the shit out of them.

Although, maybe he'd improved. The anticipation pumped his blood a little faster through his veins.

"You're on."

* * *

About five minutes later, Erik was just getting warmed up and shaking off another hit from his boss when Natsu groaned and sat up from the bench he'd been moved to. Lily, standing beside him watching Erik and Gajeel fight, glanced down at him and grinned. "How you feeling? No permanent dama…" he trailed off as his mouth dropped open, eyes riveted to Natsu's as the younger man struggled to form a response. After a blank moment of staring to the sounds of grunting and punches behind him, Lily finally spit out what was on his mind.

"What the hell is wrong with your eyes?!"

* * *

"Her pulse, breathing, and reflexes are all normal. But her eyes are...well, you'll see," Porlyusica explained succinctly, stepping out of the way for her colleague and once student to enter Lucy's apartment.

"Ok. I'll take a look," Ultear responded, immediately zeroing in on the blonde curled up on her floor, forehead resting on her knees. She approached the girl slowly, quietly setting down her bag and kneeling beside her. Her imperious tone was a surprising contrast to the gentility of her movements. "Lucy. Look at me."

The blonde's head came up. Her face turned upward and Ultear involuntarily flinched back.

Surrounded on one side by the significant bruising of what looked like one _hell_ of a shiner, Lucy's irises were...flickering. There was no other way to describe it. The golden brown was now interrupted every so often by vacillating moments of brilliant, deep green. She'd never seen anything like it.

Lucy responded to her soft gasp by scrunching her eyes closed again and ducking her head. She whined a little, but said nothing, even when Ultear's overpowering perfume reached her suddenly sensitive nose. She fought a sneeze, breathing deep, yet stuttering breaths.

Shifting her position until she was seated a few feet in front of Lucy, Ultear took a tailor's seat. Taking a small bowl, bundle of dried herbs, and a lighter out of her bag, she lit the bundle and dropped it into the bowl, a slithering trail of white smoke rising from the dish like a snake being charmed. Dispersing the illusion with a wave of her hand, the Wiccan distributed the scent in the air around her, closed her eyes, and began the rhythmic pattern of meditative breathing.

Watching with skepticism, Levy leaned closer to her flashback guru and whispered behind her hand, "I still don't get why we needed her. Aren't you her teacher? What can she do that you can't?"

Porlyusica didn't bother whispering her reply. "It's true that I taught her, but that brat has a natural talent for seeing auras that I can't begin to match. My specialty is in past life regression, not soul reading. And this is an issue of the soul. Now, shut up and let the girl work."

"Oh. Sorry." Levy didn't know what else to say anyway. This was just beyond her.

And, the worst of all the new developments, every time Levy tried to get anywhere near her friend, she felt….tingly. Like ants were crawling under her skin. Something was really, _really_ wrong with Lucy. And she had no idea what to do.

Some _consigliere_ she turned out to be. She couldn't even sit next to her friend when she needed support most. Anne would have disparaged her as a kindred spirit. Huck would have kicked her off the raft. Watson would have smacked her with his cane and rewritten her brilliance into idiocy. Even little Wilbur would have turned his back on such a shitty Charlotte. And Sam...well, let's face it, Sam was kind of a masochist at that point, he'd probably still have snuck into Mordor and carried her up a volcano. Sam really had nothing else going for him.

But, despite the internal criticism Levy felt with a vengeance from Lucy's literary paradigms of friendship, she couldn't will herself back beside her. Standing at the edge of the room was almost more than she could bear to begin with.

Finally, Ultear reached the state she needed to with her mind and opened her eyes. Her gasp caused Lucy to raise her head again in a snap, and pulled Levy out of her self-loathing. She stared blankly at the air around Lucy with awe.

"Goddess…" she intoned faintly. "What _happened_ to you?"

"What do you see?" Porlyusica asked sharply. She remained still, but Levy could feel the apprehension roiling within her sedate exterior.

Ultear blinked rapidly, eyes beginning to water. "I...I think her third origin might be open! It's like...fire? I've never seen anything like it. She looks like she's burning alive in white hot flames. And there's a blinding center to it….a crucible full of hot glass...except it's pulsing. Kind of like a star." Ultear closed her mouth and swallowed hard. "From what I've read...if her third origin is really open...I think what I'm seeing...what that is...well, it's…" She whispered the last words reverently. "Her soul."

"What...does that...mean? Third...origin?" Lucy managed to get out through gritted teeth. Forming words had been difficult since she'd woken up. It was like she didn't have 100% control of her tongue. More like 50%.

 _Which might be exactly the problem._ The constant dizzy feeling of vertigo was making her nauseated. Her fear amped it up further. "I think I'm going...to be sick."

Levy immediately leapt into action, grabbing the little waste basket from the bathroom and swiftly approaching her friend with a grimace, trying her best to ignore the vibration growing under her skin. Discomfort be damned. She refused to leave her friend marooned on her island of one again.

"Oh my god, it's reacting to you!" Ultear burst out, her intense gaze bouncing to Levy. "The darkness...it's disappearing! Her soul looks like it's _purifying your aura._ "

Levy stared back at her, mouth agape. "It's WHAT?"

Porlyusica was even staring at her in shock, for once dropping the cloak of comfortable disdain that kept her slightly aloof from everything. "That's impossible. The only thing able to cleanse a soul is itself!"

"Wait, what?" Levy tossed in, feeling like that was definitely information that should have been shared with her sooner. The shock of the moment was dying down however, leaving her nothing left to focus on but discomfort and growing pain of the phantom vibrations under her skin.

"And yet, it's happening. What does that feel like? It looks like her aura is _eating_ the blackness out of yours!" Ultear's typically sedate demeanor was overwhelmed for a moment by childlike giddiness. "This is nuts! Absolutely crazy! I can't believe what I'm seeing here!"

"It _feels_ like I'm holding onto an electrical current while listening to nails on a chalkboard in a sarcophagus full of flesh-eating scarabs! Make it STOP!" Levy replied, dropping the waste basket and bolting back to the kitchen shamefully, pressing against the farthest wall from her friend. Immediately her skin cooled and she felt relief, though her heart jackhammered in her chest.

All of a sudden, she felt the tiny pull in her mind that she had come to recognize and dread.

 _Oh gods, please, not now!_

Which was precisely the moment Lucy's door slammed open and Gajeel burst through, Natsu just behind him, his hand grasping the back of his friend's t-shirt. "Luce!?"

The noise was just enough to break Levy's concentration, the distraction dropping her forcefully back in the present, with just a frame of indefinable darkness to hint at the flashback she could have fallen into. Her legs collapsed under her in relief and she slid to the floor, head between her raised knees.

Gajeel halted in the doorway at the sight of the two unfamiliar women, but Natsu pushed past him, stumbling slightly as he made a beeline for his girlfriend.

"Natsu!" Lucy gasped as she jumped to her feet, reaching out both arms to him like a child to her mother. He didn't hesitate in his forward path, scooping her off her feet and enclosing her in his arms.

"Holy shit…" Ultear whispered to herself, blinking away the afterimages their reunion had burned into her retinas. When they were gone, it was like none of it had happened. The two stood in a rosy glowing aura, perhaps a little bit brighter than expected, but otherwise perfectly normal. "Huh…"

The couple didn't notice, clinging to each other tightly. Slowly, together, their worlds stopped spinning. Carefully, Natsu drew back enough to look down at her, tracing a finger lightly around the bruised skin on her face with a wince. "Are you ok?"

Lucy immediately switched gears. "No, you idiot! You got punched in the godsdamned face! Twice! NOT. FREAKING. OK!" Pulling back, she drew her foot back to kick him in the shin and froze, almost tumbling over as his instant remorse rolled over her. It was so poignant, she found herself apologizing to him before he could form the words. "Oh. I'm sorry. It wasn't your fault. It's ok." She couldn't help but reach out and run a hand soothingly over his head, confusing the fuck out of the pinkette.

"I'm so sor-Uh...what?" Natsu felt like he had whiplash from her ridiculously abrupt mood swing. "Sorry...what the fuck just happened? Are you mad at me? Or not?" He shook his head roughly a couple of times as he tried to shake off the confusion from his brain, but his hands on her shoulders stayed firmly where they were.

"Not anymore. I can feel how sorry you are. I'm sorry for being angry. Don't you...I mean...Can't you _feel_ that I'm not angry anymore?" she replied, her emphasis of the word not unnoticed by him as her face screwed up into confusion that mirrored his.

Silence reigned for a few beats.

"Um, what now?" Natsu voiced what the whole room was thinking.

"You...you don't _feel_ it?" Lucy asked again, less certain this time.

"What the hell is she talking about?" Erik whispered to Levy and Gajeel. "Is that part of the bond?"

The pair on the floor just shrugged, just as confused.

"Luce, I have no fucking clue what you're talking about. I mean, what happened before we passed out...that was crazy...but...we're totally back to normal now...right?"

Slowly, she shook her head. "No… It's different now than before...I can feel everything you're feeling…"

A gasp from the kitchen brought her attention to Levy, sitting against the cabinets with a wide-eyed look on her face. The little waves of shock and fear that reached Lucy were so faint, she almost didn't believe she'd felt them. But she had, hadn't she? Turning to Ultear out of curiosity, she felt nothing. She repeated the gesture, looking at the elderly pink-haired woman leaning against the wall this time.

Again, nothing. But she could still feel Natsu, even without looking at him, or concentrating on him. Was she imagining all of it? Was it just the final step that her father hadn't quite managed to push her past into insanity?! Steeling herself, she turned back to the last person in the room.

Gajeel was hard to read when it came to what he was feeling. He preferred to keep most things inside, never showing weakness. And this was no exception. He stood beside Levy, letting the small woman clutch his shirt as he looked on with a smirk. On the surface, he seemed his usual unaffected self, if slightly bemused by the whole situation.

But she could feel little puffs of fear wafting off of him like hot breaths in February; a little pulse of anxiety fainter than a heartbeat.

"You're afraid," she whispered. Her tone didn't suggest it was a question, but he could see she was still looking for an answer. The clear panic written in the tense muscles of her body and the white of her eyes deciding him on the matter.

"Yeah, Bunny Girl. You're scary as shit right now. I don't know how you're doing it, but you're definitely doing it. Whatever it is you're doing," Gajeel grunted. He hated the thought of someone in his head, no matter how slight. It felt like a personal invasion of his space. In a brief moment of curiosity, he wondered if he could block her out like he had Levy.

"Sorry," Lucy whispered at him. "If I knew how I was doing it, I'd stop."

" _STOP WHAT?"_ Staring at the back of her head and confused as fuck, Natsu had finally had enough.

 _Stop what? Isn't it obvious? Reading my friend's emotions! I don't know how, but I can feel everything you feel! And Levy and Gajeel a little too! I don't know what happened, but it started right before you read my mind and we switched bodies!_ Lucy had pulled back, fists and jaw clenched as she let out her frustration.

Only after she'd finished her rant did she notice the shock and alarm jarring her senses was from him.

"What?"

"Luce...I didn't say anything. I didn't even open my mouth. And you didn't either just now. But I _heard you._ What do you _mean_ I read your mind?! I knew we-" he cut himself off before blurting out what _else_ had happened. He really wanted to talk about that in private before they told anyone. Carefully, he thought the words instead, _switched bodies._ "But, I read your mind before that?"

"Yeah," Lucy responded, distracted by the clear tone of his voice in her head when his lips hadn't moved. Totally weird. Like, really, _really_ weird. _Because I'm a weirdo._ Lucy mentally sighed.

 _Nothing wrong with that, as long as you're my weirdo._ His response was immediate, a habitual response to stimuli.

His voice in her head came simultaneously with the heavy blanket of affection that Lucy had almost been smothered by before. Gasping for breath, she clutched at her aching heart. _Why are your feelings so much stronger than everyone else's!? How do you think around that much volume of emotion?_

 _Uh…no idea what you're talking about Luce. I feel the same as everyone else...don't I?_

 _No...you have no idea...just...let me see if I can…_ Lucy thought about the feeling in her chest, the overwhelming need and sweetness she had just gotten when he called her his Weirdo... _or,_ _ **thought**_ _that I'm his Weirdo...shit, this whole thing is really messing with my head._ She shook off the random thoughts, ignoring Natsu's amused smile at her mental rambling and tried again, trying to focus on thinking about the emotional responses she kept receiving from him.

"Fuck." Natsu barely got the word out before his heart clenched in his chest. Suddenly he knew what she meant. The love she sent him, that he was only beginning to get used to feeling for her, was definitely and uniquely his. And the strange itching addiction he had lately was familiar too. But everything was amplified to an almost unbearable extent.

In the back of his mind, the analytical part of him was fascinated by the whole experience, but it was so overwhelmed by the love and _hunger_ that he couldn't stay focused on anything else, his whole being centered on his craving for her. His body moved on its own, pulling her close and kissing her hungrily, because it felt like if he didn't she would dissolve into nothing and he'd lose her forever. Desperately, he clung to her for dear life, semi-conscious of his movements, acting purely on instinct. His hands slipped under her shirt hoping that feeling their skin together would assuage the tension inside of him. It did, for a moment, but the blood rushing under his skin seemed to whisper a redundant demand that echoed in his thoughts.

 _Moremoremoremoremoremoremoremoremoremoremoremoremoremoremoremore…_

It was constant. And it wasn't even a (purely) sexual thing. He hungered to hear her say she loved him back almost as much as he did the sensation of (finally!) being inside of her. Yet she remained silent, even her mind blank. A tear of frustration ran down his face as he tasted her skin, unable to find relief. He his control slipped another notch, steadily being vanquished by the siren song flowing from the connection of their minds.

Hands pulled at his shoulders, voices yelled his name and Lucy's but he could barely hear them, lost in his soulmate.

Lucy couldn't think. The last clear thought she remembered having was showing Natsu what the bond was sending her, and then her nerves had been overloaded by his reaction, amplified back again through her new ability. And then, the impending sense of shame at her own idiocy.

 _What the fuck Lucy? WHY did you think that was going to be a good idea?! What were you trying to accomplish anyway?_

Then, she couldn't think, couldn't move; lost to reality. Lost to the layers of euphoria and frustration and pleasure and longing, below it all a bittersweet note of loss and pain. It filled her from the tips of her toes to her sinuses. Every hair on her body stood on end, her scalp crawling with the sensation. Her sight faded, her skin grew numb, and her ears fell deaf; all overshadowed by the inferno blazing through her. She could barely think. Lost. So very lost. But definitely not alone. It felt like she'd never be alone again.

 _Natsu…_

 _Lucy._

Which should have been terrifying...

Porlyusica pulled a pin stuck in the lining of her bag for just this purpose and marched up to the ridiculous display of hormones going on in front of her. Swiftly, she stuck one horny brat and then the other in the shoulder (the easiest to reach limb) with it, effectively drenching their fervor in an icy bath. They froze, seeming to become aware of their surroundings simultaneously.

Their eyes fluttered open and their gazes fell together to take in the sight of Natsu's hand cupping Lucy's breast under her bra, her shirt hiked up around his arm and his thigh pressed between her legs.

They sprang apart immediately, breathing hard and ducking their heads to hide their inexplicable shame. Lucy shook a little bit, feeling panic sneaking up on her at not having control over herself. Or even awareness. Natsu wasn't much better.

"Finally! Jesu Cristo, Salamander, we're right fucking here! Get laid already and learn to fucking control yourself maybe," a new, lightly accented voice added to the general cacophony of voices arguing around them.

"Don't listen to him, Natsu. If I had a princess like her to play with I'd never take my mouth off of her," someone else purred seductively, and a little too familiarly.

Lucy looked up through her bangs, startled to see Loke and an unknown man with hair an even deeper red than Erza's looking her over. At Loke's words though, the anonymous redhead stepped away from the ginger. "For the record, I do not know this guy. He followed me here all on his own."

Natsu's lip curled as he turned to level a glare at the ginger in question. "Stay away from Lucy, Loke."

Loke flinched, hand automatically coming up to touch his still tender nose, but regaining his bravado quickly.

"Sorry, what was that? I don't speak _brute_. Hey Princess, how are _you_ on thi-" Lucy tilted her head up a little more, the hair around her face falling back to reveal the bruise coloring her swollen face. Loke's words cut off as he scanned the rest of her, seeing the mottled colors staining the previously perfect porcelain skin of her arms, and deep violets blossoming from her shoulder.

Before anyone even registered him moving, he had Natsu's shirt collar in clenched fists and a snarl on his lips.

"What the fuck did you do to her?" His words came out like a growl, deadly serious anger dripping from each one.

Everyone else in the room did a double take to make sure they were really seeing Loke - the flirty, easy-going prince of MU - threatening to take on the brawler who'd effortlessly broken his nose not even a full week prior.

Lucy recovered the quickest. For all that Loke claimed to be above the 'brute' in front of him, he bore a striking resemblance to a wild animal with its hackles up. She adopted a semblance of levity to break the tense silence. "Down kitty. It's not what you think. We're bonded, remember? Gajeel hit him while sparring while he was...distracted, and it transferred to me. That's it."

Loke held Natsu's gaze for another second before releasing his shirt and taking a step back. But he couldn't let it go without getting in the last word.

"Whatever you say Princess. But maybe he should spend less time warning me away, and more time figuring out how to treat women like the goddesses they are. Just a thought." He spat the last words into Natsu's face, tugging his button-down straight again and striding back to his place against the wall.

Natsu stayed where he was, resisting the urge to pummel the cocky bastard into the ground. If he hadn't just spent the last few minutes completely out of control of his own body, he might have given in to the impulse, but since keeping his emotions under control had suddenly become a battle instead of a decision, he kept himself firmly rooted in place.

Lucy watched a muscle jump in his clenched jaw and tried to block out the frustration and anger he was sending her, flavored with fear and remorse. When she couldn't handle it anymore, she deliberately closed her eyes and tried something else.

 _Stop it Natsu. He has never done anything to me but flirt. He might be the pervert you all label him, but he's never done anything to me. Just brush it off and move on. We've got bigger problems._

Natsu's glare darted up to meet hers. However, it wasn't her plea, but rather an unintentional, errant thought - that she definitely didn't mean to send his way - to break his ire.

 _Gods he looks hot when he's angry. Shit, what's wrong with me? That can't be right!_

He didn't know if it was the thought, or her crazy scramble to recover even in her own mind, but something about it soothed his wounded pride and eased the fire in his fists. Maybe it was the fact she hadn't thought perv was hot when _he_ was angry. Lucy immediately looked away, flushing slightly, and he cracked just the hint of a smile. _Interesting…_

Her head shot up and he panicked. _Shit. She definitely heard that._

Her eyes went wider. _Fuck. And that._ His hands clutched at his hair, like that could make his brain shut the fuck up. _And that!_

As Lucy and Natsu were trying their hardest not to think of a single godsdamned thing (Lucy having more luck than Natsu on average), they were saved by the arrival of Erza and Mystogan.

Levy, snuggled under her boyfriend's arm, sitting on the kitchen floor, checked the time on the stove and leveled a reproachful look their way.

"Weren't you going to be here over an hour ago?"

To her surprise and slightly sadistic pleasure, they both turned bright red, silently daring each other to speak up first. In a _shocking_ turn of events that everyone saw coming, Mystogan lost.

"We...er...lost track of time?" He winced as it came out more like a question than an explanation. Clearing his throat he tried again. "That is, something came up…"

"It sure did," Erza muttered under her breath, just loud enough for him to hear. Mystogan choked on his own spit while Erza sedately patted him firmly on the back much harder than necessary.

Erik burst out laughing as though he'd heard Erza's comment, leaning on the counter next to the blunette's chosen seat. "Levy, do I really need to point out the obvious to you?"

Levy cut him with her eyes, but pouted too, not getting the joke.

"Azulita, piensa. Probablemente estaban follando como conejitos," Erik rattled off with a grin.

Both of them were caught by surprise when Loke piped up next to him.

"De verdad, estaban follando. Estoy seguro." The ginger accompanied his words with a sage nod.

At their surprised looks he shrugged. "What? If it's a language of love, I was _born_ fluent in it. Plus I spend a semester in Spain. Oh man, the things those girls can do with their tongues…"

Erik and Levy slumped in synchronization, pouting at each other petulantly. Of course the perv just _had_ to understand their secret code (ok, it wasn't that secret or really a code, but it was fun talking about people without them knowing!). Without showing it, Gajeel immediately perked up internally at the thought that he wouldn't have to guess at half the conversation. Unless the three of them decided to chat. His frown deepened a little. _Next paycheck, I'm fucking buying Rosetta Stone or something..._

Lucy felt his excitement, then annoyance, and couldn't hold in a giggle. It was fun to sort of know what was going on in the big stoic lug's heart for once. She couldn't wait to make him watch a sappy romantic drama with her and see how he really felt about them. She swore she'd seen a tear when she'd manipulated him into watching Titanic (since she'd somehow never seen it), but he'd denied it to the last.

"Are you all here for some purpose, or is this just to waste our valuable time?" Porlyusica's voice cut through the tense silence of the room, more than one back straightening automatically in response; Lucy's one of them on sheer instinct.

"Yes! I think everyone is here except Gray, so we can get started. I know I don't have much furniture, but if everyone can find a seat, I think it's time to get some stuff out into the open. Ultear and...um, ma'am...you're welcome to leave, but since we're discussing the soul-bond, I'm sure we would all appreciate your insight into the task ahead of us, if you have the time to stay that is." Lucy didn't notice Mystogan's head tilt up at Ultear's name, his eyes searching the room until he found her place on the floor. His hand tightened slightly around Erza's.

"And what task might that be?" Porly interrupted, taking a seat on the coffee table, while Ultear settled next to her on the floor.

"Well, this meeting started out as a way to connect the dots. All of us seem to be having divergent...I don't know...symptoms, maybe, from the same bond? I just wanted to see if there were any patterns we were missing that might help us understand it better. But, in light of recent developments..." Lucy took a deep breath and prepared herself for a flurry of questions, carefully avoiding Natsu's eye. "It has become increasingly clear that we have to find a way to _break_ the bond. As soon as possible."

* * *

 **And now, a word from our sponsors:**

 **This chapter has been brought to you by the brain of a crazy busy mother-fucking sorcerer...and, by reviewers like you! Remember, only** **you** **can spend less than a minute typing as quickly as possible on a touch screen keyboard that makes you want to murder everyone who was involved in designing the damn thing, only later realizing that you misspelled or got autocorrected incorrectly halfway through with no way to correct it. ONLY YOU!**

 **A little public service announcement on behalf of Shedauwz (my beta, who writes Hangover, which I know at least some of you would sell your first unborn child to get more of...nope? Ah, just me then.../: ) He is on a self-induced writing-coma/hiatus while he writes the fuck out of his thesis/reads way too many scholarly articles on shit he doesn't really care about anyway in order to get the fuck out of college already. Therefore, he would like me to inform you all that he will return to Hangover when he's done being beaten to death with thesis revisions. You know, when he gets around to writing them in the first place. (Ah, college...the nostalgia filter almost makes me miss never getting any sleep for all the un-fun reasons…*sighs longingly*)**

 **And yep. Mira and Adrien model together. BECAUSE HOW COULD I NOT?!**

 **And now, the over-complicated and needless explanations I'm sure you've all come to expect at this point…**

 **Biergarten-** German for beer garden...in case that escaped any of you...which I doubt.

 **Bombardier** -ok...so this is an antiquated term and one that doesn't really apply in the US Military the way I'm using it here. Traditionally, bombardier is a French term from the mid 16th Century denoting the soldier in charge of the cannon (or _bombarde_ , as it was called in French). In the US Air Force, it's a member of the bombing crew responsible for sighting and releasing bombs. That is _decently_ close to what I'm going for, but I'm seeing it as more of an on the ground position than in the air, sort of a professional explosives expert used tactically to cover retreats or clear unbreachable fronts precise enough to limit harm to his own side at the same time. Since Fiore is a made-up country with very little information concerning its army, I'm just taking it wherever I want. But as always, since I see Fiore as close to France, the cross-terminology is plausible in this case I think.

 _ **Consigliere**_ _-in case some people forgot since the last Italian mafia reference in chapter 8...you know, like a year ago...the advisor to the head of the family; a highly trusted, important position_

' **Anne would have disparaged her as a kindred spirit….Sam really had nothing else going for him.'-** a little throwback to Lucy's speech at the end of Chapter 9 just to bring everything full circle. If you're confused on a reference in this, head back and look there!

 **a sarcophagus full of flesh-eating scarabs-** yep, Mummy movie reference. Brendan Fraser and Rachel Weisz for the win!

 **cacophony** -some vocab, because if you aren't using this word, you should be! -a harsh, discordant mixture of sounds

 **Azulita, piensa. Probablemente estaban follando como conejitos** -Spanish for "Little Blue, think. They were probably screwing like little bunnies."

 **De verdad, estaban follando. Estoy seguro.-** Spanish again, "It's true, they were screwing. I'm sure of it."

 **Spanish translations graciously provided by the epically reliable Grimnack!**

 **Rosetta Stone** _ **-**_ Just in case this is a US based thing or something, Rosetta Stone is a company that makes language learning software and advertises the fuck out of their revolutionary methods.

 **BOXING TERMS** **-because I fucking researched this shit! Reap the fruits of my (copy and pasted) labor!**

 **(in order of appearance)**

 **hook-** This punch is thrown with the lead or front hand and is delivered in a semi-circular pattern. The hook is executed by leading with your front hand, bringing your elbow up and rotating the front side of your body (in a similar motion as slamming a door.) It is meant to reach beyond your opponent's guard and make contact with the side of his head or chin.

 **paw-** When you don't fully commit to a punch and throw it any real intent to land, but more like you are _testing the waters_ , this is referred to as "pawing."

 **counterpunch-** This is any punch that is thrown in return or comes back as a response to an offensive move.

 **faded-** Usually refers to a fighter who runs out of gas in the later rounds or who, overall in terms of his boxing career, is no longer performing at his best.

 **mauler:** Most often this is used to describe a fighter who likes to fight wildly on the inside and use roughhouse tactics to nullify their opponent's effectiveness.

 **amateur boxer/boxing-** Competitive boxing matches where neither participant is paid and most fighters are beginning to learn their craft.

 **alphabet groups-** This is a negative term used to describe the numerous sanctioning bodies of boxing; the WBC, WBA, WBO, etc.

 **parry-** This is when you not only block an incoming punch, but actually redirect it away from your body or the intended target.

 **slip-** When you move your head to avoid getting hit.

 **cross-** A power punch thrown with the rear hand and travels across the fighter's body.

 **combination-** This is any series of punches thrown in succession, one right after the other, with no break in between.

 **jab-** The jab is a punch that is thrown with your front hand and delivered straight at your opponent. It should be the centerpiece of any boxing offense.

 **cover-up-** This is a defensive move employed by a fighter to avoid getting hit. He or she simply hides beneath and behind their gloves to avoid direct contact from an offensive attack.

 **brawler-** This is a type of fighter who likes to exchange punches and relies on being aggressive and fighting on the inside.

 **bob-and-weave-** Side to side and rolling movements that are used as defense to avoid punches. Heavyweight Joe Frazier is a classic example of someone who used the "bob and weave" defense to perfection.

 **pull-** A defensive move where a fighter leans away from or pulls back from to avoid being hit.

 **feint-** Faking or feinting a punch is used to make an opponent unnecessarily react, or to gauge his response so that it throws him off his game or makes him commit to a false move.

 **on the ropes-** Whether purposely, as a defensive technique, or he is forced to fight from this position by a more aggressive opponent, a fighter who lays against the ring ropes is considered "on the ropes."

 **pulled punch-** When a punch is not delivered at full force, but held back. Fighters sparring each other may pull their punches to keep the intensity light. Some fighters may do it in a competitive match to trick their opponent into a feeling of safety before they surprise them by throwing with full power.

 **outside fighters-** Boxers who prefer to fight from the outside, typically behind a long jab, from long-range are considered outside fighters.

 **bolo punch:** Typically used to distract an opponent, it is a punch that is thrown in a circular motion and is a hook combined with an uppercut. "Bolo" means machete in the Filipino language. Macario Flores was the first fighter to have reportedly use the punch, but it became more popular and is more commonly associated with _Kid Gavilan_ and _Sugar Ray Leonard._

 **haymaker-** A negative term used to describe a fighter who can't take a punch, who gets knocked out easily or has a questionable chin.

 **glass jaw-** A negative term used to describe a fighter who can't take a punch, who gets knocked out easily or has a questionable chin.

* * *

 **EDIT: My Freudian slip with Jellal and Mystogan at the end has been corrected! Thanks Guest! It is appreciated.**


	45. Bombing Runs and Sword Dances Part 2

**Hey! So, just a heads up, this will be my last update for a few weeks. I have WAY to much going on in February and March. I turned 28 on the first of February, went to a con the next weekend where I won the cosplay and fanfiction contests (it was a TINY con), made a whole new cosplay (Virgo! I'll change my profile pic to her so you can see it!) for Planet Comicon this last weekend, and I have to get a Regency gown and Mulan cosplay done for clients by next weekend. Then, the weekend after that, we're hosting our annual Academy Awards party. And the weekend after that, the tea I've been organizing for the last couple of months for the Jane Austen Society for almost 60 people will happen (which I have to bake and decorate 9 cakes for…Oh, and 60 macarons that I've never made before. O.o), THEN I go to Naka-Kon the weekend after that for a girl's weekend where I will probably collapse from dance rave exhaustion (that's a thing, right?). Then the weekend after that I have choir reunion thing.**

 **Then I play dead and remember what it feels like to sleep.**

 **So, long story short (too late), I'm trying hard to carve out time to write, but it's stressing me out. I will definitely be back in April, and I'll hopefully have moments to turn out some shorter chapters, or parts of the next one for this, but if it doesn't happen, don't worry, I'm not dead. And I WILL be back.**

 **A quick shout-out to end this excessively long A/N, a friend of mine on here MorriganFae just started posting her first story. I'm already hooked, so I definitely have to recommend Request Board Romance to anyone who needs their Nalu addiction fed while I'm away. She and I have very similar senses of humor, so if you like my particular brand of funny, check it out! And don't forget to give her reviews and support! With so many writers dropping out of the fandom, we need to work hard to keep everyone we can, right? RIGHT!**

 **Shit. One more disclaimer: Because I'm writing thoughts for two different people and dialog for a bunch more plus them, this might get a bit confusing. In case it doesn't become obvious right away-** _Natsu thinks in non-bold italics,_ _ **Lucy thinks in bold italics,**_ **and Both of them thinking together is just regular bolded. Plus, this chapter is all from Natsu's POV...sort of. You'll see. It sounded fun, so I went with it.**

 **Now. Read. Readreadreadreadread!**

* * *

"Well, this meeting started out as a way to connect the dots. All of us seem to be having divergent...I don't know...symptoms, maybe, from the same bond? I just wanted to see if there were any patterns we were missing that might help us understand it better. But, in light of recent developments..."

Natsu dropped to the floor beside Lucy, his fingers reaching out to tickle her ankle, already zoning out of the conversation. Until he heard her next thought.

 _Don't look at Natsu._

"It has become increasingly clear that we have to find a way to _break_ the bond. As soon as possible."

Natsu's heart dropped to his stomach. _We WHAT?_ "Why the hell do we need to do that?" His words came out harsher than he intended, but it turned out no one noticed. As they were all too busy talking.

"I mean, it's starting to get a little out of hand, sure, but that seems a little overboard Lu…" Levy's voice chimed in at the same time.

"Yes. That's exactly what we need to do. Well said Lucy." Erza nodded firmly in agreement.

"Is that even possible?"

"Aren't you guys soulmates and shit? Can you break that?"

"There is no need to curse!"

"I don't think it _is_ possible."

"How are we supposed to do that, Shrimp?"

"Please stop calling me that!"

"What's the plan?"

"If there's no bond, does that mean Lucy will be free again? I'm all for it!"

"Shut it Loke!"

"We should ask the experts. That's why they're here right?"

"This is unprecedented. We're just as in the dark as you at the moment!"

"I don't care what you guys do, as long as I get to watch it happen."

"Doesn't this seem a little extreme?"

"It's not soon enough as far as I'm concerned."

The cacophony of voices melded into a wall of sound that faded into the back of Natsu's mind. Thoughts raced in his head. _Why?_ _Is this because of me? Does Luce not want to be with me? Did I go too far just now? Hell, of course I went too far, but it just fucking happened! And it wasn't really my fault...well not all my fault. Shit. We just need time to adjust and figure out the parameters of this thing again, right? Once we have it under control it'll be fine. Right….but if we do break the bond, what happens then? Will she leave? I would miss being bonded to her I think… Why do I care this much? Why doesn't she care more? If the bond is broken are we really even soulmates? What happens if we're not soulmates? Why the hell does she get to decide something like this on her own? How is that fair?_

"EVERYONE, JUST SHUT UP FOR A MINUTE! AND FOR THE LOVE OF ALL THAT IS HOLY, STOP _FEELING_ SO MUCH!"

Lucy's yell broke him out of his increasingly tightening stranglehold of unanswered questions. She had her fingers pressed to her temples and her eyes shut, like she was in pain. And thinking about her weird new bond power thing that amplified feelings, she probably was. Pushing his questions aside, he reached up, grabbed her by the waist, and pulled her down into his lap, wrapping his arms gently around her.

"Hey. You okay?" he murmured into her ear, still struggling to stifle his own anxiety and the tension in the room around them.

 _ **Not really.**_ "I'm fine. Just, a little overwhelmed."

"Overwhelmed by what?" came a confused murmur from someone.

 _Liar,_ he thought back at her, resisting the urge to tighten his arms. Her stiff back screamed that she still needed space. But his instincts said she needed him where he was, and those instincts rarely led him astray. "Ok. Just take it easy for a minute, 'kay?" _If you were a cat, your hair'd be standing on end._

 _ **Shut up. Talking like this is weird.**_

"Why don't we start by connecting the dots and getting a better picture of the problem before we get into a solution?" Levy piped up, her spunky side (Luce had told him she referred to that side of herself as an alter ego, like...The Pagemaster or something? Fuck if Natsu remembered…) coming out to take charge of the situation. "Porlyusica and Ultear know some of it, but if they're going to be any help we need to fill them in. Where should we start?" She turned to ask her mentor, but was interrupted as an uncharacteristically heated voice spoke up from her left where Erza and Mystogan shared the loveseat.

"Did you tell him, Ultear?"

Natsu and the girl in his lap turned to the blunette simultaneously thinking the same thing.

 **Tell who?**

They jumped, looking at each other, before smiling in reflex.

 _Jinx. You owe me a soda!_ Natsu thought, smugly.

 _ **Huh?**_ Lucy thought back, her smile slipping a bit in confusion.

"I don't know what you're talking about, Mystogan," Ultear returned, her voice the antithesis to his in temperature. Her tone could have frozen him solid. You know, if she had the power to do that in this universe. But Natsu and Lucy completely missed her response - and the tension-filled, wordless staredown following it - as their silent conversation continued.

 _What? Seriously? You don't know what that is?_ Natsu carefully thought about the many jinx wars he, Erza and Gray had fought in their youths, usually escalating to the point of violence. Because well...it was Erza and Gray. He really thought this whole thought sharing thing was pretty awesome. It would take a lot less time than he'd previously expected to get her caught up on the pop culture and social norms she'd missed as a prisoner of her shitty dad. When he couldn't think of any more jinx memories with his chosen siblings, he threw in the jinx' he'd had with Lisanna, to show that fighting wasn't really normal, it all being more of a verbal game. Which turned out to be not such a great idea as he recalled the makeout session that had followed one such jinxing.

 _Shit._ Quickly trying to blank out the memory, he sheepishly buried his face in the back of her shoulder. _Shitshitshitshitshit._

He could feel Lucy's cheeks flame with heat. Thank the gods Mystogan decided to break the silence at that moment.

"Don't play dumb, Ultear. You're the one who told Jellal about how the bond works, didn't you?"

The air seemed to thicken with electricity around his words, getting under Natsu's skin.

From their place leaning against a wall, Natsu heard Loke whisper to Erik, "Are you understanding any of this?" The redhead shook his head. "Ok, good. It's _not_ just me." Then, seemingly untroubled by it all, now that he knew he wasn't the only one in the dark, the ginger settled comfortably in, openly ogling the expanse of bare thigh revealed by Lucy's hiked-up skirt as she sat in Natsu's lap with a grin. The fucking bastard.

Natsu glared his way, grabbing a blanket out of a nearby basket to throw over Lucy's legs. Loke frowned back at him. _Yeah, fuck you and your view, you pervy asshole._

Lucy turned to look at him in confusion, and he smiled back innocently. _**What the hell?**_

He carefully recited scientific combustion reaction coefficients in his head to keep his murderous thoughts to himself. She didn't need to know the number of ways he would gladly fuck up Loke for ogling his soulmate.

Finally she just shook her head and returned her gaze to the action unfolding in front of them. _**Fine. Don't tell me.**_

"Like I said, I don't know-aaaaaahhhhh!" Ultear let loose a yell as she was bodily lifted to a standing position by a vise-like grip around her bicep. Her cry gargled out into cautious silence as she felt the cool steel of a blade at her throat, eyes wide with panic. Natsu grinned. It was always fun to see someone else on the bad side of Erza. He'd been prey to that grip often while growing up.

Erza Scarlet glared down at her prey. "Like hell you're not going to explain whether you put our lives in danger, you _witch._ Now, how about the truth?"

Ultear's innocent act melted away into annoyance, seemingly now unfazed by the weapon against her pale skin. "Tch. Fine. Way to blow this all out of proportion, by the way. Yeah, I told him. One of his people reached out to me when he got bonded. We're old friends from way back, so I saw no reason not to tell him how it works. At least as much as I understand. Now get the _hell_ off me."

Erza held her position for another beat, eyes flashing, just to show the bitch who was boss, before pulling away her switchblade and letting go of her bicep.

The Wiccan glared back at her for a moment before turning her attention back to Mystogan. "He's _your_ brother, you should have been the one to tell him."

"What, so I could assist in my own blackmailing? Yeah, fuck that." Mystogan spat the words in her direction.

Natsu immediately looked to Erza at the cursing, waiting for her reprimand, but it didn't come. He whistled lowly. Erza must really like the blueberry rocket scientist (well almost..he had to be almost done with school right? He'd been there _forever..._ ).

"What could he possibly blackmail you with from prison? Don't be absurd." Ultear crossed her arms, but looked the slightest bit uncertain.

Natsu silently wished for snacks. This was better than TV. Lucy snorted at his thought and he lightly pinched her thigh just to hear her squeak. She squirmed away, getting up and prying off his arms, the blanket dropping to the floor. Natsu frowned after her. She headed toward the kitchen, only to spin back around at Mystogan's next words with mouth hanging open.

"So you expect us to believe that you didn't know he would threaten to hurt us or even kill us in order to help him escape prison?"

"WHAT?" Every voice in the room except Erza's rang out in response, Natsu's included. _How the fuck did they manage to keep that to themselves?_

 _ **I have no idea.**_ **Are they ok?!**

Erza sighed. "It's been a long week."

That seemed to kick Lucy's feisty blue-haired sidekick back into gear. Natsu was starting to really like her. She was really great at cutting through the bullshit and keeping things from getting boring. "Alright people. Clearly, we need to start with what's going on with everyone right now. And Erza and Mystogan are definitely going first."

Lucy seemed to recall what she'd been doing and grabbed a bag of chips off the counter before walking back over and plopping down in Natsu's lap again. She opened the bag, grabbed a cheese and sour cream flavored Ruffle for herself, and offered him the rest. His mouth watered.

 _Have I told you lately how much I love you?_

 _ **Nope.**_

Her thought was abrupt, but she was smiling. His free arm circled her waist again, holding her tight against his chest. He could feel her anticipation for him to say it again fluttering in her stomach. He grinned.

 _Thanks for the food!_

 _ **Dickhead.**_

 _Psh. Weak. I need to teach you some better insults._

"I'm not saying anything more as long as _she's_ here." All eyes turned back from Mystogan to Ultear, like they were watching Fairy Tail's Annual Underground Blacklight Ping-Pong Tournament (established in 1972-a good year for black lights, ping-pong, and the salaries of the construction crew that had completed the 3rd rebuild of the Fairy Tail dining hall…following the Great Amphetamine Riot of 1971).

 _ **What the fuck is wrong with your fraternity?!**_

 _Absolutely nothing, thank you very much!_

Levy sighed. "Fair enough. Maybe you should just go, Ultear."

The noirette shook her head. "No way. This is the craziest thing I've ever been a part of. And probably a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. I'll do whatever you need me to as long as I can stay."

"Ok…" Levy, who'd apparently taken over control of the meeting, seemed to be thinking it over. "How about this? While Erza and Mystogan let us know what has been happening with them, why don't you go to my apartment across the hall? Then, when we move on, I will come to get you. You've been a great help to Lucy and I, so, until proven otherwise, I'm inclined to give you the benefit of the doubt. Unless there are any other objections." Lucy nodded her support. Natsu shrugged. Didn't make any difference to him. Gajeel followed suit. Erza nodded...eventually. Natsu didn't miss her coaxing Mystogan's hand out of a fist. "Then that's that. Ultear, if you would follow me please."

While Levy led Ultear across the hall, Poley Rolly (or whatever, her name was fucking weird) started talking. "So, let me just confirm: the strawberry and blueberry are soul-bonded, and obviously Lucy and my countryman here are as well."

 _Countryman?_ Natsu really looked at the older lady for the first time. _Huh. Pink hair. Must be from Pergrande too. Wonder if she hates it as much as I do?_

Lucy found his hand with hers and gave it a squeeze.

"Leaving Levy and her soulmate. Which one of you is he?" she continued, oblivious to Natsu's thoughts.

Erik, Lucy and Erza all joined Natsu in pointing at Gajeel, who didn't say anything, but made deliberate eye contact with the woman. Her mouth crooked up on one side at the sight of him, but she moved on quickly to Cobra and the Super Perv.

"Who're you two then? What is your connection to this mess?"

Loke and Erik traded looks before shrugging at her. "None at all. We're just here for support."

"Actually," Levy chimed in as she closed Lucy's door behind her again, having left Ultear behind in her apartment. "I wasn't going to bring this up until later, but Erik was in one of my past life flashbacks. And so was Loke."

In what felt like a poorly written sitcom moment, the occupants of the room chorused together yet again. "WHAT?!"

 _ **My neighbors are going to kill me if we keep yelling like this.**_

Natsu laughed through his nose at Lucy's thought.

 _Naw, you've got The Titania on your side, remember?_ He dug his chin into her shoulder as he chewed on another handful of chips, prompting her to swat at his head until he stopped stabbing her in the shoulder with his pointy jaw.

Levy sighed. "Guys, this is just the tip of the iceberg. Why don't we try to hold the shock and awe from now on, yeah? It's just getting old." She wearily found her way to the chair Gajeel had claimed as his own and plopped down on the arm. "And before you ask, Gray was there too."

 **Holy shit.** Natsu and Lucy didn't even comment on the shared thought this time, both too surprised by the news.

 _The stripper is gonna be really mad he missed this._

 _ **No kidding.**_ Lucy thought back. _**Should we call him?**_

 _Naw. That date is pretty important to him. He'll get here when he's done and we can fill him in._

 _ **Yeah, that makes sense.**_

"Which flashback?" The other pinkette in the room yanked his attention back to the conversation. _That's actually a really good question._

"The Stone Age. I didn't recognize them at first, but after we...uh, _visited_ Lucy's estate, it hit me that I'd seen Loke and Gray somewhere before. And Erik was in Chicago my last life. He could have been in the Stone Age too though. You guys were pretty hairy..."

Even Cobra seemed to be unable to keep his usual cool demeanor. "Damnit Little Blue, when were you gonna share that little tidbit of info?" He seemed uneasy at the thought of being involved, underneath his righteous indignation. Something he said caught Natsu's attention.

 _Little Blue? What a weird nickname._

 _ **I kind of think it's cute actually. Beats Weirdo.**_

"It's not like I've had a chance, alright? I'm telling you now. And we'll get into that later. First, Erza, Mystogan, spill!"

 _Pssh. Yeah right. Nothing beats Weirdo._ She ran an elbow into his ribs at that.

"And be as complete as possible," Rolly Polly added.

 _ **You know that's not her name, right?**_ Natsu ignored Lucy's nitpicking, pinching her again. Her squirming little dance was adorable. And this time, when she tried to elbow him he caught it with cheesy fingers, dropping the now empty chip bag.

 _ **OW! Stop doing that! I don't care if you think it's adorable or not!**_

Most of the room turned to focus on Erza and Mystogan. Or, _Mysterza_ , as Lucy had fondly been calling them in her head, apparently… She sounded like Mira. Which made him shiver out of reflex. Thank the gods she wouldn't try setting him up with girls after she met Lucy. _Hmm, I should really tell her I've got a soulmate. She'll be thrilled! On second thought...I've got nowhere to store stuff for a nursery right now._

Lucy suppressed a squeak. _**Nursery?!**_

 _Don't even ask. The longer you get to escape the effects of her overactive ovaries the better._

 _ **Over-active ovaries?**_

 _That's what Lisanna calls them. Mira's her sister._

 _ **And Lisanna is your ex-girlfriend?**_

 _Yep. I have the_ honor _of being the one and only guy she has ever dated._

 _ **She must have really loved you.**_ Lucy's thought had a hint of jealousy to it.

 _Nope. She just likes girls now._

 _ **Oh! Well...that's...lesbian? Really? Huh...ok. That's...a thing. Huh…**_

Natsu struggled not to laugh as he listened to her thoughts spiral off into incoherence. It was almost as good as her unnecessary jealousy.

While they chatted mind-to-mind like they'd been doing it all their lives, the newest bonded pair spent a moment communicating entirely with their eyes. It might have been pretty impressive if he and Luce weren't sitting there literally reading each other's minds.

Erza finally spoke up, sitting up ramrod straight as she did. Lucy's spine straightened too in reflex. He poked her in the ribs until she slumped against him again. _Much better._

 _ **Stop poking me!**_

"Mystogan, Jellal and I are bonded. That is, we are able to transfer ink and other substances through our skin, as well as sustain identical injuries simultaneously. Jellal is Mystogan's twin brother, who is currently serving his sentence in prison. And someone I knew separately from a traumatic incident in my past. I thought he was dead until recently. We went to visit him to get some closure on that issue, and seem to have somehow bonded when the three of us touched, resulting in a shock, that caused a fall, which gave all of us these." She pointed out the red, barely healed wound on her face and Mystogan's, exactly the same in size, shape, and placement. If anyone had any doubt that they were bonded, it would have been hard to keep them after that.

"Shortly after, the previously bonded pairs filled us in pretty well on the basics. Then, a couple of days ago, Mystogan went to visit his brother again alone, and Jellal revealed that he knew all about the bond and informed us that if we didn't go along with his demands in helping him escape his correctional facility, he would hurt me somehow. Well, us. And himself in the process, I assume. Despite Jellal's sense of self-preservation, Mystogan believes his threat is genuine. Our first task from him is tonight. We're still discussing our options, but...we're considering not going along with it. Because it could result in the deaths or injuries of a lot of people. That's where we're at."

"Well, shit," Gajeel said.

Natsu nodded. Tatt Face pretty much nailed what everyone was thinking.

 _ **He doesn't even have a tattoo on his face, baka.**_

 _Stop pretending you're Japanese or something!_

"Well, if that's it, someone should go get Ultear for the rest then," Levy said.

Mystogan frowned at her. "I still think we should leave her in the dark on this. Ultear and Jellal go way back, and she used to be part of Jellal's weird cult of followers, so I strongly urge you to rethink trusting her with any of this. At the very least, she can't know anything about how Erza and I are handling Jellal's demands. To him, this is all just a game, like everything else in his life, and he plays to win. He doesn't care if he breaks the rules, and he doesn't care if he hurts people along the way. Anyone in league with him shouldn't be trusted."

Lucy's voice hummed beside Natsu's head, surprising him when it didn't echo inside his head like her last comment. "I don't know. It sounded like she wasn't getting the full story though. How do you know she's not just another pawn to him? Maybe if the situation was explained, she'd be on _our_ side. She's been great to put up with us barging in on her and taking up her time thus far. And it really does seem like something important to her."

 _Is it worth the risk though? What does she really bring to the table?_ Natsu thought. _From the point of view of a scientist, I understand her need to know, but are we really more than just lab rats to her?_

 _ **My gut is telling me that she's worth it. She could be the key to understanding all of this. But I don't really have anything else to back it up. Just a feeling.**_

That was enough for Natsu. "I say we tell her the whole truth and see what she does. I think she could be a real asset." Lucy turned her smile on him like he was her hero.

Sometimes, it was a little too easy to make her happy. It was like no one had ever trusted her opinion before. The thought made him sad. Lucy's smile dropped a bit, a tear gathering in her eye.

 _What the hell? Are you ok?_

 _ **Stop being sad! Shit, it's so depressing.**_

Natsu's eyes widened and he tried to think happy thoughts.

"Well, it's certainly something to think about. I'm inclined to agree with you. Let's take a vote. All those in favor of letting her back in the room?" Levy put her hand in the air.

Lucy and Natsu's hands went up at the same time. Porlyusica put hers up as well. Levy looked over at Erik and Loke, ignoring the fact her own soulmate wasn't raising his hand. "You guys get a vote too."

They both jumped, then looked at each other. Shrugging, they raised their hands as well.

"Ok. For the time being, Ultear's in on the meeting from here on out. Erik, would you mind?" Levy gestured at the door and the redhead popped over to the other side of the hall to fetch the witch.

When she re-entered the room, Natsu examined her more closely than he had the first time. She was fit, but soft in a way his friends weren't. Kinda like Luce.

And there was something else about her. Something beneath the stink of perfume and superficial porcelain skin. She was clearly intelligent, but eager too. The light in her eyes when they talked about the bond reminded him of the one he was used to seeing in the ring when he fought Gray or Gajeel. She was really passionate about her work. Without actively deciding to, he found himself addressing her.

"You said you would do anything we want you to in order to stay. How about cutting ties completely with Jellal until this is all over? A complete blackout of communication?"

He could feel Ultear's gaze raking over him and he sat up a little straighter, leaning back on a hand and letting his confidence out to play a bit. She might be an expert in all this magical shit happening to them, but he was getting pretty good at controlling it himself, even if not fully understanding it. His thumb absentmindedly formed little circles on Lucy's stomach. _She might be good at seeing auras and shit, but_ _I'd like to see_ her _try switching bodies with someone._

Lucy's elbow stabbed him in the ribs again. _**Natsu!**_

 _Or not. Because, you know, that's...uh...bad?_ He cringed, bracing to get hit again. Luce had some seriously sharp elbows.

"If that's what it takes, then that's what I'll do. I have sympathy for his position, but I didn't know what he was planning to do." Her eyes cut to Mystogan, who stared her down. "Especially to his own brother. Family should be valued if you're lucky enough to have it."

Mystogan and Lucy traded a glance at her words. _**Spoken like someone without shitty family.**_

"For now, that is none of your concern. Erza and Mystogan have requested privacy about their affairs, and if you want to stay, you have to respect that," Levy cut in smoothly. Natsu really did have to hand it to her, she could control a room in a way you'd never think from looking at her. He felt Lucy smile at her.

 _ **Hell yeah she can.**_

"We'll address that again later. I'll go next," Levy said as she looked over at Gajeel for confirmation.

"Floor's yours, Shrimp," he replied, smirking at her grumpy expression back. Tatt Face could really be a dick sometimes. And his nicknames for her totally sucked.

 _ **Like Weirdo is any better.**_

Natsu ignored Lucy's vicious slander of his epic nicknaming skills.

"Gajeel and I were bonded without us being anywhere near each other, because I went with Lucy to Ultear's to investigate the bond." Natsu noticed she left out her intention of breaking the bond at that time. Lucy had mentioned it awhile ago in passing. She must have changed her tune since then. "We skipped the first stage of the bond, which I saw secondhand through Lucy, and opened our second origins during a ritual with Ultear, causing us to have flashbacks to our previous lives, share skin transfers and sensation through our bodies or, at select times, our senses. Since then, I discovered that I am aware of my present self in my flashbacks and started training to see them on demand. With...mixed results. Using my notes, and those from her own flashbacks, Lucy has put together timelines for each of the bonded pairs in order to see if there are any patterns to our past lives." She gestured behind her at the paper covered wall. Natsu didn't bother looking with everyone else, scooting back a bit with Luce to avoid being stepped on as everyone else passed them to get to the wall. He'd seen it all up close that afternoon.

"I was able to, through the use of a prescription drug, flash back to what I believe is the very beginning of our souls' journey. I was trapped there for several weeks, which passed slower in our world, thank goodness. During all my flashbacks, I see the souls of people I know as I would recognize them now, and from what I've heard from Lucy and Gajeel, it seems to be the case for all of us. And, even though I didn't recognize them yet, Gray's and Loke's souls were present in that time period. As were mine, Gajeel's, Lucy's, Natsu's and dozens of others, including Bisca and Alzack, the writers of the blog that started us onto the idea of soulmates in the first place." She spoke the last bit to Loke and Erik, as the only two in the room not familiar with the online journal.

"We can get into the specifics of that later. Anyway," she continued when she saw the two boys about to protest, "my abilities seem to be mutating, the flashbacks coming when I least expect them, and my body not shutting down the way it used to while I'm...away. When we first went to see Ultear, she saw darkness in my aura; something corrupting it, that I hypothesize is due to an evil act that stained my soulmate's soul in a past life. I have been working to retrieve that information to determine if our souls can be redeemed. Though, with Lucy's _new_ power, that might not be necessary." She turned to look at Luce, opening her mouth to say something else on the subject.

 _ **I'm not ready to talk about that yet!**_

Natsu heard Lucy's panicked thought loud and clear.

"But what about Gajeel? What's up with him?" he piped up, directing the conversation elsewhere. _There, that should keep them distracted for a sec. But get your shit together. I can't begin to explain to them everything that's been happening with you lately on my own._

"I got all the generic shit you guys did. But I can turn it off." Gajeel's brief description had everyone confused.

"Language Gajeel," Erza reacted instantly.

"I'm not your fucking sibling, I can say what I want."

"What, like the whole bond?" Mystogan asked with interest, he leaned forward, immediately putting out an arm to keep Erza from jumping up and threatening Gajeel.

"Naw. Ink still goes through. But I can keep her from gettin' hurt. And I can stop myself from crying when she is. I just basically shut _her_ stuff out kinda. Or mine from getting to her." Natsu watched with a little bit of jealousy as his old friend's eyes fell on his tiny girlfriend with pride. The bastard could fight any time he wanted now without holding back. But… _I think I'd rather feel bonded to Lucy than fight all the time and not feel her there...how weird. When the fuck did that happen?_

Lucy stiffened in his lap.

 _What? That isn't weird to you? I think it's kinda weird._

"That could be the key to breaking the bond!" Erza burst out, seemingly forgetting her ire against him.

 _Shit. We're back to that._

Lucy's mind was conspicuously silent. Could _she_ block him or something? Or maybe there was more to the thoughtspeak thing than he thought. Was there a time limit or something? He looked at his watch to start keeping track.

"You're right," Levy agreed. "I think it could be the key. Or at least be a way to control the bond when it gets out of hand. Like with what happened this afternoon."

 _So much for stalling._

 _ **Yeah. Guess it's time to face the music.**_ Nope, she was definitely still in his head.

"Lu? Wanna fill everyone in?"

"Well, where do I start?" his girlfriend nervously began. He tried to summon up all the faith he had in her, pushing the feeling her way. He wasn't sure if her new thing even worked that way, but it couldn't hurt to try right? Lucy choked on her next words, fingers clutching at the fabric over her heart.

"Start at the beginning. Mystogan, at least, hasn't heard the story yet," Levy coaxed softly, believing her friend to just be nervous about talking about it.

 _ **Tone it down would you!? I can barely concentrate when you do that! I get it, you believe in me! It's just...too much!**_

 _Gotcha. Sorry. Backing off._ Natsu belatedly remembered the amplified feelings she'd shown him earlier and tried hard not to feel anything at all. _How the hell am I supposed to do that though?_

It didn't really work, but at least it seemed like Lucy could speak again without her heart exploding 'cause of him being a dumbass (or whatever the bond would do).

"Ahem, ok. Sorry, uh, right! We bumped into each other last summer at the train station and became bonded. Levy already told you how our second origins got opened, and that allowed Natsu and I to access each other's senses, particularly that of touch. I can feel his heartbeat, when his muscles are moving, etc. Natsu's better at it than I am though. He can actually see through my eyes if he wants, and he can hear what I'm hearing or make me hear him speaking. I'm still not sure how he does it..." She turned to him then, implying that he should explain.

"Uh, I just basically zone out and think of Lucy. It's like meditating, sort of. And then I let her senses take over and it just kind of happens now. It took me a while to get the hang of though.

 _ **If you call like a WEEK a while…**_ He couldn't help but smirk at Lucy's slightly bitter thought. _**Normal people need more time than that to adjust to a ridiculous magical ability popping up in their lives.**_

 _What? I'm just naturally talented like that._ He shot her a grin. "Anyway, I can pretty much slip into her senses any time I think about it now."

"Is that going to happen to us?" Erza was pale.

"Maybe. Gajeel and I can feel when something big is happening. Like adrenaline, or crying, or loud noises. Feeling his breathing or heartbeat is the easiest for me," Levy contributed. "But it didn't get any more intense for us. Right?" She turned to her soulmate to confirm with him.

"I can listen in a little, if nothin' else is going on and I'm trying," the noirette admitted. "I heard you talkin' with Lucy this morning, though it was more like tryin' to listen from another room. I couldn't make out the words or anything, just sort of like...mumbling."

"Hm. Interesting." Levy didn't seem to know he could do that, it her tone was anything to go by.

"So, what happened this afternoon then?" Loke asked. That perv just had to butt in where he wasn't needed. "What changed with you guys?" Natsu opened his mouth to tell the ginger it was none of his fucking business.

But Luce beat him to answering. "We, somehow, opened our third origins this afternoon. Supposedly." She looked to Ultear. "Right?"

"It's the only explanation for what I saw. Your souls were completely visible and spilling into your auras. Opening your third origin is the only thing I've read about that comes close to what was happening," the witch lady confirmed. Natsu wrinkled his nose as the stench of her perfume wafted toward him again. He wished she'd lay off the stuff. With his and Lucy's noses both in the room with her it was like double the chemical attack on his sinuses. "And then, Lucy's exposed soul started to eat the darkness out of Levy's. It was fascinating."

Gajeel looked actively interested in the conversation for the first time. "Her soul did what?!"

"It started to purify mine," Levy answered for her. "And it felt terrible."

"So what? Bunny Girl's like a saint or somethin'?" Gajeel persisted.

Erik spoke up at that. "No. Saints can't purify people." Gajeel nodded back, trusting his token Catholic friend to know about shit like that. "She _could_ be some kind of divine priestess, or possibly an angel...though I really think we would have noticed by now."

Everyone stared at Lucy.

"Stop it! If I've never noticed anything angelic or divine about myself, I doubt you'll see anything now." She shrank back against Natsu. He immediately pulled her closer absentmindedly. Could they all be some kind of mutated human? Slowly evolving as they were reborn? Was that what was happening?

Ultear cut into his thoughts. "It is possible that her soul is simply very pure. According to lore, soul that resonates with another can more easily affect that soul. I'd imagine the effects are amplified once the third origin is open and your soul is exposed. So maybe her soul resonated with Levy's and was pure enough to overcome the stain that darkens it."

"So, how did you brats manage to open your third origin?" It was Rolly Polly who was asking again, looking right at him. He shrugged.

"I'm not really sure. I could feel her like normal. Luce was doing something on her end, and suddenly it was like we were the same person. It was kinda crazy," he explained, scratching the back of his head with one hand. "We moved together. And I think she even controlled my body for a sec I think...I don't know, it happened pretty fast."

 _ **I was controlling you? And that doesn't freak you out?**_

 _Naw. Why would it?_

"And what were you doing?" This time the pinkette's piercing eyes were turned toward Lucy.

"Me? I was trying to match my movements to his so I'd know when the hits were coming. Because he and Gajeel were boxing and waiting around to get punched sucks. Which reminds me...Gajeel! What the HELL?! You know we're bonded!" Her semi-calm demeanor went from zero-to-pissed-as-hell in 3.5 as she jumped to her feet, pulling her hair back to show him the bruises. "You couldn't at least avoid hitting us in the freakin' face!?"

"He was supposed to block it! He ALWAYS blocks it! Not my fault the pink-haired douche didn't protect his own godsdamned soulmate!" Gajeel shot back immediately.

His words had Natsu on his feet too. "Hey! Not cool! We were dealing with some crazy shit, alright! I couldn't exactly see what was going on."

"Natsu, _language."_ Erza growled.

"Besides," Lucy still had fire in her words, but they had turned more defensive now. "Natsu wasn't really the one in control when that happened. It really isn't his fault."

"Shit! It really happened didn't it?" Gajeel cursed, running a hand through his hair as he stared at the couple standing in front of him. "I thought I was fucking imagining things. How the fuck did you guys _do_ that anyway?"

Mystogan pulled the struggling Erza into his lap and put a hand over her mouth. Natsu's respect for his senior frat brother went way up when she actually let him.

"What the hell are you guys talking about?" Mystogan interrupted, his exasperation clear.

"LANGUAGE!" Erza screamed through his hand as she glared down Natsu and Gajeel.

"Will someone please explain clearly what happened this afternoon once and for all." When Natsu and Lucy didn't answer Mystogan's inquiry, he turned to Gajeel.

"You tell us then."

"No. This shit is theirs to explain. I'm not gonna touch it."

They all turned to look at the couple still standing in the center of the room.

Natsu and Lucy eyed each other for a minute without saying anything.

Aloud anyway.

 _ **Should we really tell them? Won't they think it's a little TOO nuts? They're already freaking out. I can feel it.**_

 _I don't know. Gaj's already figured it out. It's only a matter of time. Plus, they know about the mind reading thing already, right? What's one more weird ability?_

Lucy nodded, eyes sweeping the room. _**I just...I feel like such a freak.**_

 _Well, that's just stupid. It's not like any of this is your fault._ He grabbed her hand. _And if you're a freak, at least you aren't alone. We're all just as fucked up. Or I am at least._

"WILL YOU TWO PLEASE STOP DOING THAT? It's driving me CRAZY!" Levy's yell got their attention. "I can tell you're just thinking shit back and forth again. Stop it! This whole meeting is about sharing everything with each other. So, just say it out loud already! We're all in this together, right?"

"Oh, is that what they've been doing?" Loke queried to the room.

Her eyes said something to Lucy that Natsu didn't quite understand. But his girlfriend seemed to get a little taller under her friend's influence. It was kind of cool to watch actually.

"We switched places," she explained. "For a moment, I was in his body, and I assume he was in mine." Natsu nodded in confirmation. "Then Gajeel hit us and we got knocked unconscious. When we woke up, it went a little haywire and shorted out or something. We kept flickering back and forth until we were together again, which made it stop. Thank the gods, because vertigo doesn't even begin to describe what it feels like to be somewhere totally different every other blink. Or walking one second and sitting the next."

"Shit. That is...unbelievable," Erik muttered, sliding down to sit on the floor, still leaning against the wall. Natsu watched him, curious what he thought of learning he was a part of all this. Cobra was never much for talking about his feelings when they'd been in school together. It was still really weird for the pinkette to think he was linked to a guy he barely knew somehow. And a bunch of other people apparently.

"That isn't all. When our third origins opened, more happened. Not only can we hear each other's thoughts, which Levy just pointed out, but I'm _feeling_ emotions that aren't mine. And not just from Natsu. I'm getting some from Levy, Gajeel, and even Erza. I might be getting more, but with all of you in one room with me, I can't really tell the difference. You're all basically confused and surprised right now anyway." _**And afraid.**_ "Natsu's are by far the strongest, amplified somehow or something. But with so many people here, it's getting a little much. So, if you could all just get a handle on yourselves, that would be great." She finished through gritted teeth, hands coming up to stroke her temples again. Natsu frowned as he realized his head was hurting now too.

"But that's it?" Levy asked softly. "Nothing else to share about what happened? No more revelations?" She said it a little desperately, as though she was worried about having even one more thing to process.

"Their eyes turn colors," Gajeel supplied. "He gets her eyes when they switch."

"Lucy's were doing that too!" Levy agreed. "I'd forgotten about that."

"And our eyes stay the same when we're reincarnated too," Lucy said thoughtfully. "Weird."

Natsu looked over at her. "Wait, seriously? Like, we always have the same eyes? No matter what we look like?"

She nodded. "Yeah. It's something I noticed when I was researching for the wall. I wasn't sure when it was just our flashbacks, but when I got through all of Levy's notes, and matched up who I could, it was glaringly obvious." She gestured to the wall, centering everyone's attention on that for the moment. Pretty soon, everyone had gotten up and was somewhere near the wall examining her work.

Natsu held back with Lucy. He'd already seen it all. Rolly-Porly-whoever hadn't bothered to examine it earlier though. She worked steadily from one end to the other, taking it all in.

"Wow. So you guys have really been all these people?" Erik commented.

"Lucy, you were a Greek naval commander?" Erza asked, turning back to look at her. "You must tell me what that was like someday."

"So, you guys haven't had any flashbacks yet?" Lucy asked her back. "Or weird dreams?"

Both of the newest bonded shook their heads.

"Not really. I never remember my dreams," Mystogan replied.

"A sign of a good night's rest," Erza agreed, nodding.

"Don't tell me you actually found someone as obsessed as you with your precious sleep Mysty!" Ultear burst out, getting nothing but a glare from Mystogan in return.

"Mysty?" Natsu crowed with glee. "Is that what your nickname was growing up?! Oh man, you're so going to regret that I heard that!"

Mystogan groaned as his shoulders dropped. "I already do."

"What? I kind of like it," Erza muttered.

"You _would_ ," Gajeel snorted.

"So Mysty...are you also training to be the world's greatest water Pokemon trainer?" Levy said, with fake innocence.

Mystogan groaned, dropping back down onto the couch. "And so it begins again…"

Fortunately for the blunette, ProblyMusica chose that moment to cut through the chatter to Lucy.

"This is a very complete timeline you've assembled. Well done." The words were harsh, but her intent seemed positive overall.

Levy looked over at Lucy and gave her a thumbs up, impressed. Natsu got the impression that compliments were few-and-far-between with the older woman.

 _ **Yeah, that's what Levy says anyway.**_

Natsu smiled back at her, still tickled to be hearing her in his head. It was kind of awesome not to have to explain what he was thinking. _You're pretty great, you know that?_

Lucy turned away, feigning interest in the wall. She wasn't fooling him though. He could feel the heat rising in her cheeks. _**You're pretty great too. When you aren't getting punched.**_

 _I rarely get punched any more!_

 _ **Say that to my swollen face.**_

 _You know, my face hurts just as much. And it's kind of your fault to begin with._

 _ **Right, because I WANTED to switch bodies with you! How 'bout no! That one had to be all you.**_

 _What's that supposed to mean?!_

Natsu didn't get an answer.

"Very well. I think I understand what's happening." The Porly-woman had concluded her examination of the wall.

"You do?" Levy asked hopefully. Natsu couldn't help but feel his stomach drop a bit. If she had it all figured out, how soon would she be able to break it? He was hyper-aware of the irritation in Lucy's last thought. The blame.

"Something happened to all of you back in the Stone Age. Something that bound all of your souls together. After that, you were all reincarnated many times, some of you finding each other in most lives, others only some. It seems like Natsu and Lucy have found each other almost every life, though, from the research Lucy has done, most of those lives have ended almost unbelievably tragically, rarely reaching the age of forty together or alive. More often than not, you both die incredibly violent deaths." A chill went down Natsu's spine at her words. Lucy shivered next to him. "Whether it was because you two were the first bonded of the group or whether it is because you have spent an eternity in each other's company, the bond is strongest with you, and the more time you spend around each other, the stronger it gets. Only time will tell if the other brats will progress to your level or not." She paused for a second, to let her words sink in.

"As for how to break this bond? I don't think any of you will be able to do so unless you discover what caused the bond in the first place. Which will take very extensive research. Levy, in fact, might be the only one in existence currently capable of achieving that feat. Each of you has been affected differently by the bond, probably having something to do with your unique personalities. Those traits do not begin to show until at least after the second origin is opened, wouldn't you agree Ultear?" The woman beside her nodded. "And Levy's gift is heavily influenced by her thirst for knowledge. Therefore, as the oldest and therefore wisest person in this room full of adolescent brats, my suggestion for you to proceed is this: One." She held up a finger. "Give Levy time to control her gift. She is our best hope of unraveling the truth behind this phenomenon. Two, explore the big one's gift," she pointed at Gajeel as a second finger joined the first. "See if it can be taught and transferred. Even if it won't break the bond, it has the potential to at least negate its ill effects. That will buy us the time we need. And three, don't do anything dangerous or stupid! You idiots have gotten yourselves into more trouble in the last few weeks than any normal person would in a lifetime, even under the influences of a paranormal force! So, stop being idiots! You two." This time Erza and Mystogan were the unlucky victims of her razor sharp glare. "Do what you need to in order to survive. Stop worrying about the consequences of your brother's actions and do what you must. His actions are his own and he's responsible for them. You just need to pour everything you have into learning how to dampen your bond, before one of you gets killed by your own stupid nobility. I do not know what the bond would do should one of you die, but I do not wish to find out! You're all too young and stupid to be doing any of this."

Just as she finished her last sentence, Lucy's door burst open revealing Natsu's fucking roommate of all people, panting, wide-eyed, and shirtless. "Lucy?! Natsu?! You guys ok?" Gray rested his hands on his knees and coughed a little. He took in the crowd of people perched on every available piece of furniture or stretch of floor. "What'd I miss?"

Porly-Musica just tched her teeth. "I'm not wasting my time explaining it all again, someone catch up the half-naked brat. I'm going home." Gray looked down like he hadn't noticed he'd lost the top half of his clothing somewhere. Par for the course with Freezer Brain.

The pink-haired dragon lady (she kind of reminded him of a dragon somehow...and it was easier to remember than her stupid name) started to leave the room. However, just as she came abreast of Gray in the doorway, she spun back around, finding Natsu with her eyes and speaking directly to him. "You'll come for tea when Levy's training is done."

Then she left.

 **What a bitch,** they thought together.

 _I kind of like her._

 _ **Yeah, me too.**_

"Well man? Apparently, everyone here including you, me, and a decent number of other unidentified people, are part of an ancient curse that will eventually screw us up in ultra special and inconvenient ways that we have no control over or clear explanation for. Oh and those two can read each other's minds and switch bodies." Erik finished his irritated drawl with a sarcastically enthusiastic nod and turned to raid the kitchen.

Gray raised an eyebrow and smirked a bit. "Yeah, right. What's really going on?"

Everyone just stared at him until his mouth ticked downward again. He turned to Natsu and Lucy again. "Wait, seriously? What the fuck?!"

Erza rose from her seat, throw pillow in hand, and swiftly proceeded to hit the noirette with it so hard it knocked him over onto the floor before anyone could stop her. "LANGUAGE, DAMNIT!"

* * *

 **Soooooo, there's going to be a part three. Sue me. I'm too damn busy to get through everything to where I want this stupid chapter to finish.**

 **Next time, on The Passive Aggressive Days of Our Lives: Lisanna has a shocking revelation to share! Fairy Tail is under attack! Gajeel and Erza discover they have more in common than they realized! And when midnight rolls around *pauses to laugh hysterically at the image of Midnight rolling around the floor with his usual uninterested facial expression* a deadly mistake might just cost someone their life! Don't hold your breath (over the mid-season break) as you stay tuned for: Bombing Runs and Sword Dances, Part 3!**

 **And, totally forget to shout out at the beginning: THANK YOU FOR OVER 1700 REVIEWS! I CAN'T BELIEVE THERE ARE THAT MANY! *does special review celebration dance that looks suspiciously like the macarena***

 **Now, THINGS. AND STUFF.**

" **established in 1972-a good year for black lights, ping-pong, and the construction crew that had been paid handsomely for completing the 3rd rebuild of the Fairy Tail dining hall…following the Great Amphetamine Riot of 1971"** -Ok, so, in 1971, a bunch of countries got together and finally agreed to ban amphetamines like speed from the market, prescription or otherwise. I'm thinking Fiore was one of these countries, and several BRILLIANT members of FT decided this meant they had to take their various stashes immediately before they got caught with them...which resulted in a significant number of drugged-up, hyperactive FT frat boys basically destroying a portion of their house. Because...FT. Which the construction company charged them through the nose to fix. And when it was finally finished, they celebrated by establishing an annual ping-pong tournament. With blacklights. And drinking games.

 **Black light ping pong** -the origin of this is kind of a funny story...so, when I was in college, I met my husband while helping my brother and him make a short film for a film appreciation class project. In said film (which ended up being more than and hour long and was mysteriously lost from historical record a few years later), we staged an underground blacklight ping-pong tournament where the main character (my future husband), a private eye with reverse-diabetes (I should point out at this point, I was NOT consulted on the script) who had to consume Dum Dum suckers constantly in order to survive, tracked down an evil mad scientist for killing the PI's accountant by presenting him with an unsolvable equation that fried his brain. (Have I mentioned my brother is completely insane? No? Huh, that's weird.) Anyway, long story short, the blacklight ping-pong scene actually ended up really awesome and the frat they both belonged to decided to have a tournament for real.

If anyone would like to hear the rest of the plot of the weirdest, most poorly scripted and filmed movie of all time, drop me a comment in your review. It gets weirder. And worse. Including but not limited to: an increasingly ridiculous training montage to "Livin' on a Prayer", a Scooby Doo style chase scene, a poorly accented and extremely racist interrogation scene, a sciency montage to "Weird Science", a scene in which the villain is tortured psychologically with the song "We Built This City on Rock and Roll", and a poker game during which the deck of cards is actually cut in half using a machete. Yep, couldn't make this shit up if I tried.

 **Mysty-** ok, first, can't BELIEVE I didn't think of this sooner. Second, the Misty I'm referring to is a trainer in Pokemon that wants to become the best Water Pokemon trainer. She befriends Ash and stuff happens. I honestly haven't watched that show in over 10 years, so I can't give you any more on that, but that's the joke, in case you didn't get it. Levy and Lucy in particular, being anime fans, would get the joke more than others.

 **ProblyMusica/PorlyMusica** -For those RAVE Master fans out there...I just couldn't resist when it occurred to me!


	46. Bombing Runs and Sword Dances Part 3

**I'M BACK!**

 **AGAIN!**

 **Yeah, I know: I suck. This is four weeks later than I'd hoped, but you can blame at least one of those weeks on ShanaHollows for introducing me to Yona of the Dawn and making me a junkie in the highest degree. It's been a while since I've binged a show and blitzed the manga that quickly. Pretty much since FT actually… And almost a whole week on my beta (but he was graduating, so forgiveness is inevitable). But all my crazy busy stuff went great! I met some awesome people and learned some cool stuff at the cons, and I'm back and ready to get back on track with my schedule!**

 **In other news... it was last month, but this story turned 1 YEAR OLD on March 21st! It's hard to believe it's only been a year. It feels like I've been writing this story for a decade. Maybe ff birthdays are more like cat years… But in any case, thanks for sticking with me that long, especially you glorious people who've been following since the beginning. I love you to itty bitty pieces. Which probably hurts like hell...so sorry about that.**

 **Anywho, I wrote you a lovely long chapter to finish up the chapter series I had to cut off. And I PROMISE, the next one won't leave you hanging nearly as long. Which is good considering where I chose to cut it off…**

 **You'll hate me.**

 **Just sayin.**

 **ENJOY! *shoves 16k+ words at you and falls over exhausted***

* * *

Gray was thoroughly confused. "So, I'm bonded to all of you somehow but I still don't have a soulmate? And you know this...how exactly?"

"Levy saw you in her flashback to the Stone Age. We're pretty sure that's where all this started."

Gray nodded absentmindedly to Lucy's response and scanned the room, rubbing the stubble starting to pop up on his jawline. Shortly after his arrival and subsequent attack by Erza, the group squeezed into Lucy's tiny living room broke up and spread out into smaller groups.

Gajeel, Loke, and the guy he vaguely recognized from high school as Cobra had taken up residence in the kitchen. Gajeel was making himself at home with a sizzling skillet of scrambled eggs. Low pitched laughter and murmuring signalled a fairly laidback conversation in their direction. Just how often was he in Lucy's apartment? Gray couldn't help but feel a little put out. This was the first time he'd even been invited over...

Mystogan and Erza seemed to be in a heated discussion on the couch that no one dreamt of interrupting. It was kind of a miracle that two people as intense as they were in such different ways actually worked together. Interrupting that delicate balance could only result in turmoil for everyone involved.

Levy had joined a black-haired woman who...wait, he knew the back of that head…

"Ultear? What the fuck are you doing here?" his words caught the attention of everyone left in the living room.

He ducked Erza throwing her pillow at him, prepared for the assault this time. Mystogan smoothly placed the remaining throw pillow out of range and regained his girlfriend's attention with a hand on her shoulder. Dude had to a be a masochist or something.

"My job. I specialize in things like this. What are _you_ doing here?" she said loftily. Gray assumed her question was rhetorical, since she'd been there to hear he was deeper in this mess than he'd ever thought possible. Shit, she'd known before he did.

"You _specialize_? What are you even fucking doing now?" Erza's shoe whizzed past his ear as he swiftly moved his head out of the way and went on talking as though nothing had happened (Erza was nothing if not predictable). "Fortune telling? Love potions? Sacrificing stuffed animals to the gods?" His lips pulled into a smirk as his adoptive sister rolled her eyes. She and Levy got up and sat closer to the group he, Lucy and Natsu had casually formed in one corner.

"That was one time! And it was a favor for that brat's birthday. It's not my fault my friend's kid likes those books a little too much." A small smile weedled its way through her stern expression despite her obvious annoyance. "And I'm _here_ to read auras and be a past life regression guide. You idiots can use all the help you can get, apparently."

"She's been very helpful so far," Levy offered, immediately assuming the 'idiots' comment wasn't directed toward her. And she was probably right about that; he could tell Ultear already respected the little blunette. Years of boyfriends hadn't managed to get that far. Just that one guy she'd followed around like a puppy most of high school.

One of Gray's eyebrows automatically went up as he stared at his sister, who'd spent more time playing with crystal balls than normal toys growing up. "Wait, that wasn't bullshit?" He shifted his weight in the other direction to avoid Erza's second shoe-missile. It flew past his face harmlessly.

Unfortunately for Ultear, she was right in the strike zone. Gray ignored her grunt of pain as the shoe hit her squarely in the shoulder. "I always just figured that was part of the shit you pulled with that douche you hung around with."

"LANGUAGE GRAY!"

An icy shiver ran down Gray's spine. He might have pushed her a little too far...

"Nice shot! Uh, I mean, uh, we're just gonna move to the bedroom…" Mystogan forcefully guided Erza off the couch and into Lucy's bedroom. Gray's phone pinged with a text notification. He barely heard Ultear complaining while he opened it up.

"What a bitch!" She rubbed her shoulder before turning back to him. "And it's not my fault you never believed me." Ultear's tone was back to the inflated one he'd heard for years growing up. If he hadn't been distracted by the message in front of him, he would have barked out an insult to knock her down a peg or two. Old habits and all that. But, at that moment, the message on his phone from Lisanna was more important.

 _ **Hey, do you have a minute? We need to talk.**_

Gray raised an eyebrow. What could she possibly have to say? They'd just seen each other. He jotted off a message back ( _Uh, kinda busy. What's up?)_ and put his phone down, pulling his focus back to Ultear. What had they been talking about? Oh right...auras...

"Fine. So what's my aura look like then?" Gray froze at his own words. He hadn't exactly meant to say that. Maybe he was more distracted by Lisanna's message than he'd thought. But his curiosity was killing him, so it wasn't _entirely_ surprising that he'd ended up asking. "Compared to them, I mean." He nodded toward Natsu and Lucy who seemed to be in some sort of silent war (in which Natsu tickled Lucy and she tried -and failed- to elbow him in the ribs). "Or compared to a normal person, since I'm part of this circus now somehow. Supposedly."

"What, now _I'm_ a liar too?" Levy grumbled. "I definitely saw you…" She was cut off by Ultear.

" _You_ want a reading? Seriously? I've never met anyone less interested in the occult," she scoffed.

"She's got a point, Icicle Dick." Natsu grunted when Lucy's elbow finally made contact. Lucy grinned. Until Natsu pouted. Then she frowned. And Natsu frowned in response, muttering, "Shut up and stop worrying about it."

"It's not like I can shut it off. And I didn't _say_ anything."

"You thought it, which is basically the same thing now."

They sat in silence making faces at each other for a second, while Ultear, Levy and Gray looked on in confusion and fascination. Gray's phone vibrated on the carpet next to him, unnoticed. Finally Lucy broke first, bursting out in vexation:

"I am not! I couldn't be stupider than you, Mr. Punch-Everything-That-Moves!"

"Oh? You've moved on from burn everything that moves? How nice for Lucy," Ultear drawled.

"Shut the hell up, Ultimate Milk Sandwich." Natsu trapped both of Lucy's arms under one of his own to stop her from elbowing him again and mercilessly attacked her ribs anew with nimble fingers.

Gray swore he could see a vein pop out on his foster sister's forehead as Lucy squealed at nearly inaudible decibels. Ultear and Natsu had never gotten along. She used to say it was because their personalities were 'influenced by different elements' or something. It had sounded like a load of shit at the time. But now…maybe she knew more than he'd given her credit for.

"So, you gonna do it? Or not?" he pressed awkwardly, uncomfortable pushing the issue, but almost feeling compelled to find out if he really was...different. Like the rest of them. If he really _did_ have a soulmate wandering around somewhere waiting to bump into him and turn his world upside down.

"Do what?" a familiar voice asked from behind him.

Loke plopped down between him and the sickeningly sweet ball of lovey-dovey squealing and flailing limbs that was Natsu and Lucy. "Not _that_ I hope." He gestured lazily in the couple's direction. " _That_ would be practically incestuous. And, frankly, beneath you, gorgeous." He leveled a full-wattage smile in the Wiccan's direction.

Gray narrowed his eyes at the ginger beside him when he saw Ultear go pink in the cheeks. With his eyes he sent Loke a silent critique. _Seriously dude? She's basically my sister._

Loke shrugged back, clearly saying: _she's not your_ real _sister though, is she? Fair game._

Gray groaned, running a hand over his face. This whole situation was getting out of control. Again. That really seemed to be happening a lot lately. Or just continuously. It was kind of hard to tell at this point.

He was pulled back out of his thoughts by Ultear taking pity on him: "Dark."

It took Gray a minute to figure out that she was actually answering his question.

"Huh? That's it? Dark? What the hell does that mean?"

"Your aura is dark. There's not really another way to describe it. It's not a creepy black or anything, like hers," Ultear pointed her thumb at the blunette beside her, who squeaked out a soft, 'Hey!'. "And it isn't eye-smartingly bright, like theirs." Natsu and Lucy didn't even notice she was pointing at them as they wrestled for control. "It's just sort of a dark...blue-ish color. Granted, you've never been a really rosy pink aura kind of person to begin with, but it's darker than I remem-wait...huh."

Gray's eyebrows furrowed as he watched his witchy sister's face display a parade of emotions. "What?"

She didn't answer, staring at him with unfocused eyes. Her pupils were so large her eyes looked black. His neck muscles twitched as every hair on his body stood on end. It was like she was looking through him to something a lot more interesting. Something deeper. They sat that way in silence for longer than was comfortable.

"Ultear?"

She jumped at Levy voicing her name. "Oh, yeah, sorry. Gray, your aura...well, it's as _odd_ as all of theirs at least..."

"What the hell is that supposed to mean?"

"It...well...I can't really tell you without giving you some context, okay?" She blinked a couple of times and rubbed her eyes wearily. "So a typical, happy aura is a light, usually warm-colored glow that sort of coats the skin, pushing out further with stronger emotions. But none of yours seem to follow that rule. Let's start with Levy's aura. It's mostly light, but has a black edge to it that spikes out kind of defensively at intervals. And it forms in more of a symmetrical circle around her, away from her body, and traveling around that perimeter, like it's protecting her, or caging her in, or something. Even after encountering blondie's aura and being purified a bit, the black is less, but still prominent against her otherwise fairly bright glow. Then we have Lucy and Natsu's auras: they're a lot warmer, and kind of organic, shifting and pulsing like candlelight or an aurora, changing colors quite a bit." Natsu and Lucy had stilled, listening intently to what she had to say about them as she looked their way. Ultear turned back to him. "Then, there's your aura. It's dark, which is not that unusual, since your aura has always been a little dark. It's pretty common for people with rather traumatic pasts." She didn't elaborate further, but Natsu's eyes snapped to Gray's, his free hand tugging on the scarf around his throat. Gray couldn't help but understand what he was thinking. Hell, he was thinking it too: why wasn't Natsu's dark too? "But, what's really unusual about yours, is that it's not moving. Like, at all." Everyone looked back at Ultear.

"Wait, it's not moving? What does that mean?" Levy voiced the question on the tip of Gray's tongue.

"Honestly, I'm not sure." She squinted her eyes and leaned towards Gray. He struggled not to squirm under her inspection. "Most of the time, I can't get a clear picture of the surface of an aura, since it's constantly moving, or shining, but I can see the edges of yours. It's rough, like...I don't know, it reminds me of _something_ though...coral maybe? Sort of porous, or like you're coated in spray insulation or something? And there are little cracks in it...I think."

Gray's pulse jumped. Cracks? That didn't sound good.

"I wish your parents were around to observe. I suspect your heritage may have something to do with the odd texture. Oh! It's like frost! The texture, I mean. You've always been weird about the cold after you spent time in that car, but-HOLY SHIT!" Ultear dove backward, falling onto the floor in the process, eyes wide.

Gray's pulse hammered in his ears as he struggled not to think of the image her words had conjured. He curled fingers numbed by the memory of cold, pressed frozen lips together, and desperately struggled to press down the fear over-powering his heart. It had been a long time since he'd remembered it so vividly. He half-expected to see his own breath.

"What? What did you see?" His voice had morphed to an emotionless monotone.

"It-it _expanded._ It's still not moving, but now it's standing up outside your skin. Definitely like spikes of ice. Dark, frozen stalactites." Her tone was chilling, making the rest of the circle shiver.

"Stalagmites," Natsu muttered immediately.

Ultear tched. "Whatever. You know what I mean."

Lucy sat frozen, one hand against her chest, eyes unblinking. Natsu hugged her closer still, a resigned but wary expression on his face. Everyone seemed deep in thought.

Except for Loke. "Well, that's just too good for words isn't it?" he said cheerfully, a grin broad across his face. Everyone turned to look at him like we was nuts. They didn't notice that Erik and Gajeel had come to lean against the wall, each with a fork and half empty plate of scrambled eggs. "Fire and Ice!"

The confused silence continued.

"Get it? Oh, come on! That's what everyone calls Natsu and Gray at the house! The Fire and Ice Duo! Guess that's more accurate than we thought. You guys are so predictable that your fucking auras even follow your reps!" He dissolved into laughter, clapping a hand on Gray's shoulder. His tone was light, but the hand squeezed his friend's tense muscles hard. Gray blinked and winced as the pain made its way through him. The cold started to dissipate in him as he relaxed his clenched muscles. He looked sidelong at his friend.

 _How the fuck did he do that? What did he even do?_

"Gray…what…? You're so..."

He didn't even have time to look up at Lucy's words before he was hit by her hug. Her body heat spread through him as he reflexively wrapped his arms around her too, drawn to her warmth. His gaze found Natsu's over her shoulder and he was surprised to see understanding in his eyes instead of anger. Though, his fingers did reflexively clench when Gray tightened his grip on the blonde who was half-kneeling more or less in his lap.

Actually, her knee was digging into his quad in a rather painful way, but he couldn't bring himself to let her go. Her warmth felt so good after the odd experience he'd just been through. He felt something wet against the back of his neck and looked up at Natsu, confirming his theory as the pinkette adopted an emotionless facade and casually wiped a tear off his own cheek. Gray resisted the urge to razz his roommate about it. But then he heard Lucy's soft words near his ear.

"Please don't feel like that anymore. You're not alone. You have us. You don't have to feel that way anymore. Because...that was... _terrible._ " She squeezed him tighter, almost falling over in the process. He automatically adjusted to counterweight her as he tried to get a handle on what she was saying.

 _Terrible?_ He hadn't felt that way in a while, but there had been a point in his life, not so very long ago, when the cold had never seemed to leave him. It was just...the way he felt. The norm. But, it was _terrible_ to her? The girl who had been forced to watch someone she loved _murdered_ in front of her?! It slammed things into a rather harsh change in perspective for him.

To Gray's horror, tears pricked at the corners of his eyes too. His arms tightened around Lucy and he buried his face in her shoulder, desperately trying to keep them from coming. How long had it been since someone had just held him like that? And how much longer since it was something given to him, instead of taken or coaxed? How had he not even noticed that until now?

Questions swirled numbly, almost clinically, in his head, helping to stem pressure behind his eyes. Slowly, Lucy released him, drawing back so she could look at him. She didn't say anything, just squinted at him for a minute, like she was trying to see what his brain looked like through his skull. Finally, she closed her eyes, leaned her forehead on his and smiled, breathing out in relief, "Much better."

And, somehow, he was.

How weird.

Then she was gone, snatched out of his arms by a glaring Natsu. Something that sounded almost like a growl curled from his throat as he leapt to his feet and drew back an arm. It was such a weird switch from the moment before that Gray almost didn't have time to get his guard up before Natsu swung at him.

"Don't fucking touch her!"

Gray took the punch on his forearm and glared back, leaping to his own feet. "Isuse Krist man! Overreact much!? Five seconds ago you were fine with it. Chill the fuck out!"

Lucy was up in an instant too, arms banding themselves around Natsu's torso. She opened her mouth to say something, but was interrupted by the sound of several text message alerts going off at once. Gray and Natsu did move, but Loke immediately pulled out his phone. Whatever he read turned his amused smirk into a frown.

"Fight over that goddess later, guys. We're being summoned."

* * *

Erza was on the twelfth point of her twenty-one point argument of why ill-mannered language should never be tolerated when Mystogan's phone went off. He was ashamed to say he was a little relieved. Distracting Erza took a lot of energy, and he was running on empty...from his afternoon spent...hehe... _distracting_ her. He internally grinned at the thought. Still, sleep sounded like unattainable bliss. Wearily, he waited until Erza's pacing turned her away from him to open up the new message. Immediately, he stood up from his seat on Lucy's bed (mediocre support, decent amount of springiness, passable contouring: a solid B-) and held up a hand to stop Erza.

"Sorry, there's been an emergency at the house. I have to go."

Erza looked back at him for a loaded moment of silence before nodding. "Of course. Call me if I'm needed."

No argument, no questions, just immediate acceptance that he had it under control, and trust that he'd tell her if it was important.

Mystogan's face broke into wide smile and he kissed her firmly, though his eyes remained serious. He was eminently grateful that every other man he knew was scared shitless of her. They had no fucking clue what they were missing. Loyalty and sense like hers were rare indeed. A woman like her was worth a lifetime of being scolded for cursing. "I love you."

Wait, a lifetime? Did he really just think that?

Yeah. Yeah he did.

Her cheek grew warm under his hand, but not leaning an iota of an inch closer to him. "I thought you said it was an emergency." Her disgruntled tone almost hid her satisfaction at his words.

Almost.

"One of these days you'll say it back."

"Go. Before I start thinking you're lying to me about this emergency." Her eyes narrowed suspiciously.

He immediately turned around and walked out the door to find Natsu, Gray, and Loke on their feet, phones out. "Good, so you've seen it. Let's go."

Gray led the way, Loke on his heels. Natsu paused to plant a kiss on Lucy's forehead, then slap her on the ass, ducking her counter attack and following them out. Mystogan looked down at the message on his phone one more time before clicking it off and shoving it in his pocket.

 **Thundercats go!**

In retrospect, letting Laxus choose the fraternity's emergency code for the year may not have been the best idea Freed ever had.

* * *

As the Master of Fairy Tail, Cana had surprisingly few duties:

1) Keep the boys from destroying the house.

2) Stop any illegal activities from happening (or at least being discovered).

3) Sort and hand out the mail (which she had of course immediately delegated to Romeo, because, uh, boring)

4) Call for help in the case of an emergency.

However, as she stared at the two boys VERY thoroughly duct-taped to the front of the building she now called home, she couldn't help but think that calling the fire department wouldn't help the situation.

Plus, that would mean she'd have to stop taking pictures long enough to call them. Looking at her most recent shot, she wondered what the yellow duck-taped symbol across their chests meant. It looked like a snake head or something.

She snapped another couple of shots as Jet and Droy glared down at her. She smiled sweetly back up at them. "So, how did you guys manage this again?"

Angry muffled screaming was all that could be heard through the duct tape over their mouths.

"Oh right, you're dumbasses. My bad, I already knew that."

They just glared back in silence.

"You're a terrible house mom," Laxus commented drily from beside her, crossing his arms over his bare chest. Cana swiveled smoothly and took a quick pic of the boxer-clad man right before he rolled his eyes. There were definitely hidden perks for being summoned from bed at the crack of eleven to deal with stupid fraternity shit. The well-sculpted chest of the Russian tsundere being displayed in all its glory was one of them.

"Laxus, put on a shirt or something, you're going to get sick."

Freed worrying over the hulk of delicious manliness like a dance mom was not.

The green-haired hipster was dressed in what could have been vintage long-johns (if it weren't for the giant alphabet soup letters adorning them) and a t-shirt featuring a pineapple wearing Ray-Bans. He rubbed his eyes wearily and carefully replaced his thick-framed glasses back on the bridge of his nose. His long, silky hair was bundled into a topknot with a bright purple scrunchie. Dear gods, he really took that whole hipster persona to heart didn't he?

Actually, on closer consideration, he was sort of cute...in a riding-the-fine-line-between-fashionably-offbeat-and-more-than-likely-an-overbearing-social-justice-warrior kind of way. She snapped a pic of him too. If only because she kind of wanted a pair of those long johns.

"Tch. This doesn't come close to cold Freed, man up." Laxus replied, but took the sweatshirt his friend was offering anyway.

"So, how are we getting them down?"

The voice, coming from behind her, reminded Cana that there was actually quite a crowd to be found on the front porch of Fairy Tail in various states of dress. It was surprising how many of them had been pulled from their beds at the not-so-late hour. Maybe it was midterms… As though he had read her mind, she heard Warren muttering behind her.

"Bastards. Pulling this shit right before midterms is fucking stupid."

"No shit. If I flunk this semester, Bacchus will kill me."

Cana turned at that, one eyebrow raised at the speaker, who apparently didn't take his stupid dog collar necklace off even when he went to bed. _Whatever gets you going I guess. No kink-shaming here…_

"Bacchus? What's he got to do with it?" Cana would never admit it aloud and break the spell she seemed to have over her favorite fuck-buddy, but she found him kind of intriguing. For such a social guy, he rarely shared anything about himself.

It was Freed that answered her question. "He's been tutoring the former Quat Cerb guys since they joined. Apparently he's determined to keep them all together."

"I can't imagine he'd be that much help, honestly." Cana tried to picture the half-asian bartender reading a book. She straight-up couldn't do it. It kept morphing into a bottle of something delicious. Gods she was thirsty. Where was a hidden bottle of Jim Beam when you needed one?

"Actually, he's kind of a genius when he's sober. If he bothered to go to class more, he'd have graduated a long time ago," Freed explained as he pushed his glasses back up his nose and tilted his head, continuing to examine the problem at hand. "Laxus, do you think the kitchen ladder will do it, or do we need to steal the one from campus maintenance again?"

 _Huh...would not have expected that…_ Cana zoned out Laxus' answer as her eyes roamed the men surrounding her looking for the supposed genius and his signature topknot. When she finally found him, her newfound respect for him dissolved into amusement.

Bacchus smirked down at her from his place laying across the flat roof. She snapped a picture to remember it by. Sure, she'd seen it all before, but an athletically inclined male posing in nothing but baggy brown pajama pants was always a good time.

"Askin' up on me? Should I be flattered or concerned?" he drawled. Casually, he reached down and ripped the duct tape off of first Droy's mouth, then Jet's.

"SON OF A BITCH THAT HURT!" Jet bellowed. "Now someone get us the hell down from here!"

"Please!" Droy added. "I'm pretty sure my arm and leg hair is the only thing holding me up at this point." He cringed, trying not to shift around too much, while Jet struggled against the tape to no avail. There was at least a whole roll's worth on each of them.

"Chillax brothers. You'll be down in no time. In the meantime…" Bacchus dropped his arm carelessly over the gutter, holding a full shot glass of something clear. "What's a wild fraternity prank war without a drink to go with it?"

Cana rolled her eyes as he somehow managed to help the captive brothers each take a shot. _Yeah, he's a_ _total_ _genius._

"Yo, Freed, the rest of the guys just hit the corner!" Bacchus suddenly bellowed as he propped his head up on one hand. "I'll keep watch while you get the newbs organized."

"Aye, General Dionysus," Freed responded promptly, joining Laxus as he started pushing the pissed group of males back into the house. HIs eyes lit up, instantly awake. "Pledges, thy hour is nigh! To me!"

Ignoring the eager-looking youths following Freed into the house, Cana's mouth fell open. " _General_ _Dionysus_?" She dissolved into giggles. "You're kidding right?"

Bacchus grinned down at her with heavy-lidded eyes. "Naw, babette, this shit is deadly serious. I am the duly appointed General of the Magnolia University Fairy Tail Fraternity Chapter, responsible for defending our borders and leading all interfraternity warfare. It is my solemn duty to avenge our fallen comrades. Which reminds me.." He tipped his bottle over the side of the house in memory of all of Fairy Tail's fallen.

And conveniently forgot there were people taped to the wall right below him.

"Shit! You maybe wanna NOT pour booze in my hair right now, _General_?" Jet whined.

"Oops. My bad."

Cana ignored the squirming ginger on the wall. "How the hell did you become their general? You don't seem like the type."

The famed Drunken General of Fairy Tail shrugged and took another swig. "Probably because my dad is General Groh." About to go for another drink, he seemed to think better of it and capped the bottle in his hands. Something over her head caught his attention and he smoothly rose to his feet in one motion. If she hadn't just seen him downing what was now a mostly empty bottle, she would have thought he was dead sober. His eyes opened fully, his shoulders straightened and an aura of gravity settled over him like a cloak.

And then he stumbled, sitting down hard on the roof again. A giggle escaped her lips and a matching smirk crept up his face. "Are you laughing at your General, Master? That's poor form, Wild Thing."

Cana snorted. "I still think you're full of shit. No way you're a general of anything." Though the name General Groh struck a chord in her memory.

"You're wrong there," came Gray's voice from behind her. "We'd never dream of following anyone else into battle on Fairy Tail's behalf."

She twisted to look at him and was surprised to see Mystogan, Loke, Gray, and most surprisingly, Natsu, offering Bacchus a salute.

"Hey Gray, long time no see. Where's your new lady friend?" Cana turned back, just in time to see Bacchus salute them back.

"None of your business," Gray replied fondly with a smirk in her direction.

Cana shrugged. "Fair enough."

"Now that our raiding party captains are here, we can get this party started! As you can see, _they've_ finally made a formal declaration after all the sneaky pussy-footing around last semester. Get your asses inside and organize the patrol. Then the real fun can start." Bacchus' tone was light, but his eyes had gone hard. Cana almost couldn't believe he was the same person.

"Aye Sir!" they chorused back at him, striding as one into the house efficiently. Was this even the same fucking fraternity? Had she had a bad batch of Moon Drip and woken up in an alternate reality?

Actually that sounded kind of fun...

"Hey, heads up Wild Thing!"

Thankfully, Cana had decent reflexes, because the next second, there was a glass bottle dropping on her from above. She caught it. Barely. Irritated, she turned the bottle so she could see the label.

And went from irritated to furious.

"Dassai 23? Are you fucking kidding me?! You just dropped a bottle of DASSAI 23 off the roof of a two story building? AND POURED SOME OF IT ON THE FUCKING GROUND?!"

"Well, it was on my head actually…" Jet grumbled. Cana ignored him.

"What the FUCK is wrong with you?! This is considered PERFECT sake. _PERFECT_ FUCKING BOOZE YOU DUMBASS! You are so lucky I don't come up there and kick your ass!"

Bacchus laughed down at her. "It would be wild to see ya try, but that will have to wait for another time. Keep that safe for me, would ya babe?"

"Psh. Like you're ever getting it back!" Cana cradled the bottle and the remains of its precious liquid treasure against her ample chest, cooing and petting the bottle a bit as she walked back towards the door to the house. "Throwing a beautiful thing like you off the roof! What a cruel bastard. He doesn't deserve you…"

The door closed behind her on Bacchus' laughter as he watched her baby a mostly empty bottle of liquor with maternal instincts he would have bet good money did not have a foothold in any corner of her heart.

"You gonna tell her that your mom's family manages the Dassai Brewery, or just let her go on thinking you're abusive to rare expensive Japanese liquor?" Droy asked, trying his best to look up at Bacchus past the tape across his forehead. "I think she'd call Booze Protective Services on you if such a thing existed."

Bacchus snickered. "You kidding? She'd never leave me alone. It's much more fun to chase her than try to withstand her advances. Plus, she's well on her way to having a prestigious brew of her own. She might just start extorting trade secrets or something. I'd be helpless to resist. Plus, I'm saving that trump card for later. Can't let her get bored of me too quick now can I?"

"You do know she's fucked half the house, right? I think that ship has sailed." Jet's tone was a little smug, being one of the chosen multitude.

Bacchus shrugged. "She's a free spirit. Trying to cage that would be a crime against nature. Besides, it's not the path she travels that matters, but where she calls home at the end of the day."

"That's pretty zen of you," Droy commented.

"So...she's basically living in your room isn't she?" Jet guessed, head struggling in vain to turn so he could look him in the eye.

"Pretty much! And I'm calling that a win!" Bacchus crowed, throwing his head back to cackle at the moon. "But keeping my Dassai stash from her sleep-drinking has been like working the night shift again!"

"I _thought_ you'd been napping a bit more frequently…" Droy mused.

"You are one strange dude," Jet muttered.

"Interesting strategy, Agent Orange. I personally wouldn't insult the person solely responsible for organizing your rescue, but that's just me."

"Well, you're doing a shitty job of it so far!"

"All in good time, El Gingero."

Jet struggled in earnest against his bonds again. "Lay off my hair, you asshole!"

"Would you prefer I call you by your _pledge name_ then?" Bacchus taunted.

"No, I wouldn't! Because I have a real name dammit!"

"Hey, look at that! I think redheads _do_ have quicker tempers! What do you think Droy?" The noirette lay back down idly, deliberately turning away from Jet as he sputtered curses.

Droy tried his best to nod sagely. "I've always found that to be true."

Jet's struggling ceased as he gave up on everything. Just, everything. "You guys suck."

"We know." They replied.

* * *

A minute later, a couple of the newest members of Fairy Tail came out to relieve Bacchus, dressed in full black and carrying paintball guns. They were quickly followed by a team that had commandeered a ladder tall enough (from...somewhere), and within the hour, Jet and Droy were being massaged with Goo Gone by a couple of sympathetic volunteers from the neighboring sorority who had seen the ruckus and come to investigate. Then the true war council meeting finally began.

Bacchus sat serenely on the floor in front of a Fairy Tail flag the size of the massive TV it covered, sharp eyes darting around to stare down individual members as they settled into the tiers of couches covering the majority of the floor in the room. Over the years, enough couches had been adopted or donated to seat the population of the house quite comfortably, though, some were in better condition than others. It was an impressive set up, like a second-hand furnished senatorial chamber.

Cana had been forced onto a cross-stitch-covered glider/rocker off to one side that would have better suited a woman three times her age and sat furiously rocking in defiance, the sake bottle cradled in her lap. Natsu sat directly next to her in his customary place: sharing a beat-up, but deceptively comfortable, sofa with Gray. In the center of the first row, a large, well-worn leather recliner held Freed Justine, the current president of the house.

When everyone was finally seated, Freed stood, picking up the bulky, yet lightweight, item he held reverently in his lap, and presented it with a flourish to Bacchus, who stood to take it from him. Silence fell on the room, signalling Cana to slow her clacking to a halt.

"With the passing of this auspicious foam finger, the command of Fairy Tail in this time of war falls on your capable shoulders, General Dionysus. If any man here should wish to contest the passing of the finger, let him speak now."

A moment of silence was observed before Freed began again. "Very well. Does it please the house that General Dionysus is henceforth our unified leader and all members of our sacred order will follow his will during this time of war?"

As one, the hall responded, raising their right hands, index fingers pointed to the sky and thumbs turned out to the right, showing the backs of their hands to Bacchus.

"AYE SIR!"

Bacchus put on the foam finger and held it aloft. Instead of the traditional '#1' position, it mirrored the hands raised around the room. _They had a custom foam finger made? Seriously?!_

"I am content to shoulder the mantle of our sacred order's military needs and take the Foam Finger of Leadership from President Pagemaster ( _Oh right_ , thought Natsu, _that's where I heard that…_ ) for the duration of the war that has come to our doors, swearing to return its power when, and only when, victory has been achieved in the name of our sacred order. Are my brothers content to follow me to victory?"

"AYE SIR!" The floors shook with their resounding cries.

Cana could feel a vibration in her blood she hadn't a moment before. The hairs on her arms stood on end and her scalp crawled.

"Thank you for your confidence, my brothers. As my Lieutenants, I name brothers Sandman and Zero. Do you accept my choice?

"AYE SIR!"

Mystogan and Gray rose to their feet and went to join Bacchus on the floor.

"Very well. Then this meeting of war is now adjourned. Keep the chatter down, ya bastards."

Murmurs broke out as Bacchus convened with his Lieutenants. Cana took this moment to poke Natsu in the arm.

"Hey, Natsu, what's with the weird names?"

The pinkette jumped, apparently forgetting she was there. He pocketed Mystogan's phone, which he'd stolen and installed Pokemon Go! on. He'd give it back later...after he'd managed to find some water pokemon to stock him up with. _Hehe. Mysty. Too good to pass up. Wait, what did she want?_ "Huh?"

"What? Too busy texting your girlfriend to pay attention? I asked, what's up with the names, loverboy?" Cana asked again playfully.

"They're house nicknames we got as pledges, but we use 'em for the formal stuff sometimes. When it's fun shit like frat wars."

"Oh. What's yours?"

Natsu's cheeks pinked up a bit, but he straightened his spine with a smirk. "Puff."

"...as in-"

"The Magic Dragon. Yes. The guys maaaaay have thought I was on something when I pledged. I was a pretty hyperactive freshman…"

 _Was? Oh, honey...that's cute,_ Cana thought to herself. "Ah, I see."

"But then I started doing the Fire Dragon Roar, so it's kind of more about that now."

"Fire Dragon Roar?"

Natsu raised an eyebrow, then smirked. "Oh right, you haven't seen it yet...I'll show you later. It's kind of my thing."

"I thought your thing was getting into fights and confessing your love in embarrassing ways on tape... but it sounds kinky. I'm in."

"You know, Cana, I kind of hate you."

"Shut up, you love me. I'm just sad your pretty little soulmate got to you before I did." She leered openly, scanning Natsu's muscular frame. "I bet you really know how to handle your...dragon."

Unexpectedly, a laugh broke out around them, making Cana jump. Max, seated on the couch the next row back tried in vain to stop the guffaws spilling out of his mouth.

Natsu glared at him, eye twitching slightly. "Don't you dare."

"Oh...hahahaha, you don't want her knowing about _that?!_ Hehehehehe. Cana, I think what you _meant_ to say was he knows how to handle the 'CHAIN CANNON OF THE DOOMSDAY DRAGON!'" The last part Max yelled at the top of his lungs, prompting everyone in the room to look their way, rolling eyes and big grins quickly popping up in response. A few voices chorused back: "All Hail the Doomsday Dragon!".

"Shit." Natsu ran a hand down his face. _I was really hoping to keep this from Lucy for at least...forever._

 _ **Keep what from me?**_

 _Aaaaand fuck me._

 _ **What?!**_ Natsu hung his head and groaned.

 _Too late._

It took less time than he would have thought for Cana to catch on (actually scratch that, it being Cana, he was shocked she hadn't gotten it sooner).

"Wait, is that what you named your dick?!"

 _ **WHAT?!**_

"And he went around demanding we pay homage to it. It was fucking hilarious!" Max got out between laughs.

 _Fuck. Fuckfuckfuck. Hell, one more for good measure: FUCK._ "Listen," he told both the girl in front of him and the one in his head. "I was REALLY drunk when I came up with that. And young! ...and drunk. Really, _really_ drunk."

"You said that already."

 _ **You said that already.**_

How did girls always managed to sound exactly the same?! Even when they couldn't even hear each other!?

"Brother Puff, please! We're trying to lay out a plan of attack here, can you try not to incite the whole room into riots while we're doing so?" Freed's dry tone cut through the noise erupting all over the hall. Behind him, the General and his newly promoted lieutenants kept talking from their place on the floor surrounding a rather ornately drawn campus map. They hadn't even noticed a change in the room.

"Hey, quick question, Doomsday Dragon." Natsu cringed at Cana's new nickname for him. "You basically ran the party for dad, and you're clearly one of the best fighters here, so why aren't you one of the lieutenants?"

"Oh, that!" It was Max who answered her question, earning himself another glare from Natsu. "He and Gray can't be on different squads."

Cana grinned speculatively back at Natsu again. "Oh really? How cute! You guys didn't strike me as _that_ kind of friends...if I'd only known!"

"Oh for the love of-"

"No, Master Cana, you've got it by the wrong end!" Max interrupted again.

Natsu's fingers curled into fists. _One more time. Interrupt me one more fucking time…_

 _ **Shut up, and think about what he's saying, this is interesting! And no fighting, remember?!**_ Natsu rolled his eyes, but uncurled his fists. He'd really gotten Lucy punched enough for one day already. Granted, with the impending battle ahead, things weren't looking great in that department...

"They're too competitive! The last time they headed up different attack squads they ended up captured by the pansies at _Pegasus_. After racking up a shit-ton of damage expenses."

Natsu winced. That had been a serious dip in his finances. _But at least Igneel wouldn't have had a problem with his money going toward something like that. He loved stirring up mayhem._

 _ **Really? He sounds...fun. I wish I could have met him.**_

Natsu's heart squeezed in his chest for a moment. _Yeah, he would have liked you._

 _ **Really?! You think?**_

 _Absolutely. One look at you and he'd have been eating out of the palm of your hand. He always had a thing for blondes. You know, actually, it's probably good you never met…_

 _ **Hey!**_

 _What? He was kind of a perv sometimes!_

"...a concrete fountain, the pegasus statue's wing, an alumni donated Japanese maple tree…"

 _Oh right! I'd totally forgotten about the tree!_ An image popped into his head of what Blue Pegasus' house had looked like as he stood in the street in front of it watching the merry flames of his mis-fired Roman Candle burn the delicate red leaves to ash (and the toilet paper strewn over them) as the broken fountain flooded the lawn and Blue Pegasus members ran around trying desperately to put out the fire. _Good times._

 _ **There is something seriously wrong with you.**_

 _That was nothing. We dug up their sakura tree the next year and used it in our Homecoming float. They didn't even realize it was theirs until the parade was over!_

 _ **Seriously. Wrong.**_

 _Nope. I'm all that is man. Not my fault you can't handle it._

"...five windows, and a 25 lb turkey," Max finished.

"A turkey?" Cana asked through her giggles.

"It was Thanksgiving," Natsu added with a grin.

 _Yeah, sometimes I'm just too awesome for this world._

 _ **Yeeeeah...I don't think that's it.**_

"It was the day _before_ Thanksgiving, you fucking pyro." Gray had apparently finished his discussion with 'General Dionysus'. "Which is the only thing that saved your ass. At least we had time to help clean it up before their family day philanthropy event. If we'd have attacked on Thanksgiving like planned, you probably would have been expelled. Or imprisoned for arson."

"Hey! It wasn't just me! I wasn't the one who hooked a truck up to their fucking fountain. That thing cost more than everything I totalled combined!"

Gray winced. "Oh right. Yeah, that was less than ideal…"

"So Gorgeous, why do they call you Zero?" Cana asked, pulling her legs up into a tailor's seat in her granny rocker. "Does it have something to do with your major?"

"What because he's in accounting? Psh, hardly." Max really did have a big mouth. Both Natsu and Gray narrowed their eyes in his direction. "Nah, it started out as Absolute Zero, because his pledge father was a chem major, but got shortened to Zero when everyone got to know him better."

Cana raised an eyebrow. "Okay...so, still not getting why…"

Natsu snorted. "It's for the number of fucks he gives on a regular basis. Absolutely zero."

Gray scoffed, but stood a little jauntier. He had a pretty sweet nickname. That was definitely not the case for most. Like poor Max… Gray grinned. "It beats Broomfucker."

Max went white. "Fuck you."

Cana couldn't contain her squeal of glee. "Oh my god, seriously?! Do I even want to know?"

"No," they all chorused together, cringing at the memory.

In a desperate attempt to change the topic of conversations, Max abruptly blurted out, "Loke's is Frodo!"

"Like...the gnome guy?"

"Hobbit." Both Max and Gray corrected instantly. Natsu just snorted.

Cana rolled her eyes. "Whatever. Either way, it doesn't seem like a fitting name for him."

"No, actually, it's pretty perfect for him," Natsu insisted. Seeing Bacchus looking in their direction, he hopped up to stretch out his legs.

Gray nodded in agreement. "Dude got really drunk when he was a pledge at one of the parties and proposed to _literally_ every girl there. Multiple times."

"Ah, so he's Frodo because…" Cana mused with a smile.

"He's obsessed with the ring," Max finished mock-wisely.

An arm draped over Cana's shoulders as the ginger in question perched on the arm of her chair. "What can I say? I just can't help wanting to put a ring on it!" Loke smiled down at her, playfulness glittering behind his designer glasses as he took her hand and planted a kiss on it. " _It_ being every gorgeous woman I meet."

Gray laughed outright. "More like you thought it was what every girl wanted in order to sleep with you."

Loke didn't miss a beat. "Well, yeah, that too. Freshman me was quite the romantic."

At that point, the great Drunken General of Fairy Tail Fraternity approached them. "Lieutenant Zero, Captain Puff, you guys ready to head out?"

"Haven't filled him in yet, but we'll be good to go in a minute. What time do we leave?" Gray responded immediately.

"2400 hours. You've got twenty minutes to fill in your team and gear up," Bacchus replied sternly. Cana eyed him curiously. There was that Bacchus doppelganger again; that completely different side of him looking out through his eyes.

Then he caught her eye and winked.

 _Ok, not_ that _different._

"Aye sir!" Gray and Natsu replied with lazy two-fingered salutes. Bacchus left then, heading back to the map still spread across the floor.

"So, Absolutely-Zero-Brains, what's the play?" Natsu asked.

"Well, since you asked so nicely, Puff-the-Magic-Suck-My-Dick, we're going for a classic grab and dash. With a good old-fashioned diversion," Gray responded coolly.

Warren leaned up next to them, having sat back listening to the conversation up until then. "What's the target?"

"Frosch."

Max whistled. "Not Lector too?"

"Too tough to get them both. We've got to go quick and quiet on this one. They'll be expecting a counterattack," Gray explained.

"Lit. I'm all fired up now! Bacchus knows how to get shit _done_!" Natsu grinned maniacally. "How are we going to transport him? That thing is heavy.."

"What's Frosch? And Sabertooth? Other than an extinct tiger..." Cana asked, subconsciously unscrewing the bottle in her lap to take a swig. It distracted her immediately, the smooth sake running down her throat like water on a dry riverbed. She melted back into her chair, hugging the bottle to her face with a dreamy smile. "Shit that's good."

"Sabertooth is another fraternity. They're the ones who taped up Trigger & Mac," Gray offered.

"Jet and Droy," Loke helpfully purred into her ear. He reached for the bottle, but she swatted it away giving him a lazy inquisitive look as she dumped another double-dose of sake down her gullet. He answered her unspoken question: "Droy steals everyone's instant mac n' cheese when he gets blackout drunk, and Jet...well, _you_ fucked him didn't you? Do you really need me to explain that one?"

"Ah. Right. Gotcha," Cana agreed immediately. _Stamina was_ definitely _not his strong suit..._

"And 'Frosch' is one of a pair of statues that was donated by one of their alumni. They're weird as fuck, but those bastards practically fucking worship the things. So, we're gonna steal one." Natsu grinned almost maniacally. "And probably hold it ransom."

 _ **You know, you're enjoying this maybe a little too much...I can feel your glee down to my toes. It tickles.**_

 _Damn straight I am._ Natsu let the excitement swell up within him. He grinned wider when he felt Lucy squirm.

 _ **In my mind, Natsu, you are buried in cement right up to your neck. No… right up to your nose… that's much quieter.**_

 _Liar. In your mind I'm shirtless and playing water polo._

 _ **Well, NOW you are, you asshole!**_

Natsu choked on his own laughter when a mental image of him doing just that flashed through his mind for a brief moment. Or rather, a picture of him riding a horse through water.

 _Wait! Do you not know what water polo is?!_

 _ **Shut up! I was SHELTERED DAMMIT! I went to**_ **actual** _ **polo matches. Forgive me for making a godsdamned inference!**_

 _You're too fucking cute sometimes._

Natsu smiled at the heat he felt in her cheeks and ducked his head a bit to hide his now mirrored blush.

"So what's the plan for a diversion?" Warren asked. "Pulling out a classic Gildarts maneuver?"

"Dad? Do I even want to know the kind of shit he pulled?"

"Sometimes, I kind of forget you're related to Gildarts," Natsu said. _Although, the gods only know why. You're exactly the fucking same._ "And, honestly? You've probably done worse than he ever did."

 _ **I have really got to meet her sometime.**_

 _...uh, sure. Why not,"_ he thought back unenthusiastically, trying hard not to think of all the reasons that would probably be a terrible idea.

 _ **Geez, don't be so excited about introducing me to people or anything…**_

Natsu rolled his eyes. _Trust me, that is really not the issue here._

Cana snorted. "Life goals."

"Amen..." Loke sighed reverently as he gazed down into Cana's cleavage. Without looking at him, she reached up an arm and scratched his scalp fondly, like the sexy pet kitty he was to her. She could have sworn he purred for a second.

"Sandman is on diversion duty," Gray elaborated. "But I doubt his plan is to just show up and start breaking stuff like the Crash Wizard used to do."

"Still does…" Cana muttered under breath, recalling the barrel of aged whiskey he'd completely demolished on her 18th birthday. A part of her still hadn't forgiven him.

"Knowing Mystogan, it will be complicated in the extreme," Natsu mused happily, fully lost to the thrill of preparing for a raid. He could feel Lucy wiggling her toes again.

"Affirmative." Bacchus was back, frowning slightly at Loke as he sidled up. "Lieutenant Sandman will be baiting the enemy with a small team. And, before I forget to tell you, Zero, Brother Lapdog will be back any minute with his parents' hydraulic lift cart for you to use."

"Perfect." Natsu grinned. He was so ready for this.

"But you guys better hurry up. We head out in 15. Mystogan's group is already prepping." He gestured over his shoulder.

They looked up and around the room to see Mystogan, Freed, and Laxus were carefully funneling liquor out of its bottles and into whatever vessels they could find for the purpose. Freed was aerating a dry chardonnay into a crystal decanter, Mystogan was dumping the latter half of a bottle of Captain into an oversized metal flask, and Laxus had just finished filling a mason jar to the rim with Stoli. He slurped a little off the top and capped it, grabbing the bottle and heading upstairs. Mystogan and Freed followed behind him, bottles in hand.

"Shit." Gray started for the door, grabbing Loke by the collar as he went by. "C'mon Frodo, you're with us." Natsu followed him, mentally cataloguing where all of his ninja gear was stashed in his room. Lucy's thoughts broke his concentration though.

 _ **Why the hell do you have all that stuff?!**_

 _Don't worry about it._

 _ **Like that's gonna happen. First Erza and Erik, now you? Someone is going to get hurt.**_

 _Wait, what about Erza and Erik? ...who the fuck is Erik again?_

…

 _Luce?_

He could feel her distraction, incoherent half-sentences overlapping one another.

Oh well, he'd find out later. Right now, he had a statue to abduct.

Then he could sneak back in and spend the rest of the night, and preferably most of the morning, snuggled up in bed with her.

But maybe with less snuggling.

Hehe. It was probably a good thing Lucy was distracted enough not to hear his thoughts.

* * *

 _A little bit earlier..._

Erza was losing her patience.

"Why won't you teach me how to stop the bond? I am confident I will be able to master it."

Gajeel's eyebrows lowered further and a frustrated noise that sounded suspiciously like a growl escaped his throat. "Listen, you crazy bitch, I've told you already: I'm not really sure how I do it! And you heard the old biddy: we've all got _different_ talents. What are the chances you even can? Either way, we don't have to argue this shit right now. I just want to go home and go to bed." With that, he pushed himself off the wall and grabbed Levy by the wrist, towing her toward the door.

The next minute, he paused, feeling the touch of cold steel against his throat. He sighed. "That shit doesn't scare me, _Titania._ So back the fuck off before I fuck you up. If you think I won't hit you 'cause you're a girl, you're more nuts than I thought."

"Then bring it, delinquent. I will defeat you without breaking a sweat and then you will be forced to immediately show me what I want to know." Erza prepared herself for a frontal assault as Gajeel raised a hand to push away her blade. Only to find herself completely surprised by the feel of the business end of one of her own switchblades at her ribs.

"You know, I kinda can't let you just shank my employer," said a drawling voice next to her ear. "He hasn't cut my check yet. Though, these pigstickers of yours aren't really my preferred weapon of choice."

Erza chastised herself for not being more aware of her surroundings. She hadn't even noticed him coming up behind her. Or removing one of her knives. Maybe being around Mystogan all the time was making her soft. Defense maneuver options flew through her mind as she froze in place. She had to keep Gajeel here. He was the only chance she had to rid herself of the cursed bond. As soon as possible. Maybe she'd be able to pick it up really quickly and avoid the whole mission thing altogether. First, she had to get of this. A twist and a quick kick to the knee should be enough…

"Alright everyone, quit acting like the fight-happy children you apparently are and back the hell down!" Lucy's voice rang out clear and commanding. They all froze at her words, but didn't move away from each other.

The blunette beside her let loose a frustrated sigh. "What she said! If you don't stop being idiots, I'll hack into the school grading program and tank your midterm grades, Erza. Y llamaré a tu oficial de libertad, Erik."

Like it was choreographed they backed away in unison, hands with knives raised. Gajeel just stayed where he was. Despite his stoic demeanor, Lucy could feel pride pulsing from him. She sent him a smirk. He tched and looked away from her, quickly snuffing the pride he felt. Mostly.

Lucy suddenly felt an influx of tingling warmth she was starting to recognize at Natsu's joy. The sensation was mostly pleasant, but made her want to dance around. They'd been casually chatting mind-to-mind since he left, but she hadn't really been listening for a bit. She wondered what was making him so freaking happy all of a sudden.

 _ **You know, you're enjoying this maybe a little too much...I can feel your glee down to my toes. It tickles.**_

 _Damn straight I am._

Lucy felt the feeling amplify, shifting from foot to foot in order to wiggle her toes. Thankfully no one noticed, focused on Levy's ire.

Levy stomped her little foot in irritation. "Gajeel, you're being an idiot too. Help Erza."

 _ **In my mind, Natsu, you are buried in cement right up to your neck. No… right up to your nose… that's much quieter.**_

"Shrimp, like I said-"

"Nope, I don't care if you don't know how you're doing it. Do your best."

"Bossy aren'tcha?"

"And proud of it."

 _Liar. In your mind I'm shirtless and playing water polo._

A rather glorious mental image blossomed into existence of him wearing nothing but low-riding swim trunks, riding a horse through a pool. She instantly tried to shut it down. With limited success.

 _ **Well, NOW you are, you asshole!**_

 _Wait! Do you not know what water polo is?!_

 _ **Shut up! I was SHELTERED DAMMIT! I went to**_ **actual** _ **polo matches. Forgive me for making a godsdamned inference!**_

 _You're too fucking cute sometimes._

Lucy tried to will the blush from her cheeks as Levy and Gajeel stared each other down in heated silence. She couldn't think of anything to say as the warmth of his fondness trickled over her. It made her a little sleepy. Which wasn't really all that surprising considering the hour.

Natsu seemed to be distracted by whatever was going on around him again. Something about another fraternity? She caught an errant thought about someone named Cana... _Although, the gods only know why. You're exactly the fucking same._

Cana...she'd heard him talk about her before. She was their house mom, right?

 _ **I have really got to meet her sometime.**_

 _...uh, sure. Why not,"_ he thought back unenthusiastically. Was there a reason he didn't want them to meet?

 _ **Geez, don't be so excited about introducing me to people or anything…**_ Lucy tried not to think about the little knot of resentment in her stomach.

She could feel Natsu roll his eyes and the knot relaxed. He might be a good liar, but his body wasn't. _Trust me, that is really not the issue here._

A gruff voice brought her back to her surroundings.

"Fine." As expected, Gajeel was the one to break first.

Erza snapped her switchblade back into its harmless form and put it away. "Excellent. Let's begin."

Gajeel tched at that. "Listen, I said I'd help, but no way in hell am I doin' it now. It's past fucking midnight and I've gotta be up early to open the shop, so you'll just have to wait."

That struck a chord with Erza. _What_ time was it?! She checked her limited edition Heart Kreuz wristwatch. The rose gold hands told her it was about twelve-ten. Past midnight…oh no.

"Shit! Erza, you need to go!" Lucy's voice echoed her own thoughts.

Jellal. The first mission.

Midnight.

And she didn't have the nitroglycerin or Mystogan at hand.

Sweat broke out on her forehead.

For once, she found the blonde's profanity completely appropriate. Without another thought, she took off running, leaving Lucy and the Black Steel crew behind her.

In the silence that settled after her departure, the four of them just stared at the open doorway.

Eventually, it was Lucy who broke the silence. "Should we go after her? To help or something?"

"Naw, Bunny Girl. Titania can handle herself. When she's not being an idiot," Gajeel felt the need to add, rubbing the spot on his neck where she'd held him at knifepoint.

"I guess…" Lucy wasn't totally sure. The redhead had felt pretty anxious. For some reason she felt responsible for Erza. Like she did with Gray and Natsu. And sort of Gajeel too. Which reminded her..."Didn't you say you had to get to bed? You're feeling pretty tired."

"Yep. But stay out of my head Blondie."

Without warning, Gajeel scooped up Levy and threw her over his shoulder.

"What the HELL, GAJEEL!? Let me DOWN! Това не е наред, грубиянин! ПУСНИ МЕ!" Levy yelled, kicking her feet.

Lucy leveled a perfunctory glare at Gajeel on Levy's behalf, but she could tell the blunette wasn't really all that mad. She could feel a small swell of affection blossoming from her and growing by the minute.

But then, suddenly, all sensation from her was abruptly cut off. Lucy's throat went dry.

"Levy!?"

Gajeel immediately swung the now limp woman around in his arms to cradle her where he could see her. "Shrimp?"

She lay there, eyes closed, breathing normal.

"What the fuck happened to her?" Erik was immediately at Gajeel's side, leaning over his shoulder.

"Flashback?" Lucy asked, resigned.

"Flashback," Gajeel confirmed wearily.

"Should we wake her?" the blonde worried aloud.

The answer came from a woman they'd all forgotten was in the room, meditating quietly in the corner: "Don't. If it is the timeline she has been seeking, she'll want to ride it out."

The hardened, badass tattoo crew (AKA Gajeel and Erik) nearly jumped out of their skin at Ultear's words. Lucy, notably less badass, actually let out a small scream, leaping several feet backward and falling over onto the couch.

"You're still here?!" the blonde yelped.

Ultear rose gracefully to her feet. "Not my fault you guys are really unobservant." She approached Levy, pausing an arm's breadth away to stare blankly at her. It didn't take long for Lucy to figure out what she was doing.

"How's her aura?"

"The black spikes are back, though they're a little less aggressive than they were. Nothing abnormal, though she looks a little agitated. What is she feeling?"

"Oh. Right." Lucy tried to focus on her friend, but everything she thought she was getting felt faint, if there at all. And Gajeel's anxiety was overshadowing everything else. "Gajeel, can you set her down and...I don't know, go to the kitchen or something? It's hard to tell anything under your panic."

Erik raised an eyebrow at his employer's blank mien. "Panic? Huh. Well isn't _that_ interesting." He smirked. "I'm starting to think you're just a big cannoli beneath that crispy shell."

Gajeel glared at Erik as he gently set down the blunette. "Hey, guess what? Time for your first employee review: you're an annoying fucker. Work on that." Then stalked off into the kitchen, rubbing his eyes before turning to stare back at the action around his girlfriend.

Lucy ignored them, kneeling beside her best friend. The feelings were still faint; sort of like a tickle in her nose before a sneeze. She was uncomfortable, still waiting to really _feel_ it.

Suddenly she got mental images of Natsu's room, and what appeared to be the hiding places of his excessive stash of...weapons?!

 _ **Why the hell do you have all that stuff?!**_

 _Don't worry about it._

 _ **Like that's gonna happen. First Erza and Erik, now you? Someone is going to get hurt.**_

 _Wait, what about Erza and Erik? ...who the fuck is Erik again?_

A glossy blue curl fell onto Levy's face and she immediately reached out to push it from her face, her fingertips brushing the skin of her cheek in the process.

"Oh!" she breathed. The contact amplified Levy's feelings. She moved her grip to the blunette's closest arm to her, pushing Natsu's thoughts to the back of her mind.

"How's she feeling?" Ultear prompted after a minute.

"She's...discouraged. But also kind of happy." It was a complicated mix between the two. And there was something else there that Lucy struggled to identify. "Is that...guilt?" The combination of feelings was familiar somehow to her. Lucy closed her eyes and concentrated harder on her friend.

And immediately lost consciousness.

Almost too late, Erik darted forward to catch the blonde as she fell unconscious to the floor.

"What the fuck is going on?" His words were harsh and hands rough at the awkward angle he'd darted to. Carefully, he sat, ending up with Lucy sort of half laying against him. Running a hand through his hair, which immediately ruffled it out of its carefully arranged spikes, he cursed. "Dios mio, they're sensitive aren't they? What the fuck is wrong with these girls?"

Gajeel appeared beside him, forgetting his exile to the kitchen as his eyebrows furrowed with open worry. "What happened?" He directed the question at the Wiccan watching the whole scene play out.

She thought for a moment before responding. "Maybe she got pulled into a flashback too? Levy said she saw some of you in her flashbacks. Maybe she was in one with a past Lucy and that triggered something. Honestly, I'm just guessing though."

"Fat lotta good you are," Gajeel growled under his breath, but he breathed easier. If it was a flashback, then they'd be fine. Probably.

Lucy's hand was still clutching Levy's arm. "What if we just take her hand off?" Erik suggested, reaching forward to do just that, one hand on Levy's arm, one on Lucy's to pry open her fingers.

When he fell over unconscious against the couch too, the two noirettes hardly blinked an eye.

"Well, that was unexpected," deadpanned Ultear.

"No shit," Gajeel replied without heat. "Should we try to get them apart? Or wake them up? What are the chances they're both in the Shrimp's flashback _and_ it's the one she wants to see?"

"Well...she did say she saw your friend in that past life…so...decent?"

"Fuck."

"Pretty much. We're just gonna have to wait."

Which is what they did.

After raiding Lucy's kitchen for snacks and coffee.

* * *

 _A sea-scented breeze whipped over her face as she stood on the tips of her toes and stared up at the biggest boat she'd ever seen. It was sooo big… She bounced on the balls of her feet, unable to contain her excitement. All around her, familjer just like hers were readying for departure: hauling suitcases and trunks, hugging their mostrar och farmor, double checking their tickets._

" _Inge! Mamma says don't stand so close to the water!" Her sister was only a couple of years older than her, but she always bossed her around like an adult. Present Levy had a moment of surprise as she turned to look at her sister and found herself staring into the eyes of Lucy. That is, Lucy as an eleven-year-old Swedish girl. The ends of her blonde braids whipped around her in the wind as she struggled to hold her little straw bonnet in place. That hat was her pride and joy._

" _Jag kommer att mår bra_ _, Sigrid._ _Mamma oroar sig alltid över ingeting_ _!" Past Levy grumbled, holding onto the railing in front of her and turning back to the huge boat they were waiting to board. It made her feel like a tiny little skalbagge in comparison, waiting for a giant foot to squash her. Her own little stråhatt had blown away hours ago, but she didn't mind the sun on her face. She'd been told they would be inside the giant boat for days and days, so she would take all the sun she could get!_

" _In English from now on, Inge! No one will understand Svenska when we get there. Better to practice now. And get back from the rail before your Pappa comes back and sees you!" Present Levy couldn't help but chuckle in her head at her past self's mom. She reminded her so much of her present mother it hurt a little. It didn't matter what time period they were in, moms were the same whenever and wherever one lived._

 _Pouting, Inge/Past Levy jumped down from the railing and walked back to her siblings, playing with the folds of her dress as she went, enjoying how they swished in the wind like the skirts that fine ladies wore._

 _Once she had reached their little pile of luggage, a small hand found its way into her own. Past Levy immediately knew whose it was._

" _Sigge, are you excited to sail away in the jättelik boat?" she said in deliberate English proudly (Present Levy was amused that she didn't notice her slip back in Swedish) without taking her gaze away from the huge ship._

" _Ja! So BIG!" came an awestruck voice just off her elbow. She finally looked down at her little brother, taking in his chubby cheeks and wild, dark red hair. He grinned up at her. Present Levy recognized Erik immediately. Inge was always in charge of keeping track of him, but she didn't mind. Sigge (Sigvard according to Mamma, but nobody ever called him that) was a good kid with lots of imagination. Even though he was five years younger than her, he was still her favorite sibling._

 _It turned out to be a good thing he'd taken her hand, since they were rudely shoved from behind the next second, stumbling forward. The only that kept Sigge from skinning his knees was his solid grip on her hand. She righted him and turned to give the person responsible a piece of her mind (as Mamma liked to say), but found Sigrid had already taken off after the culprit. Without her stråhatt._

" _Give it back!" she cried at the back of a boy who looked close to her age. He turned around and grinned, floppy pink bangs obscuring most of his face, somehow making his smile seem even bigger. Present Levy couldn't summon an iota of surprise to see him there too. She was starting to learn, where there was Lucy, Natsu would somehow inevitably follow, like a moth to the flame._

 _Past Lucy/Sigrid gave chase, pushing through the crowds stubbornly after him until Mamma called out after her._

" _Sigrid, come back this instant!"_

" _But Mamma! He has my hat!" she yelled back, stilling in mid-step, obviously wanting to give chase._

" _I would rather lose your hat than lose_ _ **you**_ _in this crowd and leave for America without you! Now, march yourself back here."_

 _Sigrid/Lucy did as she was told, tears forming in her eyes. Inge/Levy felt bad for her. She'd spent months embroidering flowers all over the brim of that hat. It was her treasure. Past Levy patted the little book of poems still safe in her pocket. She didn't get how anyone could care that much about a hat, but she didn't want it to get stolen either._

 _Mamma pulled Sigrid to her in a hug, squatting down with little three-year-old Ellis on her hip to speak softly to the blonde little girl with tears running down her face. Levy took a few steps forward, but still couldn't hear her._

" _I can't hear what they're saying," she thought out loud, forgetting the little boy at her side._

" _Mamma's telling Sigrid she'll get a new hat when we get to Merica," he offered promptly. "There are lots of hats in Merica." Present Levy laughed to herself again. It turned out Erik was a good listener in this life too. It was sort of fun to see him as a child. The feeling that he knew more than he was saying, that usually settled around him everywhere he went, was gone, replaced by quiet contentment. It seemed as long as he had a hand to hold, he was happy to go anywhere. Inge/Past Levy got that. She would miss her friends, but she was all of nine now, and ready for adventure!_

" _I'm ready too! Let's venture 'gether!" Erik/Sigge exclaimed from her side, eyes glowing with excitement. She hadn't realized she'd said the last bit aloud. It was easy to forget he was there and talk to herself sometimes._

" _Don't go adventuring without me!" cried a deep male voice from behind them they immediately recognized._

" _Pappa!" they squealed in unison, spinning and throwing themselves at his rough wool-clad legs. He leaned down to ruffled their hair, careful not to dislodge the little girl sitting on his shoulders. Ebba was six years old, but still pretty small for her age. She and Sigge were almost the same size even though he was two years younger. She clung to Pappa's collar with a deathgrip, staring wide-eyed at the crowd of people. Ebba didn't like crowds. Or strangers._

" _How are my lilla kattungar? Ready to rid the boat of all of its wee mice and earn your keep?!"_

" _No!" cried Inge/Levy and Ebba, while Erik bellowed, "JA!" at the top of his lungs. Sigrid stood next to Mamma, wiping her tears so Pappa wouldn't see. She was always doing things like that. Acting older than she was. Pretending. Inga didn't see the point. Mamma always said they'd be grown up when they grew up. No reason to speed it up. That sounded pretty good to her._

" _THIRD CLASS PASSENGERS PROCEED TO THE F DECK GANGPLANK!"_

" _Oh! Did you hear that? That's us! Gather your treasures, my kittens, and follow me!"_

 _Past Levy/Inge strengthened her grip on her little brother's hand and picked up the small basket with her and Sigge's things in it. A thrill ran through her as the horn of the big boat sounded. The stripe of red at the bottom part of the boat reached what felt like miles above her head and lent the boat a jaunty air. Like they were going to a festival, or the market._

" _Come on Erik! Let's board the Gigantisk!"_

" _That's not its name! Pappa said it's called Titanic!" Sigge/Erik said stubbornly from her side._

 _Past Levy/Inge's eyes rolled as Present Levy's blood froze. "Fine, in English then. To the Titanic and adventure!"_

* * *

 _Meanwhile, back at Fairy Tail…_

"State your purpose, or prepare to be pummeled with paint!"

Erza glared up at the scrawny boys holding rifles on her from the fraternity's roof. "I'm here to see Mystogan. Unlock the door this instant."

"Sorry, no visitors. We were told to guard the door and let no one in. Come back in the morning."

Erza ground her teeth. "Do you know who I am?"

Silence reigned on the roof as they all looked at each other and shrugged. Unfortunately for Erza, the freshman pledges put on guard duty hadn't worked up a healthy level of fear for her yet. Or learned to recognize her on sight. "Mystogan's girlfriend?" one of the idiots ventured.

"I'm Erza Scarlet. Open the door or suffer the consequences."

More silence followed by scattered chuckling. "What?" the same idiot said with more power in his voice this time. "Did Sabertooth think it would be that easy to infiltrate us? Because we're serious about our duty. No matter how pretty a girl they send, we will not yield!"

"Aye Sir!" rang out from the other 'guards', including the ones standing in her way on the porch.

Erza looked at her watch again in frustration. _Twenty after twelve._

The unfamiliar sensation of panic jolting down her spine set her on edge. She pulled out her phone and tried calling Mystogan again, unsurprisingly getting his voicemail like she had each time she'd tried on the way over. "Boys, I don't have time for your stupid little games. Go get Mystogan for me right now and I won't have to hurt you."

She felt a tingle on her arm, but didn't investigate. She shook off the sensation, chalking it up to a bug. There was no lack of them flying through the few beams of light shooting into the darkness. The weather hadn't quite turned cold enough to be rid of them yet.

If she had bother to look, Erza would have seen writing appearing as though by magic on her forearm.

"We don't negotiate with terrorists!" cried out some dumbass, followed by encouraging cheers of agreement from his fellows.

This utter nonsense was why Erza had never joined the Greek system. Well, that and the fact that she was blackballed from every sorority on campus. Cowardly women the lot of them. "Fine. I'm done talking."

Her fury was relentless as she dodged the paint-bullets she could, and ignored the ones she couldn't. Paint splashed over her chest, coating her long-sleeved t-shirt. Another hit her in the leg, bruising as it splattered across her thigh. She blocked another with her hand, shaking.

The guards had no idea what they'd gotten themselves into. If Natsu or Gray had been among their number, maybe they would have known how futile their attempts were. Instead, they shot at her blindly in the dark.

Before they knew what was happening, the lights were broken, two guards for the door had been disarmed and were being held painfully by their twisted arms against the massive wooden door, while two others lay writhing in pain on the deck, hands cupping their groins. Paint rained down behind her as the rooftop sentries tried and failed to get a good angle on the blazing-haired monster of fury illuminated in the porch light. Eventually, they stopped trying.

Erza was done being patient. She could feel paint squishing in her shoes from where it had dripped down her bare, now bruise bedecked, legs. The ones she'd so painstakingly shaved that morning. "One of you idiots get someone smarter than you or I'll start breaking bones. This is more important than your petty fraternity nonsense!"

They did as instructed.

The writing on her arm, now covered in paint, had ceased to appear.

* * *

 _Less than a mile away…_

Well…

It wasn't the diversion they had planned, but, as Mystogan stood at the center of pretty much every member of Sabertooth as they watched red and blue paint magically appear on his body, he couldn't help but admit, at least he was achieving his mission to be...diverting.

If only he had a semi-reasonable explanation to offer them. Even Freed and Laxus had completely forgotten themselves, not even bothering to act drunk anymore as they stared with the rest of the still gathering crowd. Mystogan was drawing a serious blank. Would they even believe it if he straight up told them the truth? Probably not.

Thankfully, he had seen Gray, Loke, and Natsu sneak over behind the house from the neighboring yard less than a minute before, so he wouldn't have to be stared at for long. He really wasn't a fan of being the center of attention, if he could help it, but, desperate times and all that. He refused to let Fairy Tail down in their hour of need.

"Shit! Mystogan, what the hell happened to you? Did you run into a band of elementary school students and immediately surrender like the pussy you are?" The current president of Sabertooth Fraternity had finally arrived. _Fucking awesome._ Sabertooth had been written up more than a dozen times for hazing their pledges since he'd joined, among other infringements. Jiemma was a nasty piece of work.

Just then, a particularly well-aimed blue paintball splatter bloomed over his forearm. Jiemma's next half-assed remark died as his mouth fell open. "Wait, how the FUCK are you doing that?"

His mind scrambled for feasible options: weird skin reaction? (to what? allergies? again, TO WHAT?) UV tattoos? (at night? Come on Mystogan, they're idiots, but they aren't that stupid) malfunctioning paintball squibs? (WHY? WHY WOULD THOSE EVEN BE A THING?!) science experiment gone wrong? (what branch of science would that even be?) Paintball sniper? (Well...that one wasn't terrible…wait, YES it was! It would be _their_ sniper!)

Thankfully, Natsu, Loke, and Gray chose that moment to make their uncharacteristically quiet exit, carefully pushing a low cart laden with a concrete statue and what looked like a body inconspicuously back through the neighbor's bushes. So, with the need for a diversion eliminated, his solution suddenly became clear:

"HOLY SHIT! What the FUCK is happening right now?!" He stopped looking bewildered at his own limbs long enough to glare at the crowd in front of him. "What? Can't a bro get a fucking towel or something if you're going to cover him in paint? Where's the sniper?"

Not waiting for a response, he stripped off his t-shirt, using it to scrub off the majority of the paint on his skin and hair as he looked frantically around for the non-existent sniper. He ignored the demands for an explanation and the faint cheers from the sorority windows next door when his shirt came off. Instead he scowled down at his watch and began rubbing off the red paint in its crevices. _What the hell is Erza up to? Did she provoke the pledges or something? I thought she was going to stay out of..._

The quickly drying paint coating the crystal face of his timepiece had cleared with a little targeted scrubbing, but Mystogan froze when he saw what it revealed. "SHIT!"

 _Twelve-fucking-thirty!? When did it get so late?!_

Then he noticed the writing on his arm revealed by his t-shirt swiping.

 **You're late. There will be consequen**

The writing cut off there.

"SHITSHITSHIT!"

He took off running, dropping his decoy Captain Morgan bottle full of colored water and running full out as fast as he could back to Fairy Tail.

Erza was going to kill him.

If Jellal didn't get to her first.

How could he be so unforgivably _stupid_?

* * *

The merry band of thieves and their cart full of captives clattered as quietly as possible down the sidewalk as they silently congratulated themselves on a job well done. They had already made it all the way to the loading dock for the dining hall, a section of concrete sunken twenty feet straight down into the ground a handful of feet away from the sidewalk. Their progress was being suddenly inhibited, however, by the fact that their human captive's arm kept flopping off the cart.

"Oi, can't one of you just carry him? We're gonna get caught if we keep taking so long." Loke, as rearguard, stood with his back to the cart watching for pursuers, paint rifle at the ready. Behind him, Gray and Natsu stood up from their crouched positions readjusting the POW for the hundredth time (ok, it was probably closer to ten, but still way too fucking many to be convenient). Silently, without discussion, they held out their fists and threw down in rock, paper, scissors.

Natsu lost. Still, with the adrenaline of the venture still pumping through his veins, he couldn't bring himself to care. Gray steadied the cart as he leaned over to pick up the lean noirette, getting his shoulder securely under the dead weight. He was careful not to disturb the deceptively heavy, squat little statue they had been sent to abduct. Or his neighbor, the bonus spoils of their trip.

Natsu grinned and hefted their captive up over his shoulder. It had been a little sad that the only guard left over the weird cat/frog statues (he honestly couldn't tell what the thing was supposed to be, but even he could admit it was pretty damn cute) had gone down so easily with a sleeper hold. But, the fact that he was Eucliffe's little emo bro helped make up for it. And, now they had two prized Sabertooth artifacts and a prisoner of war. Pledges weren't usually worth much in terms of bargaining power, but 'torturing' them for information was always a good time.

As if the slim emo kid slung over his shoulder could hear his thoughts (it was fine with Lucy, but anyone else would be fucking creepy so he _really_ hoped not), the little shit chose that moment to begin waking up. And flailing wildly. Alas, the uncoordinated and energetic mid-air butterfly stroke (or whatever the fuck he was trying to do) was enough to overcome even Natsu's superior muscle control. He started to lose his balance.

He reached out a hand and found the handle of the cart, which zoomed away from him because Gray released his grip on it to try and catch Natsu's squirming captive. One of the wheels hit a chipped out section of concrete and stuck, jerking the short grinning cat/frog creature and the cat statue wearing a jaunty vest into a wobble.

Natsu fell forward where the cart used to be, dropping their prisoner in order to catch himself on his hands. The now-conscious emo kid hit the cart and dropped to the grass just in time to see his house's precious Frosch (one of the darling stone mascots of Sabertooth) tumble under the bottom bar of the heavy steel bars of the security fence and into empty the empty blackness of the loading dock.

Loke and Gray dove for the rail, arriving just in time to see the chibi concrete frog/cat shatter into an explosion of dust and cement chunks, its enlarged, almost childlike eyes the last thing to disappear into the dark.

Rogue Cheney's cry of anguish could be heard for blocks around.

"FROOOOOOOSCH! NOOOOOOOOOOOO!"

Gray yelled back, "Shut the hell up! Natsu, keep him quiet, we've got to run!"

Natsu grabbed the now somewhat catatonic emo kid, gagged him with the black bandana around his distinctive hair and threw him over his shoulder. Then they took of running, careful of the remaining statue now laying flat on the cart. Loke covered their exit, cursing every other shit.

Not. Good.

* * *

Lisanna, on her way back from the festival, and really frustrated with Gray's lack of responses to her urgent texts, heard his familiar voice barking out orders to his roommate and changed directions. She really needed to talk to him. Before he had the chance to do something stupid. This would be the perfect opportunity. In person would be better than a text anyway.

She picked up her pace into a jog and followed the sound of something metal rolling along the sidewalk. She was halfway down another block when she finally saw Natsu's hair and deduced who one of the black-clad figures next to him must be.

"GRAY FULLBUSTER! WE NEED TO TALK!" she yelled out, cupping her hands around her mouth to amplify her already impressively loud bellow.

One of the figures turned his head toward her as they all came to a halt. They seemed to have a little discussion and then they went in different directions, the one who'd looked her way heading towards her. As he got closer, Gray pulled off the beanie pulled low over his hair and down on the turtleneck concealing the bottom half of his face. He did not look happy.

"What Lisanna? What could possibly be this damned important?! In case you can't tell, I'm kind of in the middle of apparently committing a felony right now, so it's NOT A GOOD TIME!"

Lisanna took a step back reflexively. She'd never seen him that mad before. "Whoa...okay then…" She wasn't sure where to go from there. "Um. Maybe it can wait…?" She backed up another step.

Gray just followed her, step for step, getting in her face.

"Oh no. You HAD to talk to me. So talk. What the fuck do you have to tell me that couldn't wait until I had time to look at my fucking phone?!"

Lisanna felt the stirrings of anger bubbling up in her veins. "I was just trying to save you from making a fool of yourself. I was just _trying_ to let you down easy. _I_ was just TRYING to be a good godsdamned friend. Excuse me for trying, asshole."

Gray stared at her in silence for a minute and then roared into the sky, letting out all of his frustration in a sound that could have been mistaken for a wounded animal in its death throes.

Lisanna was stunned into silence.

Eventually, Gray cut off the sound, channeling the rest of his frustration into the nearest tree, punching it repeatedly. After five or so punches, he seemed better.

"Gray?" Lisanna ventured. "Are you okay?" She had never seen him look so defeated.

"Yeah. Fine. It's just been a long day. A really, REALLY long day."

"Oh. Okay."

They were both silent for a second, the sound of rustling dead leaves in the wind punctuating the silence.

"Lis?"

"Yeah?"

"Are you gonna tell me whatever you need to tell me, or what?"

"Yukino's into girls."

She hadn't meant to blurt it out like that. She'd had this whole speech worked up in her head about how he'd done great, and it definitely had nothing to do with him, and he should not give up on trying to date, and, well, just not like that. But he took it better than she thought he would.

"Are you sure?"

"Uh...yeah...straight girls definitely don't tend to jump me when their dates are gone."

"Wait, seriously?" Gray let out what he was ashamed to call a giggle when he tried to picture it. It was like identical twins making out, his brain just could not compute.

"Yes. Seriously. She was very...forceful. I'm sorry Gray. I didn't mean to steal your date. I know how important that was to you. _Seriously_. If there is any way I can make it up to you, just let me-"

"Lis, it's fine."

"Really? Because you don't seem-"

"Really. It sucks, but it wouldn't have worked out anyway. Turns out, I've actually got a soulmate out there somewhere, and Yukino isn't her."

"Huh?" Lisanna was thoroughly confused. "A soulmate? How do you know?"

"It's a long story. The short version, is that I'm apparently looped in to whatever is going on with Natsu and Lucy and Levy and all of them. And someday, hopefully, I'll run into the girl I'm meant to be with and I'll have what they have."

"Wow. That is seriously zen, Gray. I don't know if I should congratulate you or check you into Eisenwald. But, whatever makes you happy! Plus, now you and Natsu have one more thing in common!" she grinned mischievously and pulled out her phone, jotting out most of a text message before he realized what she was doing.

"Oh, HELL NO! Don't you dare tell that bastard what happened! Lis! Lisanna!" Gray growled in frustration as she took off running to avoid his mad grab at her phone. "Get back here!"

He could hear her melodic giggling on the wind that swept past them. "Too late! Already sent."

With a sigh, he lowered his head in defeat. She halted her steps too, backtracking a bit until she was in front of him again. "It's only fair. You teased him mercilessly in high school."

"Thanks Lis."

"For what?"

"Making it so easy to take my revenge!" And with that, he sprung at her, tackling her to the ground and tickling her mercilessly.

Until the person who owned the yard in which they were frolicking threatened to call the cops. Then they took off running raggedly into the night, finally feeling the weight of a new day pushing down upon them.

* * *

The sight that met Mystogan when he made it back to Fairy Tail was not an encouraging one: pledges lay around like scattered corpses on the porch, disinclined to move the ice packs from their crotches long enough to even shift position out of the path of traffic; the door to the house lay wide open, revealing an amused Bacchus standing guard (ok, more like sitting guard), drinking out of what looked like a dried gourd (who fucking knew? He could drink a M.A.S.H. martini at this point and Mystogan wouldn't question it); and a pissed-off Cana held a glass of whiskey on the rocks to her bruised cheek as she glared down from her perch at the top of the stairs.

Basically, everything screamed: 'ERZA WAS HERE AND SHE WAS PISSED' in blinding neon lights. Mystogan took it all in stride as he sprinted up the stairs of the house, making a beeline for his bedroom. He threw the door open, tripping to a stop on the bedspread they had only a few hours ago flung off the bed under _very_ different circumstances. Erza stood in a defensive position next to his desk, relaxing her stance when she saw it was him. Slowly, she turned back to the desk where she stared down into the open top of the container housing the source of their mutual panic and worry.

Together they breathed a sigh of relief that nothing terrible had happened, both silently thanking the gods that they still had time.

But it was a moment too soon.

And too late.

At first, Mystogan didn't feel the sting of the blade between his ribs, as he watched blood blossom out from Erza's ribs and across the white t-shirt that she'd borrowed to replace her paint-coated top. To his numbed brain, it reminded him of a time-lapse video of a blooming flower: each deep crimson petal unfurling in an explosion of color. He felt the blood trickling down his hand before he realized he was clutching his side.

Then came the excruciating pain.

* * *

 **Aaaand, you hate me. I know. But, hey, I'm back, right? Complain to me in a review! I'm DYING to answer reviews again! Lol. With any luck, I'll have the next chapter up in a week!**

 **Because I KNOW you guys are dying to know, here's the list of frat nicknames thus far:**

 **Bacchus** -General Dionysus

 **Freed** -President Pagemaster

 **Natsu** -Puff

 **Gray** -Zero

 **Loke** -Frodo

 **Mystogan** -Sandman

 **Elfman** -Beast

 **Laxus** -Sparky

 **Romeo** -Babyface

 **Macao & Wakaba**-Cheech & Chong

 **Jet** -Trigger

 **Droy** -Mac

 **Gildarts** -Crash

 **Vijeeter** -Spanx

 **Max** -Broomfucker

 **Mest** -S.O.P.R.T.L.A (an acronym for something, but since he was bestowed the name by someone blackout drunk, whilst drunk, not even he remembers what it is supposed to stand for)

 **EDIT:**

 **Warren-** Angelina ('cause them lips!) though some of the guys call him Professor X...for his creepy tendency to almost read their minds...

 **Bickslow-** Cosplayer (Thanks to RosesMcKellar for that one. I'm thinking he lost a bet and had to cosplay during rush week, which earned him the title!)

 **Rocker-** Lapdog (actually was in this chapter, just forgot to list it

 **Sho-** Ace (for his card skills...which he thinks are better than they are)

 **Simon-** Rockjaw (he can seriously take a hit)

 **Reedus** -everyone just literally calls him by whatever artist they think of at the time, including but not limited to: Monet, Manet, Warhol, Da Vinci, Michelangelo, Titian, O'Keefe (yep, threw a lady artist in there...wow, there are not a lot of famous female artists historically, are there?)

 **If you think of any good ones for characters not already named, let me know!**

" **Sacrificing stuffed animals to the gods?"-** a reference to Rick Riordan's Heroes of Olympus series, where one of the characters mimics the ancient Roman augurs, who cut open animals and read the future in their entrails (think reading tea leaves...but grosser) by cutting open stuffed animals and reading the future in that. In my head, Ultear has a friend whose kid is super into the novels and she somehow got roped into pretending to read the birthday party's future by cutting open stuffed animals. This might become a one shot. If I ever find the time… *sigh*

" **In my mind, Natsu, you are buried in cement right up to your neck. No… right up to your nose… that's much quieter."** -actually a variation on a quote from Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf. The real quote is: "In my mind, Martha, you are buried in cement right up to your neck. No… right up to your nose… that's much quieter." Just had to throw a literary reference in there again!

 **Isuse Krist** -Jesus Christ in Croatian. I've used this before, but it's been a while, so thought I'd mention it. (corrected slightly with the help of Wolfy Valkyrie Cain Grimm Thanks!)

 **Y llamaré a tu oficial de libertad, Erik.** -And I'll call your parole officer, Erik. (provided by Google Translate and double checked for accuracy by the ever reliable Grimnack)

 **Това не е наред,** грубиянин **! ПУСНИ МЕ!** -This is not ok, you brute! PUT ME DOWN! In Bulgarian (via Google translate..correct me if this is in anyway wrong please!).

 **Titanic flashback-This flashback was based on a Swedish family by the name of Andersson.** **Siblings: Miss Sigrid Elisabeth Andersson (Lucy), 11; Miss Ingeborg Constanzia Andersson (Levy), 9; Master Sigvard Harald Elias Andersson (Erik), 4. Other siblings: Miss Ebba Iris Alfrida Andersson, 6; Miss Ellis Anna Maria Andersson, 3. Parents: Anders and Alfrida Andersson from** **Kättestorp farm, Kisa, Östergötland, Sweden. Boarded the Titanic at Southampton as third class passengers. They died when it sunk, their bodies never recovered.**

 **For those curious, that incarnation Natsu was a pickpocket of Southampton who died less than a year later of cholera**.

 **So, I took that opportunity to play with Swedish a bit! (Google Translate was beaten into submission by Burning Ryoma, for which I am eternally grateful!)**

 **familjer** -families

 **mostrar och farmor** -aunts and grandmas

 _ **Jag kommer att mår bra**_ _ **, Sigrid.**_ _ **Mamma oroar sig alltid över ingeting**_ _ **!**_ -I'll be fine, Sigrid. Mama always worries about nothing!

 **skalbagge** -beetle

 **stråhatt** -straw hat/boater

 **lilla kattungar** -little kittens

 **jättelik/gigantisk** -giant, gigantic, huge, mammoth, or, as in this case, titanic (I took some liberties on how literal the kids are taking that translation for effect…)

 **M.A.S.H. martini** \- referring to the hit show M.A.S.H. On the show, they build a still to make their own gin, since they can't get any in their outpost in Korea. Since they also can't get ahold of vermouth in order to make a proper gin martini, a martini in the "bar" on the show is drinking straight gin in a martini glass while looking at a picture of the man who invented vermouth. For some reason, I just think Mystogan would be a M.A.S.H. fan… For those young 'uns out there, straight gin is NASTY. Like drinking rubbing alcohol mixed with gasoline. Never let anyone trick you into trying it without a mixer. Life is too short to waste your best drinking years trying to revive your taste-buds from certain death.


	47. Death Laughs Twice

**Fair warning, it's a really short chapter, but it took me almost as long to write as some of the longer ones. You'll see why. Side note: apparently my beta Shedauwz' favorite chapter yet...totally not happy dancing...a lot...**

 **Also, 1800 REVIEWS! You guys are the best. *wipes happy tear delicately away* When we hit 2,000 I should really do something special, right? Any ideas? Drop me a review about it!**

 **And now, enjoy. Sort of.**

* * *

At ten years old, Jellal had seen Death for the first time. It had stared back at him from the crazed eyes of a cult leader holding his blistered feet to a steaming hot iron, and he'd decided to hate the heartless son of a bitch from that moment on.

Granted, he hadn't known the malevolent presence he'd glimpsed was Death until he saw it claim that first life. It was when Jellal saw Death's miasma of barren darkness choke the life out of Rob, churning beneath the skin of murderous human hands, that he could finally name that presence _Death_. Rob hadn't been his favorite of the Tower of Heaven children, but that? No one deserved that.

His first reaction had been fear; scared that his ability to see its darkness meant he would be the next of its victims. But, one by one, he saw Death reach out and touch every other child, taking little parts of them and leaving them empty, but still alive. Jellal, in his paralyzing fear, did nothing to stand in its way.

Nothing, that is, until Erza.

Jellal had known her for less than a minute, when he fell in love with the scrawny little redhead staring down her captor and desperately trying to kick the bastard in the balls. Being an ignorant, wise-ass kid, he was convinced he'd never meet anyone else like her again. And, to his past self's credit, he never had.

So, when Death reached out his deceptively gentle-looking hand and sought to kill any part of that vibrant red, Jallal cried out with every part of his soul to be taken instead.

And Death heard him, turning his intense gaze away from the redhead, to level it in his direction instead.

Jellal felt Death look into his soul...and pause, finding _something_ to halt the withering blight at its fingertips. Something that made the malevolent being believe he was worth the trade. Because it left Erza alone.

Oddly though, it didn't kill him. In fact, shortly after that, Death saved his life for the first time. Lying in the destructive, yet somehow harmless, flames set by Erza, according to his plan, he felt nothing but oppressive dread.

Apparently, the deal he'd made was more complicated than he'd bargained for.

He learned quickly that Death intended to take his (he was pretty sure that presence was a _him_ at that point) payment in other ways.

At first, the Death took little things Jellal cared about: his dog (dead the morning after he came home from the hospital), his favorite anime (cancelled halfway through a season due to the mysterious deaths of half the production cast), his favorite foods (there was no way Death wasn't behind the blight that turned every apple in the world black with mold...obviously the work of an evil mastermind), etc.

When Jellal's parents pressured him to go back to school, he flat-out refused. Why give Death more fuel for the fire? It was bad enough watching the books in his room blacken and crumble more day by day. He could imagine all too well what would happen to anyone unlucky enough to befriend him.

When Death ran out of books, he took less tangible things from Jellal with an icy touch to his heart or his head: his joy, his ambition, his empathy... Apathy overtook his life and he did as close to nothing as he could, whiling away day after day in self-isolation...because nothing was worth the effort. That was when he'd tried out suicide. Nothing mattered, so why should life? By the time Jellal hit 14, he'd tried his hand at suicide close to twenty times, every attempt thwarted by Death. At which point he gave up and accepted the fact that his life would never again be his own, and he wouldn't die unless Death was ready to take him. That period lasted longer than most - almost a full year. After that, he felt his emotions come melting back, Death finally bored with the emotional winter of his most recent amusement.

He never did completely feel the same after those numb months, though. The unabashed joy and excitement he could remember from his childhood remained nothing but a wistful memory; nothing excited him as it did before. However, his ambition seemed to have doubled in its absence, a certain superiority over his fellow man accompanying it. Not everyone had Death at their back.

That was about the time Death saved him for the...twenty...seventh time? He was sixteen or so, roaming the darker side of downtown after dark in an attempt to find something that would interest him more than the uninspiring homework the tutor his parents had hired could think to dish up, and pickpocketing everyone he came in contact with. Just for the hell of it.

It turned out, one of those pockets belonged to the head of a local gang. Granted, Magnolia didn't have much of a seedy underbelly at the time (as far as villains went, that thug hardly merited the title), but it turned out it didn't take a true villain to try taking his head off with a baseball bat over a measly few Jewel notes and an 8-Island punch card.

The poor unsuspecting dumbass didn't know what he'd gotten himself into. Jellal's body had moved on its own, controlled by that now-familiar presence looking over his shoulder. That was also the first time Jellal felt anything resembling true emotion from Death, overcome by a smug sense of glee as he beat the brains out of twenty-something-year-old Jose Porla with his own Louisville Slugger. By the time he was done, Jellal honestly couldn't tell if it was Death's glee or his own.

It didn't take him long to win over Porla's gang, Death's apparent taste for conquest fueling his own already significant ambition. Honestly, Jellal couldn't name a happier time. Life was so much simpler in a world where the smartest and strongest prevailed, and the weak fell to chattel in the face of a more worthy opponent. Skills like lying, cheating, and conniving were expected and revered, for cunning was king in a game full of brutish pawns.

He steadily recruited gifted individuals to fill the back row of his board, most notably: a 'bishop' who went by Cobra; the odd but capable Midnight as his 'rook'; and Ultear, a 'queen' as loyal as she was merciless. With such capable pieces to maneuver, he had the darker half of Magnolia confined to a board he alone dominated. It hadn't been a bad way to live.

Then Death got bored. Again.

So, Jellal obediently heeded the itch in his feet and moved to Crocus just around the time he should have been graduating high school, taking his trusted few associates with him. He spent his days in the capital doing what he did best - manipulating increasingly more important people out of their money - until he'd garnered the attention of men who wore the title of villain like a cheap cologne - with misplaced pride to the ill of everyone around them. One of those men, who reeked of villainy, went by the name Zero.

If Jellal had only steered clear of that particular man, his life might have turned out differently.

Maybe. When Death was at the table, all bets were off.

It took only a matter of weeks for Zero to recruit Jellal, welcoming he and his followers (grown in number even over his short time in the city) into the fold. Jellal took that as a sign of weakness, immediately beginning to hatch a plan to take over Crocus as he had Magnolia. He had always preferred positional play to tactics anyway.

A year later found him preparing to spring the trap he'd so meticulously set, until Jellal found himself face to barrel with the service revolver of a Holy Knight, who, it turned out had all the evidence he needed on Jellal's more recent crimes to convince any jury he deserved jail time. It didn't take a Machiavellian brain like his to realize he'd been betrayed.

However, as always, Zero and his nameless accomplice had not accounted for Death. With his this time welcome assistance, Jellal escaped from custody long enough to signal his queen to change to plan B (only a fool had only one endgame to land his opponent in checkmate), and, six months after he had settled into Era Penitentiary, he had the pleasure of seeing Zero shuffling down the line in a four-piece of his own, followed shortly after by Midnight, grown sloppy in Jellal's absence. A sacrifice he willingly accepted if it meant he could keep Zero in check.

With his trustworthy rook re-presented to him, Jellal accepted him back into the game, bribing a guard to have Midnight transferred into his cell. His eyeliner bedecked comrade brought with him the news that Ultear and Cobra had decided to return to Magnolia and go straight. Jellal found he wasn't all that surprised. They were lost without someone to move them around the board, like all good pieces were.

Life in Era was just what it was meant to be: an agonizingly boring punishment. Jellal slogged through the days, eating, sleeping, and keeping just enough steps ahead of Zero's growing influence to keep him at bay. Thankfully, Zero operated out of a different cellblock, and had a bit of a temper on him, spending most of his days getting punished for his raving tantrums. It hardly mattered what he decided to do with his life sentence. Jellal had a year left until he qualified for parole, and he intended to spend it under the radar, using his still loyal followers on the outside to run the biggest contraband smuggling operation the prison had ever been completely oblivious of. With Midnight now there to help him, an already simple organization became child's play.

That is, until the day his brother and the fearless redhead from his past showed up out of the blue.

However, their arrival wasn't the first thing to blind-side him that day. No, the note, delivered by a fish so new you could see yourself in his sweat-shined forehead, stating Zero's intention to kill him had the honor of being the first shock of the day, ending their ongoing stalemate and inciting the start of his endgame strategy. That note had occupied his thoughts up until he was dragged from the yard for the unprecedented _pleasure_ of visitors. His parents hadn't even bothered to come see him in that hell hole. He preferred to believe they were dead. They were equally useless to him.

Then his do-gooder twin and Erza Scarlet had presented him with an unexpected deus ex machina of a solution: the bond. The whole situation reeked of Death's twisted sense of humor. In fact, as Jellal fell to the floor on that auspicious day they came to visit cutting open his face, he could swear he heard Death laughing for the first time in more than a decade of companionship. The sound grating on his bones was not one he would soon forget.

But once he'd reached out to Ultear and learned what the bond entailed, he found himself tempted to laugh in kind. He had been delivered two capable, intelligent pawns who had unexpectedly plowed through the enemy lines, instantly promoting themselves to support him when he most needed it as a new knight and queen. So, he began the game again, taking stock of his pieces and finding he had just enough major pieces to make a decent showing. He transferred his contraband empire to Midnight to babysit while he maneuvered their way to freedom. Ever the faithful rook, he complied readily, and with a certain quiet satisfaction. The match wasn't over yet, and Jellal was determined that he would stand the victor.

So, he'd played it through, beginning a new game in simultaneous display. Knowing his brother's inevitable protective streak would yield a visit sooner rather than later, he baited the gambit. Mysty, per usual, failed to see the long game, fulfilling his role perfectly. Jellal had him effectively pinned, absolutely, and they both knew it. Then it was a simple matter of leaving him only one option: to bend to Jellal's demands. It was an efficient, effective plan.

What his plan had not accounted for, however, was his unruly new queen.

Over the years away from Erza, Jellal had easily convinced himself that his childish crush on her had long since been a victim to Death, like his joy and his dog. He even might have said he resented her, for being the reason behind Death's curse in the first place. But, seeing her in person, very grown up, and still radiating life from every pore, shocked his dormant heart into life again like 300 volts right to his chest (one of his suicide attempts had been electrocution, so he was painfully aware of what that felt like). He couldn't breathe, panic gripping him in a way it hadn't since he was a child.

Calling her hadn't been necessary to the plan, despite the excuses he'd given himself. He'd just wanted to hear her voice. Just one more time before his plan succeeded and he disappeared from her life and Fiore altogether. Ultear suspected that the bond could be distance effected, and he had little choice but to head to a country without extradition if everything went to plan. So a few stolen words, and an apology he hadn't meant to give, seemed like a reasonable concession to the organ pumping blood to his extremities and aching with the thought of never seeing her again.

However, he had never dreamed his supposed soulmates would not follow his orders. Self-preservation was instinctual. You couldn't defy nature. Unless you had Death leeching the warmth from your soul. But, as Jellal sat in the darkness, on his bunk, empty hands still prepared to receive the explosives that made up the last part of his great escape, he began to contemplate what following through on his threats would mean. With Death protecting him, could he even injure himself enough to threaten their lives? He honestly wasn't sure.

He decided he'd give them a final warning. Grabbing the ink filler from a pen he kept wedged between the leg of his bed and the wall, he began writing out a message on his arm.

 **You're late. There will be consequen**

Before he could complete the message, his body was pelted with rubber riot bullets. At least, that's what it felt like. The bruising impact startled a low cry from him, quickly bitten down to silence as the invisible projectiles made impact with his skin. If the guards came to investigate now, all would be lost. It wasn't until the painful assault seemed to be over that he noticed the colorful paint dripping from his body onto the cold concrete.

Paintball?

Fucking _paintball?!_

Mystogan and Erza were playing mother-fucking _paintball_ at midnight, on the night when their lives hung in the balance?!

Well-played Erza Scarlet.

Because he had no fucking clue what to do. He sat against the bars of the cell as the minutes dripped by, his mind a complete blank except for one thought: _What now?_

Little by little, in swipes and brushes, the paint began to disappear, leaving only bright lines beneath his fingernails and puttied to the inside of his jumpsuit to suggest it was there at all.

"Jellal? What are you doing down there?"

Midnight's soft words preceded his cat-like leap from the top bunk, landing softly in front of his bunkmate.

"Thinking."

"I would ask where the paint in your hair came from, but I doubt you'd let me in on your secret," Midnight commented snarkily, leaning back, eyes half closed, as though his words meant less than the time they'd taken to be said. "Since you've kept tight-lipped up until now."

Jellal remained silent. He hadn't told anyone the specifics of the bond. And while that had made his roommate excessively suspicious of the random appearances of things on his skin over the days since he'd been bonded, it was too precious a trump card for him to give up that easily. Like the presence of Death. He'd never spoken aloud of the presence who slowly ate away at his soul, protecting his life for reasons still unknown to him.

Midnight merely sighed and offered him a hand.

Jellal took it without another thought, swiftly pulled upright by his loyal rook. He never doubted for a second that Midnight would always be ready to help him back up.

Until the shank the fucking bastard had been holding slid smoothly in between Jellal's ribs and his hot blood met the air, cooling against his skin. The make-up addicted sleepaholic who had followed Jellal all the way from Magnolia, helping him build and rebuild his empire kept a hold of him as the blunette stared over his bunkmate's shoulder with wide eyes at the wall behind him. Jellal's eyes were transfixed to one spot as Midnight leaned into him, twisting the blood-slicked shank as he whispered into his ear, "Zero says, 'Checkmate'."

But, Jellal couldn't hear him.

Not when that black-haired bastard with the deceptively kind eyes he called Death was laughing so fucking loudly.

* * *

 **So yeah… that happened. Love it? Hate it? Let me know! Next chapter we'll get to back to the gang, but I might return to this style sometime if I can make it work... It was pretty damn fun to write.**

 **In case you're not a chess genius...here's some vocab!**

" **He preferred positional play to tactics."**

 **Positional play** -Play dominated by long-term manoeuvring, not short-term attacks and threats. It needs judgement more than calculation. The term is contrasted with **tactics**.

 **Tactics** -Short-term attacks requiring exact calculation, sometimes called 'forcing sequences'. It is contrasted with **positional play** , which is long-term strategy

 **Four-piece** -the prison slang term for a full set of restraints, including cuffs for hands, ankles, waist, and neck chains.

 **Fish** -prison slang for a fresh inmate, in for the first time

 **deus ex machina** -literally translated "through the God machine"; a literary and theatrical device in which conflict is resolved through a character or event that exists only to resolve a conflict, usually in a miraculous way that suggests there is divine intervention at play

" **Promoting themselves"** -referring to promotion in chess, whereby any pawn that makes it to the opposite side of the board can be promoted to the piece of the player's choice, usually to replace a felled queen

 **simultaneous display** -When a master plays a number of opponents at the same time.

 **gambit** -A chess opening in which a player offers a pawn (or more) for fast development and an attack.

' **Pinned absolutely'** \- a 'pin' is when a piece does not move because to do so would expose a more valuable piece to capture. Pins against the king are **absolute** because it is illegal to move the pinned piece. In this case, Mystogan could consider himself in an absolute pin, with Erza as his 'king'.


	48. Your Words Especially

**It's late, I know, I'm sorry. My beta had a busy weekend! But it's a longer one again! And I'm already 2k into the next one! I swear! The check is in the mail! There was sand in my eyes! I gave you a little Nalu smut! (any of these working?)**

 **Anywho...we're getting closer to that 2,000 review mark on this story...I've had a couple suggestions of some things I could do to commemorate the occasion: the story of Laxus and Mira meeting/Laxus falling for her, a Juvia cameo, Nalu cuddle time... Still open for suggestions!**

 **Now, enjoy!**

* * *

Natsu and Loke rushed through the back gate of Fairy Tail, Loke immediately collapsing onto the ground and trying to catch his breath. The pinkette pulled his scarf down from its ninja position around his head and grinned down at him.

"Man, you're seriously out of shape, Frodo."

"Bite me...Dragon Boy. Running...is not...my forte," Loke panted back, pulling the dark hat he wore off of his now flattened copper-colored hair.

Natsu quirked an amused pink eyebrow. "We ran, like two blocks. That's just fucking sad."

"No one's making you...watch, Pinky." The ginger was finally starting to recover his wind. "Don't you have better things to do? Like fuck the brains out of that goddess of yours? I mean, if _you're_ not feeling up to the challenge, I'm sure _I_ could give her a-OW!"

Natsu kicked Loke in the shoulder a second time, just for good measure.

"Sorry, perv, did you say something?" The thought of Loke with his hands anywhere near Lucy made the pinkette want to light something on fire. Well, to light _Loke_ on fire… His hand drifted to his pocket, toying with the lighter there, but not taking it out. _Hmm...how long has it been since I've started a decent fire? Or messed with my lighter? Must be the Weirdo. She's so distracting..._

Natsu winced, as he expected Lucy's mind to chime in that he shouldn't light any fires, or call her a Weirdo. But the scolding never came. His eyebrows furrowed.

 _Luce?_

Still nothing. She just...wasn't there. A shiver went down his spine that had nothing to do with the nip in the midnight air. Pushing down his growing panic, Natsu turned away from Loke, closed his eyes and slipped into Lucy Mode.

"You have a seriously concerning and violent impulse control problem…" Loke muttered darkly as he sat up, rubbing his shoulder.

Natsu could feel Lucy heartbeat almost immediately, and the air steadily filling and draining from her lungs. He breathed a sigh of relief. Maybe it was just the new thought thing that was gone… He looked up, scanning the yard full of roaming pledges. "Oi! Anyone got a pen?"

The pledges looked up at his call, immediately patting down their pockets, but came up empty, several stammering about running to get him one. Natsu snorted, waving them off and jogging to the backdoor. _Freshman are fucking precious,_ he thought as he picked up the pace, getting all the way to the kitchen before he saw Reedus, Sho, and Simon in there heating up leftovers.

"Yo, Reedus, lend me a pen."

The French foreign exchange student narrowed his eyes and shook his head. "So you can steal it again? Sûrement pas! Fuck no! Find your own."

Natsu rolled his eyes. "Dude, it's just a pen, chill the fuck out."

Reedus glared at him and stalked out of the room carrying his plate of reheated fried chicken leftover from dinner. Natsu stole a chicken leg from the big foil pan on the counter and devoured it. Frat wars were hungry work. So was worrying.

Simon dug into his pocket and offered Natsu a cheap, chewed up Bic rollerball. "Here. I've got plenty."

Natsu swallowed and grinned, tossing the remaining bones of his chicken leg into the kitchen trash over his shoulder without bothering to glance at it. _Swish. I really should have tried basketball at some point._ "Thanks."

"No prob." Simon left, carrying his hot plate of food with his out of the kitchen as Natsu uncapped the pen, and started scrawling on his arm.

Sho finished picking out his chicken pieces, and popped his plate in the microwave. "So, how'd it go?"

"What? Oh, the mission? Success! We even got Lector!" Natsu replied absentmindedly, totally forgetting about the other concrete statue, shattered on the loading dock as she added punctuation to his message, just the way she liked it.

 **Luce? You there?**

"Noice! Sabertooth will be begging for mercy!" Sho cheered, putting the foil pan of chicken back into the massive commercial refrigerator the house had sprung for after the Great Fairy Tail Fuse Fiasco of 1995 (apparently plugging in three refrigerators and a chest freezer on one circuit was not the greatest idea...or up to code with the fire department).

Natsu ignored the slender sophomore, his uneasiness growing when he still got no response to his message. Lucy should still be at home in her apartment. Finding a pen wouldn't be an issue. He closed his eyes, zoning in to her body again before opening his eyes.

To see only darkness.

Maybe she was sleeping? He checked his phone, setting it on the counter to grab a piece of chicken off Sho's plate (Sho wasn't surprised. He'd put three extra pieces on the plate, expecting to get at least a few pieces stolen from him before he made it back to his room).

It was well past midnight, so sleep was a perfectly reasonable assumption...but his skin still itched thinking of everything else that could be wrong. The more he thought about it, the worse the itch got, until he couldn't sit still.

Sho stood watching Natsu have some sort of a conniption fit as he lazily chowed down on a chicken wing, tossing the bones back on his plate among the rest of his midnight snack. He was about to ask what was going on with him, but the pinkette suddenly shoved the pen into his pocket and bolted from the room.

Silenced by his surprise, Sho stood frozen for a second and then shrugged to himself. As long as Natsu wasn't punching someone's face to a pulp or threatening to burn their shit to the ground, he was probably fine. He wandered into the dining room, setting down his plate and sleepily eating the rest of his chicken.

Although, now that he thought about it, maybe Natsu _not_ doing those things was a cause for concern...

* * *

Simon jumped out of the way just in time for Natsu to plow past him, running at a full sprint out the front door of the house, scarf trailing behind him. "Asshole," he muttered.

"Yeah, but a sexy one," Cana commented from just above him on the staircase. "This little war of yours sure is full of yummy people running around at top speed. First the redheaded bitch, then Mystogan, now Natsu." She prodded gingerly at the side of her face, wincing when she hit the bruise Erza had left on her. That's what she got for trying to stand in the way of Fairy Tail's intruder. Next time, she'd just back the fuck off and tell her where the petty cash was. "Not a huge fan of the punching though."

Simon didn't hear anything except 'redheaded bitch' and 'punching'. "Erza's here?!"

"Upstairs," Cana motioned with her whiskey. "I don't recommend getting in her way though. She's fucking pissed."

Simon ignored her, starting to make his way up the stairs. He'd been heading back to his room anyway. If he happened to run into Erza on the way there, all the better…

He scanned the empty halls as he went, craning his neck around corners. Where had she gone? Eventually, he gave up, walking down the hall to his room. He paused outside his closed door, light streaming into the hall further down catching his eye. Mystogan's room? His lips twisted downward into a frown. If Mystogan and Erza were together in his pledge-father's room, he wasn't sure he even wanted to see her. Just seeing them around each other gave him a knot in his stomach.

But after a moment of internal struggle, his need to gaze on the warrior beauty who had long since captured his heart won out. He ambled down the hall and poked his head in the door.

His plate hit the floor, the chicken exploding across the worn carpet.

"Erza! Mystogan!" He sprinted forward, his bare feet squishing into the blood-soaked carpet. For a bone-chilling moment, he thought they were dead, heartbreakingly holding hands as they curled in on themselves. He held his breath as he fumbled at Erza's neck for a pulse.

It was there, but faint.

"SOMEONE! CALL AN AMBULANCE!" he bellowed as loud as he could as he found Mystogan's pulse, as thready as hers, but still thankfully present. "HELP! SOMEONE HELP!"

Cana's first thought when she heard the yelling was a weary, 'What now?' Until she figured out what he was saying.

Her phone was in her hand in seconds, her feet carrying her up the stairs before her dropped glass could finish tumbling down the steps. Bacchus was right behind her.

She reached the top of the stairs, and paused, frantically swinging her head back and forth. "WHERE ARE YOU?!" she yelled just as there was a click on the other end of her call.

"Fiore Emergency Response, please state your emergency."

"HERE!" The voice came from her left.

"I need an ambulance to Fairy Tail fraternity house," she gasped, sprinting down the hall after the voice. She rattled off the address as she ran to the room at he end of the hall with light streaming out of it into the hallway. Other lights were coming on and heads were poking out of rooms along the way, but she paid them no mind as she crashed to a stop at the open door, trampling a minefield of lukewarm fried chicken with her bare feet.

"Yes, miss, we're sending you help, but what is the emergency?" the dispatcher on the other end of the line said with a calm, collected tone that belied the panic flooding Cana's system.

She couldn't answer as she stood frozen in the doorway staring down at Simon as he pulled hastily yanked t-shirts from Mystogan's dresser, trying to find where the blood was coming from to apply pressure. "So much blood…" she mumbled, feeling faint.

"Miss?" the dispatcher said more firmly. "Please stay on the line and describe what is going on. Help is on the way. Who's bleeding?"

Her voice knocked Cana out of her haze as she felt strong hands moving her out of the doorway. "One of our members and his girlfriend are bleeding badly, I can't tell from what."

Bacchus strode past her, pulling a pocket knife out.

"Simon, you take care of Erza, I've got Mystogan." There was no amusement in his eyes now. As General Groh's son he'd been trained for situations like this. Which he was more than thankful for now.

"Got it!" Simon replied with relief, shoving a handful of clothing to Bacchus and focusing on pushing his wad of shirts into Erza's torso. Blood soaked her shirt from her chest downward, so he couldn't tell where it was coming from. Luckily, his hands were big and her torso comparably tiny. He couldn't bare to look at her slack face, focusing on stemming the flow of blood.

"Ok, miss, is there anyone else there with you? Can someone put pressure on the wound? Are they breathing?"

Bacchus took a different approach, peeling back Mystogan's shirt until it resisted him. Carefully, he peeled it back further and was rewarded by a groan from the blunette and a new gush of blood. Swiftly, he used his knife to cut away the soaked material around the wound and applied pressure to stop the bleeding. "He's sliced open on his side! Between the ribs looks like."

Cana dutifully relayed the information to the dispatcher as Simon peeled back his makeshift bandage to see if he could find a similar wound on Erza. Then he saw it. "Erza too! Same place!"

"HOLY SHIT! WHAT HAPPENED?"

The voice had Cana spinning to see the hallway behind her full to the brim with Fairy Tail members. They craned to see over each other, shoving at the rest of the crowd pushing them forward. The exclamation had come from Laxus though, who was leaning in through the door of the bathroom he shared with Mystogan. As though his shout was a sign, yells of inquiry and shock broke out from the group.

"Miss, it sounds like there are a lot of people around you now. Please make sure the medics have a path to get to your friends when they get there."

Cana swallowed hard and nodded, disregarding the fact that the dispatcher obviously couldn't see her. Turning on her heel, she stood a little taller and leveled a glare at the men blocking the hallway, phone still held to her face.

"Ok boys, here's the deal! Mystogan and Erza have been injured. Badly. The paramedics are on their way, but they need to be able to get up here. And know where they're going. So go congregate your asses somewhere else, or go back to your rooms. I need a few volunteers to go outside and wait for them so they can find us easily and make it up here without getting lost. Another couple of guys could go around the house and turn on lights. Let's light this place up like a Christmas tree so there's no doubt. If anyone has either of their parents' numbers call them and let them know what's going on."

"What is going on? What happened?" someone jumped in. Rumbles of agreement rose up around her again.

"Guys, I don't know what happened. They were cut up by something and have lost a lot of blood. When I know what's happened I'll let you know. Until then, get the FUCK OUT OF THIS HALLWAY!" Cana seemed to grow in stature to fill the hallway. The Master of Fairy Tail had spoken.

And the members of Fairy Tail listened. They quickly dispersed, many heading downstairs, unable to think about going back to sleep. A couple went back to their rooms to work on homework. Volunteers called out that they would wait for the ambulances. Elfman, however, came jogging towards the room instead, carrying something.

"What?" Cana asked irritably to the hulking man in front of her, carrying a small black canvas bag. In his hands, it looked like a child-sized backpack.

"Let me in to help. I'm a nursing major," he rumbled back. "At least until the medics get here."

Cana's eyebrows nearly hit her hairline. "Nursing? Seriously?!" She couldn't help but be skeptical as she moved out of the way, letting him pass. But her misgivings were quickly proven unnecessary as he knelt beside Mystogan and started taking his vitals, issuing quick calm orders to Bacchus and Simon about checking to see if the bleeding had stopped yet. She breathed a little easier. With Elfman to the rescue and paramedics on their way, everything would be ok.

Right?

* * *

Natsu dashed up to the door and hit the button to buzz up to Lucy's apartment without thinking. Then he belated realized, if she was asleep, he was kind of being an asshole by waking her up.

 _Oh well, done already._

He waited, but the door didn't get clicked open. No one responded through the ancient intercom system. The nervous ball of energy in his stomach got a little bit bigger. What was going on?

Maybe she was just a heavy sleeper? If he'd managed not to wake her up, he wasn't going to make the mistake of buzzing again. So...what were his options?

Levy maybe? Lucy said she usually stayed up all night reading anyway, so maybe she was still awake? He pushed the buzzer for her apartment, and was rewarded by the staticy herald of someone speaking into the intercom. It wasn't Levy though.

"Who the fuck is it?"

Natsu grinned in relief. "Me, dumbass. Can you buzz me in? Luce isn't answering."

"Oh. Right. Yeah."

The sound of the door lock clicking open signalled the end of their brief, yet _scintillating,_ conversation. Natsu took off running again, taking the stairs three at a time in response to the adrenaline flooding his system again. He wasn't sure anymore if it was worry or excitement. Ever since they'd switched bodies, he got this...tingle as he got closer to her. He thought it had just been because they'd been all glitchy the last time he'd approached her apartment with Gajeel, but he could feel it building up again.

He busted through the door to Lucy's floor and was surprised to see Gajeel standing shirtless in the hallway waiting for him. "Yo. What're you doing up? Thought you had work tomorrow."

Gajeel just glared blearily at him for a moment. "It's not by choice, douchebag."

Natsu's steps slowed. "What's that supposed to mean? I didn't wake you up on purpose. It's not like I even knew you'd be here. I just figured Levy might be up reading or something…"

The noirette in front of him shook his head. "Not what I mean."

He leaned forward, opening Lucy's apartment door and gesturing inside with one hand while resisting the urge to rub his temple with the other.

Natsu followed his prompt, stepping through the door and heading toward Lucy's living room. Ultear sat up straighter in the armchair as he entered, cradling her mug a little closer as the steam from it curled around her face. The pinkette didn't even notice her, taking in Levy laying out on the couch...and…

His nostrils flared. Lucy sitting in that asshole Cobra's lap! Asleep!

"What the fuck?!" He saw red. Without another thought he reached out to grab Lucy's arm to pull her up, only to find it securely wrapped around Levy's. He crouched down beside them.

"Shit! Don't-" Gajeel's words were just a second too late, as Natsu began prying her fingers off of Levy's arm. The minute his fingers brushed the blunette's skin, his eyes rolled back in his head and he collapsed, falling forward on his knees, head resting on the couch against Levy's arm. Gajeel growled deep in his throat and resisted the urge to bash his head in with something large and heavy. The last thing they needed was to add the pyro's body to the pile.

Ultear stared owlishly at the now unconscious pinkette for a moment before bursting out laughing. Between the late hour and the ridiculous circumstances, her laughter took on a note of hysteria as she struggled to push words past her lips.

"Oh...my...goddess...this is...fucking..hilarious! They're like... lemmings...falling...off...a...cliff! Bwahahahahaha! Oh, hey, look...a pile of...unconscious people! Maybe I should try...pfffffahahahaha… to pull them apart! And then again...oh, hey, look...a pile...of unconscious ...people! AHAHAHAHAHAHA!"

Gajeel rolled his eyes, but he couldn't keep from smiling too. _Only that idiot…_ Then, it sunk in that he was one more idiot they had to look after. "Dammit. I was hoping to push this whole thing off on him so I could get some sleep." He closed the door to the apartment and sank to the floor against it. "Fuckin' Natsu and his stupid fucking decisions."

"Why didn't you explain what was going on while you guys were in the hall?" Ultear managed to get herself under control enough to ask. "Wasn't that the whole point?"

"Shut up! I'm fucking tired, okay? And I just went out so he would know we were at Bunny Girl's instead of Shrimp's. Why didn't you just buzz him up?"

Ultear blinked over at him like he was nuts but hadn't figured it out yet. Who knew? Maybe he was. It had been a really long night. And morning.

"You're saying I should have let up whoever was anonymously buzzing someone else's apartment while they're unconscious? Yeah, that sounds like a great way to get murdered. And sued. Simultaneously."

Gajeel hmmphed at her and closed his eyes. He was so done with this shit. "Whatever. Can we just slap them awake now? I don't give a shit if she's doing a fucking whodunnit moment with ghetto me, the FBI and whoever else might be standing around. I'm done."

Ultear thought it over. "Yeah, as entertaining as this all is, I'm getting a little worried over the growing body count…"

"Fucking finally," Gajeel sighed. Pushing himself up to stand he headed towards the pile of idiots. Slapping that pink-haired moron would go a long way towards making up for this shitty night.

"Stop! What are you as stupid as they are? Don't touch them!" Ultear surged to her feet, setting her cup on the coffee table. "If you fall over too you'll crush them to death!"

Gajeel glared at her, but stopped himself. "I'm not _that_ heavy, ya crazy witch! What the fuck do ya suggest we do then?"

"Pfff, your hair alone could suffocate them, let alone all, what? 200 pounds of muscle? Yeah, stay the fuck away from them. I'll handle it." She leaned down to grab her slingbag, rummaging with one hand and pulling out random things in her way as she searched for something. Gajeel kept his face blank but internally balked at the growing pile of oddities, including a crystal ball thing, several bundles of herbs, the skull of some small animal, what had to be an entire bag's worth of mentholated cough drops and hard candy. He bit back a remark about secretly being an 80-year-old woman as she finally dropped the bag and held her intended quarry aloft.

"A safety pin?"

"Yep." With no further delay, she strode forward and stuck Levy in the arm with it.

"OW!" Gajeel bellowed, not realizing a higher voice joined him until her big brown eyes were staring up at him. Levy looked confused, but otherwise fine. A knot he hadn't even noticed forming in his gut loosened slightly. Clearing his throat, he nodded his thanks at Ultear and turned to walk out the door. "Shrimp, I'm going to bed. Do what you want."

"Huh?" Levy squeaked. She turned from him, to Ultear, to the pile of humanity around her, and back to Ultear again. "How long have I been out?!"

"Not that long...less than an hour? But you kind of took everyone who touched you out too…" She gestured at the still unconscious pile of bodies leaned up against her or touching her.

"Oh. Huh. Well, that's new."

Ultear giggled again. "Levy, I'll give you this, you are never boring."

Then she started sticking people somewhat sadistically with her safety pin.

* * *

Gray was just turning the corner of the block when an ambulance shot past him, its siren deafening him temporarily as his steps stumbled to a halt. _What now?_

He didn't even entertain the thought that the emergency vehicle wasn't going to Fairy Tail. It was just that kind of a day.

To a brother of Fairy Tail, ambulances meant one thing: someone was dying. Because they didn't bother calling one for anything else. And the house was lit up from every window.

"Fuck…" Gray muttered under his breath as he took off running. Another man might have prayed to his favorite gods that it wasn't someone he knew. But Gray wasn't much for the gods. He personally thought they were shitty listeners.

He got to the door barely even winded, but lacking the turtleneck he'd worn on the raid (how the hell did he manage to strip off a _turtleneck_ without noticing? Seriously?!) to find himself surrounded by his housemates. They barely noticed him, attention focused on the path the paramedics had taken, parted neatly down the room, like he was standing on a red carpet and they were the paparazzi...except facing the wrong way.

"What's going on?" he barked out, harsher than he'd intended.

As one, they turned back to look at him, several grabbing him by the arm and dragging him out of the path to the door. The whole group was uncharacteristically quiet.

Not good.

"Dude! Get out of the way. We have to keep the path clear!" Max whispered, worry etched in every inch of his face. There were fervent nods around him, but no one answered his question.

"Fine, I'm out of the way. What the fuck is going on?"

"Mystogan and E-"

"COMING THROUGH!" A paramedic and Elfman came carefully down the stairs, balancing a bright orange board with a body strapped to it. Gray could just make out a fluff of blue hair as they carried him swiftly out of the house. They walked right past him, giving Gray a front-row-view of the blood-soaked bandages covering his side. The group leaned in, all trying to see out the door to where they were taking him.

If Mystogan was hurt, then Erza…

"Where's-" he started, only to be interrupted by another bellow.

"OUTTA THE WAY!" Another paramedic and Laxus carried the second board. The red hair spilling off of it unmistakable.

"Erza! Shit! ERZA! What happened?! What's wrong with her?" He leapt forward, only for hands to reach out and yank him back. His eyes were locked on the closest thing he'd ever had to _real_ sister as she was carried past him. She hadn't even flinched when he called her name.

He'd never seen her look so...frail.

"Shit…" he whispered, all the fight going out of him. "What happened?"

"We're not sure. Just all of a sudden, Simon found them and was calling for help."

As though Max's words were some kind of signal, the whole crowd erupted in a cacophony of commentary..

"They were stabbed or something right?"

"That's what Cana said I think."

"Who's driving? We're all going to the hospital, right?"

"How far is it? Could we just walk?"

"Which hospital are they going to?"

The noise grew and the crowd closed in, each trying to get a better view out the door, some filing out onto the porch. Suddenly there was a harsh, loud whistle from behind them.

Immediately the group did an about face.

"Hey! Listen up," Bacchus belted out to follow up his shrill whistle's report. "The Master has the floor!"

Silence fell for Cana, who stepped up next to him, taking a deep breath before starting.

"Ok. You can't all go to the hospital right now. The last thing they need is a bunch of frat bros hanging around in their lobby in the middle of the night while they're treating them. We'll go to wait in shifts tomorrow, so I'll have a sign up sheet or something at breakfast tomorrow. There's no change from before really. Mystogan and Erza have been badly wounded, and they're being rushed to the hospital for emergency surgery. We have no idea how it happened, or why, so don't bother asking. We probably won't know until they're out of the woods and awake. We managed to get a hold of Mystogan's parents, but we're still looking for Erza's parents' contact number, so call anyone you think might have it..."

That was about the time Gray numbly realized he had it. He'd gone camping with the Scarlets a lot over the years and, rather like his daughter, Erza's dad was a stickler for being prepared. Gray had both their cell phone numbers, though he'd never had to call them before. He pulled out his phone, notified by the flurry of missed calls and text messages that he still hadn't turned the ringer back on.

"...so go to bed or don't, I don't care, just keep it to a dull roar. Master needs some nice quiet drinking time...and no, that is NOT an invitation...this time..." Cana continued, winding down her little speech.

Gray extricated himself from the mob and walked away a bit, hitting the call button for Erza's dad. They'd always gotten on a little better than he had with her mom. Irene was...a lot...nice and all, but definitely more than he could deal with right now.

The phone rang three times before a deep, sleep-husky voice answered the phone. "Gray? Do you know what time it is?"

Gray cleared his throat, fighting the lump he could feel forming. "I know. Sorry, but it's an emergency. Erza is on her way to the hospital."

Gray didn't notice the crowd behind him quiet, a couple guys noticing who he must be calling and elbowing each other into silence so they could hear what was said on the other end of the line.

Belserion Scarlet was immediately awake. "Irene, get up. We're going to the hospital. What happened, Gray?"

"I'm not sure how it happened..." Gray struggled with the white lie...he had a pretty good idea of _exactly_ how it had happened, "But she and Mystogan have been stabbed. It looks like they lost a lot of blood, but the paramedics have already come and gotten them. I would have called sooner, but I just got here and found out myself…"

He could hear Bel (he'd insisted they all call him by his nickname) repeating the details to his wife, and Erza's mom going off, her voice eerily similar to her daughter's, about how she'd told her a million times that carrying around switchblades was a bad idea. Bel just muttered unheard agreements at her, clearly distracted. There was rustling in the background. He was probably getting dressed. When Irene started in on how much more effective a saber was in a melee than her 'accidents waiting to happen', Bel muttered under his breath.

"How the hell did I end up with such crazy women…"

"What did you just say?!" Irene demanded in the background.

"Uh, nothing honey, just asking which hospital they're at?"

"Actually, hold on, I'm not sure." Gray pulled the phone away from his face and turned around to find everyone he lived with staring intently at him. He ignored them all. And Irene's voice coming through the speaker on his phone demanding to know who Mystogan was. "Cana, what hospital?"

"Magnolia General."

Gray repeated the information to Bel and hung up, as Erza's dad took on the daunting task of updating Irene on her daughter's relationship status. Gray shivered. Hopefully that conversation would be long over by the time he saw them at the hospital.

Checking his pockets to ensure his pants, and therefore car keys, were where they should be, he headed out of the house, unwittingly passing Laxus and Elfman as they leaned against the outside of the house avoiding questions.

"Are you heading to the hospital like that?"

Elfman's voice startled Gray out of the numb silence of his head. "Yeah."

"Dude. Put a shirt on first," Laxus added, gesturing unnecessarily to Gray's naked torso. "They won't even let you in like that."

"Shit. Yeah. I think I've got one in my car," Gray replied, after wondering how he hadn't noticed his shirt was gone when he'd literally _just_ double-checked his pants. Whatever. It hardly mattered. Not when Erza… He wondered if the bond would help or hurt the situation. Or make any difference at all. They still knew so little about it. "Hey, you guys were helping the paramedics, yeah?"

Both of them looked uneasy and more than a little sick to their stomachs. "Him more than me," Laxus finally grunted.

"How bad is it?"

Laxus stared back at him with dead eyes. "Bad. But Mr. Nursing Major here would know better than me..."

"The lacerations weren't long, but they were pretty deep. They'd both have been better off if the weapon had been left in, but even without it, they were bleeding a lot more than they should have. They just weren't clotting. The paramedics kept asking if they were on some kind of drugs. If it was anyone but those two, maybe...but Mystogan and Erza? Yeah, right. I've never seen anything like it."

Sweat broke out on the back of Gray's neck and quickly dried in the night air. He was right. Something was definitely being affected by the bond. Even though he had no idea what to do about it, his urge to get to the hospital doubled.

"Yeah. Well, I'm gonna get going. Either of you want to come along?"

"Don't be a moron. You might have extra clothes in your car, but we definitely don't." Laxus gestured to his blood-smeared white undershirt and the dark spots on the knees of his sweatpants. Elfman wasn't much better off. "We'll be up later." He turned to the Aussie beside him, coincidentally the only one in the house who matched his height. "We should really go shower…" His words were his usual brand of gruff and stand-offish, but there was a haunted look to him that Gray had never seen before. Luckily Elfman seemed to see it too and threw an arm around the other tall co-ed, offering him comfort in the time honored tradition of bros everywhere: the manly half hug.

"Hey...thank you. Without you, they could have ended up…" Gray swallowed his next thought. "Yeah, just thanks."

"No problem, man. I just wish we could have done more," Elfman replied. "Simon's really who you should thank. If he hadn't found them...well, the professionals are on it now. There are great doctors at Magnolia Gen. I'm doing my clinicals there, and they couldn't be in better hands."

"Thanks. That makes me feel a bit better. Honestly, all of this is a little _too_ familiar. I'm just used to it being Natsu getting his ass into...SHIT!" Gray fumbled as he pulled out his phone again. Where the fuck was Natsu? Had anyone even told him yet? "Have you guys seen that idiot around anywhere?"

Laxus shook his head, but Elfman nodded. "Simon mentioned he came back after the raid and wanted a pen. He ran out in a hurry not long after that."

Natsu's phone rang out and went to voicemail. Shit. Wait...did he say...

"Did you say a pen?"

"Yeah, just busted in looking for a pen. I actually saw him running out later myself."

That meant only one thing.

He'd have to swing by Lucy's on the way to the hospital.

* * *

 _Natsu ran through the streets of Southampton, his new prize in hand. The hat wasn't worth much, but stealing it from that girl had been too much fun to pass up. And who knew? Maybe the pawnbroker would see something in it he didn't. The flower design on it was kinda pretty, now that he looked at it…_

 _Still, he'd need more than a hat to sell if he was gonna eat that night. Tucking the straw boater under an arm he slowed his pace and examined the crowd again. It was a pickpocket's paradise. Rich folks with luggage to spare were swarming the deck, their servants carrying bags up the gangplank or chasing after wayward children while their parents stuck their noses in the air at each other._

 _Natsu watched a big fat moneybags conspicuously take a large gold watch from his pocket to check the time, and zeroed in on him. Taking a few running steps, he raced up to the man, nudging him with a shoulder just enough to make him stumble. At the same time, he nabbed the man's wallet and tucked it into his worn brown woolen vest. Then he pulled the hat from under his arm and waved it around, yelling to no one in particular, "Lady! Ya lost yer 'at!"_

 _Immediately, every woman in the vicinity raised a hand to their head and started looking around them to see where the missing hat was. Natsu grinned to himself and ducked behind a big group of posh suits, making a clean getaway. From the feel of the fat leather folio tucked against his ribs, he and the boys would be eating well tonight!_

 _He started to whistle. It was a good day to be livin' in-_

"Oi!" Natsu was jarred out of his flashback by a sharp prick of pain on his forearm. He blinked rapidly, disoriented by the sudden change in setting from the fishy-smelling wharf to Lucy's apartment. He hadn't had that many flashbacks, but coming back from them always gave him a faintly queasy feeling in his stomach for a minute.

Beside him, Lucy and Erik were rubbing their arms too. Thankfully, Lucy had moved away from Erik and closer to him. Natsu frowned at the redhead for a minute in memory, which only seemed to amuse the man. Like he could tell what he was thinking. Which reminded him…

 _Luce? Can you hear me?_

 _ **Yeah, you idiot. I'm right here.**_

Natsu sighed in relief. Luce didn't even seem to realize she'd spoken mind to mind with him instead of aloud as she picked herself up off the floor. A hand immediately went to her head as he felt a rush of blood make her light-headed. He bounced up to steady her, fingers slipping around her waist like they lived there and were happy to be home. All of the strain of the last half an hour melted from his muscles, pulling Lucy closer against his chest into a hug.

"Nappsu?" she mumbled into his shirt, smashed against him. He loosened his hold a bit. "I didn't think I'd see you again tonight." She snuggled more comfortably against him, her head tilted back to look up at him.

He grinned down at her. "Mission accomplished." Then he remembered Frosch's unexpected demise. "Eh, mostly. Either way, I'm back! Let's go to bed!" Without waiting for a response, he turned and started dragging her to her bedroom before her feet could catch up with his words.

"Hey! There are still other people here!" she made what felt like the smallest effort ever to resist him, digging her heels into the carpet.

Natsu looked back at Levy, Erik, and Ultear. "You guys know where the door is. Don't let it hit ya on the way out!" Then he lifted Lucy a few inches off the ground and lugged her now flailing limbs closer to her bedroom. He could hear Levy start to giggle. Lucy was less amused.

"That's so rude! You can't just kick them out of my apartment! It's _my_ apartment! I could at least show them to the door-"

"Don't worry about it Lu-chan. We were leaving anyway. I'll show everyone out," Levy called after her. "And Natsu…" her smile dropped into a smirk, "do your best!"

"Levy-chan!" Lucy gasped at her friend's implication, but didn't get the chance to argue because Natsu had kicked her door closed with a jaunty 'Will do!', cutting off her view of the living room. She drew back so she could yell at him to his face, but the words died in her suddenly dry mouth as she realized he was still holding her tightly against his body and they were now eye to eye, noses practically touching.

She swallowed, with difficulty, trying not to think about all the other parts of him that were touching all other the parts of her.

She failed. She failed hard.

So very hard.

Natsu's grin widened.

"Put me down…" she finally managed to whisper into the darkness surrounding them, the words resounding in the otherwise silent room. Natsu slowly loosened his arms and she immediately regretted the request, trying not to lose her fucking mind as their shirts rode up together letting his bare skin kiss hers. Her bare legs slid against the soft material of what she could only describe as his ninja-pants, (having heard him chanting nin-nin in her head the whole time he'd gotten dressed like an eight-year-old watching Naruto for the first time). They trembled at the friction. "Um...thanks."

"So...you like my ninja pants then?" he teased, breaking the tension between them like he'd swung a Harley-Quinn-sized hammer at it. Lucy groaned.

But couldn't lie. _**This whole mind-reading thing is making it really difficult to maintain any dignity…**_ "Yes." Honestly, she'd have to be crazy not to like pants that made his ass look that good, no matter what they felt like against her legs.

Natsu's eyebrows went up, bemused. "Hmm." _Really?_ He glanced over his shoulder, checking out his own butt in the mirror behind him. Then, spontaneously, he spun them both around until he could see her backside in the mirror over her shoulder. _Nope, yours is still way better._

Lucy squeaked, trying to lunge away from the mirror, but Natsu's hands held her firmly in place.

Then one of his hands slipped lower, grabbing a handful of skirt. She froze, feeling her face heat up as Natsu's focus zeroed in on the plump flesh and slightest edge of her lacy underwear that now showed. Her vision blurred as a wave of heat that was pure lust filled her up. Her breath went ragged as she stared at the tan corded muscle of his neck that peeked out between his scarf and collar. Suddenly every inch of her skin was oversensitized: the soft hair on his forearm brushed against the exposed skin at the side of her waist, his fingertips firm on her other side, his thumb swiping a lazy path across her skin. The motion faltered as she focused on it, like he hadn't really realized he'd been doing it. She felt the clench of his fingers around her balled up skirt tighten, the pleated polyester pressing into wrinkles in his hot palm.

Suddenly, all she could think about was how much she wanted his hands on her ass. Natsu inhaled sharply and she knew he had heard her thoughts again. Yet, he still moved agonizingly slowly, pulling his fistful of skirt up to her waist incrementally, hypnotized by every inch he revealed.

Lucy leaned forward and pushed up his scarf, tentatively pressing a kiss to his collar bone, just barely exposed at the top of his t-shirt. A shiver ran through both of them at the contact.

Lucy couldn't keep her mind on track, instead picturing his fingers sliding up the backs of her thighs and under the lace edge of her lingerie.

 _ **Please just touch me already!**_

Natsu was jarred out of his voyeuristic, and frankly, absolutely perverted fascination with Lucy's behind, by her emphatic thought. Then he was flooded with images from her. They started off simple, just him running his hands over her skin, and snowballed into him ripping off her underwear with his teeth.

 _Shit, Luce. I'm pretty sure those things are too well made for that to even work, but I'm definitely game to try._ His free hand drifted downward, tracing the edge of the garment in question as he pictured pulling them off with his teeth instead. Teasing her was twice as appealing when there was mental foreplay on the table. And, for once, in what felt like forever, they had all night to take their time.

Until she responded with a mental image of her licking a path down his abs, hands wrapped around his dick.

 _Or we could forget the mental foreplay and fuck like there's no tomorrow? I gotta say, your mind is a lot dirtier than I thought it would be..._

Lucy couldn't help laughing out loud at that, the sound morphing into a squeak when Natsu's hands grabbed her butt roughly in both hands and squeezed, capturing her lips with his at the same time.

Her mind growled happily back at him. Which would have made him laugh his ass off it wasn't weirdly sexy that he could get that kind of reaction from her.

 _ **Teasing is overrated.**_ Her thought was dry, but her hands untucking his shirt and diving under it were accompanied by nothing but gleeful enthusiasm. It was kind of awesome knowing for sure _exactly_ what kind of reaction she was having at any given moment. Like a guidebook to pleasing Lucy. Ok, more like a video tutorial; books weren't really his thing.

 _You just don't know how great it can be,_ he thought back, his nimble fingers unzipping her skirt and letting it fall to the ground. He glanced over her shoulder at the mirror again. He really was _never_ going to get tired of that view.

Then suddenly Lucy was pulling his shirt up, and he was forced to let go of her long enough to pull it and his scarf over his head.

The mental image of her legs wrapped around his waist flashed through her head for just a moment before she was pulling back. Half a dozen scenarios (him holding her against a wall, in the shower, in front of the windows, with his face buried in her bare chest) raced through her head. All of which looked pretty great to Natsu (particularly that last one).

But, Lucy wasn't acting on any of them, her hands curling into fists at her side. It took him a second to realize she was holding herself back. He locked eyes with her and leaned down to press their foreheads together. His deep green gaze captured and held hers.

 _What's stopping you? Thought you didn't like teasing..._

Instead of a thought response, he was flooded with images of all the ways it could go wrong, from him dropping her, to her accidentally suffocating him with her boobs, to his laughing at her and rejecting her, and everything in between. They flashed by a millisecond apiece, but somehow he saw them all. Finally, when she'd exhausted all the ways she could picture everything going wrong, she tilted those doe-eyes up at him and got her thoughts together into words.

"I've never done this before. I want to though." _**I really really want to. Like really REALLY want to. I just can't seem to...just...do it. What if I suck at it? Wait, shit, I wasn't going to think that! Ignore that!**_

 _You're thinking too much, Weirdo. Just stop worrying about it. Although, I have to admit, that weird mind of yours is coming up with some hot ideas too, so it's not all bad..._

 _ **Yeah, well, I always think too much! Not like I can stop it now…**_ Lucy pouted, her lower lip

 _Luce, I'm pretty fucking in love with you. I can't think of anything you'd do that would make me reject you. And I'm pretty durable. If I can't breathe, I'm not gonna just let you kill me. Although, buried in you would not be a bad way to go…_

 _ **Natsu! Be serious!**_ Yet, her mind conjured up a few different ways she could think of him being 'buried' in her. His favorite was with his cock hilt deep in her mouth.

His mind quickly took her idea and ran with it, the Lucy in his head moaning as he fucked her face. _Fuck…. Sorry... What were you saying? I mean….thinking…er doing? What were we doing?_

 _ **You're kind of a perv…**_ Her breathing had quickened.

 _Look who's talking… And we can do THAT anytime you fucking want by the way. Like now, for instance. Now would be totally okay. Or like a minute from now. Or, like a minute ago. All of those are great times for that to happen. If you want._

Natsu pulled her hips up against his again so she could feel what her thoughts were doing to him. But, he could still feel the hesitation in her limbs, infinitesimally tensing to move and then chickening out.

 _Nothing says you have to be the one to make the moves you know…_ He leaned in to kiss her neck again, running his teeth roughly over her skin. His hand gave her butt another squeeze.

 _ **But, I want to…you did everything last time…and that's not fair...and there's so much I want to try…**_

 _So do it already! Dammit, Luce. If you don't make up your mind soon, I'll have you on that bed with your ankles wrapped around my head before you get to try anything. I can only take so much of your pervy imagination, and you standing around in your underwear before I snap!_

 _ **OK! FINE.**_

Lucy only had one more split second of indecision before she was pulling her shirt off and straight-up jumping on him. Natsu caught her easily, immediately turning to press her up against the door. Lucy grinned as she recognized one of her earlier mental images. She pictured him sucking on her neck and Natsu raised an eyebrow, but gamely dove in, tasting her skin with swipes of his tongue.

The Natsu in Lucy's head kissed his way down her chest, licking along her bra-line _._ Real-life Natsu acted accordingly, one hand guiding her back into an arch so he could pop open her bra clasp.

 _Fantasy Natsu_ (as Lucy fondly thought of him) _found her nipple, swirling his tongue around it before suckling it._ Natsu followed his alter-ego (who for some reason seemed to have little sparkles surrounding his head when she thought of him...he was seriously going to have to ask about that), one hand leaving her thigh to grab her other breast, its abundance spilling out through his fingers.

Lucy's mind blanked out for a minute as the sensation of his hot mouth on her exposed skin shot right through her. Her hips ground against him, inciting an encouraging hum from him.

 _Bite me,_ she thought, moaning when Natsu's teeth sank into her. Another wave of lust rolled into her, making it feel like the temperature of the room rose ten degrees. Her mind conjured up an image of Natsu tied to her bed as she straddled him.

Before she knew what was happening, she was pulled away from the wall, carried across the room and falling, Natsu just barely remembering to pull her legs out from behind him as they fell onto her bed. Before she sent him any new instructions, he leaned forward, capturing her other nipple with his mouth, his hands exploring every inch of her that his fingers could reach. One hand was beginning the agonizing trek up her inner thigh when she grabbed his wrists.

Lucy pulled back and Natsu stared up at her in awe; from the determined look on her face, flushed cheeks, and massive rack, still shiny and pink in places from his attentions, he didn't think he'd ever seen anything more perfect. He pulled lightly on his hands, testing his new bonds. Lucy shook her head, smirking down at him. The smirk almost fucking killed him. Right there in her tiny little hands.

 _ **No hands,**_ she thought firmly at him, finally gaining confidence from his positive reactions. He didn't have time to respond before she leaned down and swirled her tongue experimentally on his neck, tracing along his scar. He twitched, trying not to show that the thought of her touching that part of him bothered him. She froze and he mentally cursed himself, but she didn't push the issue. Instead, she moved on, working her way down his chest in a way that had him completely forgetting about his neck and sending more blood in a southernly direction. He pictured her grinding against him and sighed with satisfaction when she did it.

She trailed a hand down ahead of her when she got to his belly button, finding and gripping him through his pants and boxer briefs as her tongue found the toned grooves that pointed the way down his hips to his happy place.

Natsu didn't realize he'd thought that until Lucy halted her progress to grin up at him.

 _ **Your happy place?**_

The view of her gripping him, mouth tantalizingly close to where he wanted it, all framed by her impressive cleavage had his tongue stuck to the roof of his mouth.

Lucy's hand clenched reflexively as his lust made her flush. _**You're wearing too many clothes.**_

 _Definitely._ Natsu started to reach down for the drawstring on his pants, only to have his hands firmly captured and pulled above him again, earning a face full of Lucy's boobs in the process.

 _ **NO HANDS!**_

Natsu could definitely get used to bossy Lucy. Especially when he felt how turned on she got from being in charge. Even if he wasn't zoned in to everything going on her body, the way she was shifting her hips back and forth seeking relief would have pointed him in the right direction.

She had just gotten the string untied when something hit her bedroom window, startling them both. At which point they realized someone had been yelling at them. They froze where they were, just their heads turning and leaning to look out the window.

"Natsu! You fucking moron! Answer your fucking phone! We do NOT have TIME FOR THIS!"

 _ **Gray?**_ Lucy thought to herself.

They couldn't see him, but the voice was obviously his.

Natsu's thoughts were a little more...murderous. _Fuck no. Not again. That jealous dickhead! I'm gonna fucking kill him._

And he was out of her bed and out the door before she'd realized what was happening. Lucy tried to spring to her feet after him, but tripped on her bedspread falling back onto the bed. Cursing to herself, she got up again more carefully and started snatching clothes off the floor.

She'd managed to get her bra and skirt back on when she heard the tone of Gray's yelling change.

"Finally! Dude, we've got to go! Er-FUCK! OW!"

Lucy felt the impact of Natsu's knuckles hitting something and scrambled over to the window, opening it to lean out and see what was happening. Unfortunately, the tree right next to the window was obscuring her view. So, she furrowed her brows, closed her eyes and concentrated on seeing what Natsu did, opening them just in time to see Gray land a hit on Natsu's mid-section. She looked down, seeing a red spot spreading across her stomach, with the pain to match. It would definitely bruise.

Fury blazed in her, whether from Natsu, or her own fury at Gray basically hitting her through Natsu she wasn't sure. _**Oh HELL no you didn't!**_

The urge to give as good as she'd gotten overwhelmed her, and suddenly, she was standing outside, the cool air on her bare-torso as she pulled back her leg and went to knee Gray in the balls.

Gray was just opening his mouth to stop Natsu's assault with a quick explanation when he saw Natsu's green eyes change, instead reflecting Lucy's righteous fury in a warm chocolate brown.

"LUCY?" he spat out instead, barely blocking the knee 'Natsu' had aimed at his groin.

"What the hell Gray! You fucking hit me!" Lucy yelled back at him in Natsu's voice. Going in for another kick. "You dickhead!"

Gray caught Natsu's leg.

"He hit me first!" he argued back, stepping out of range again. The door to the apartment building burst open again and Gray was distracted by the sight of Lucy in just her bra and skirt running toward him. Fuck. His mouth dropped open.

Natsu's eyes looking out of Lucy's face glared back at him. "We're not done, icicle dick. What is your problem? How many times are you gonna fucking cockblock me? AND STOP STARING AT LUCY'S TITS!"

"Then put a damn shirt on!" Lucy yelled from Natsu's mouth, unthinkingly smacking her own body on the back of the head.

Gray had the urge to yell at the sky again. Why him? He did not have time for their shit. "We DON'T HAVE TIME FOR THIS!"

Both of them turned to glare at him in a perfect coordinated movement and he could swear one of each of their eyes turned red for a minute. They seemed to agree immediately to put aside their issues to deal with him.

Gray glared back. "Erza and Mystogan are in the hospital! Get your heads out of your asses and realize there's more going on than your fucking hormones!"

At his words, both of them froze, their eyes instantly switching back to normal. Natsu looked as if the strings holding him up had been cut. "What?" he whispered.

"Is she okay?!" added Lucy, her hands wrapping around herself against the cold. And to attempt to hide a little of her exposed skin.

"I don't fucking know, because I'm HERE, dealing with the fact that neither of you can fucking answer your phones!" he yelled back. "They nearly bled out on the fucking floor. Jellal must have done something to them."

Suddenly a window opened over their heads and a head popped out, blue eyes blazing and disheveled navy hair poking up in all directions from what were probably neat pigtails before she had gone to bed. "Can you guys please shut up!?" The girl yelling down at them did a double-take when she saw them and ducked back inside, throwing a handful of fabric down at them with astounding accuracy. "And put on a shirt!" Then she ducked back inside, slamming the window and missing the looks on their faces as they looked at the bundle of black t-shirts she'd thrown down at them.

"What the hell is Chat Noir?" Lucy was the first to ask, confused by the cat eyes and French text blazoned across the front. "Some kind of band?"

"Doesn't matter," Natsu replied, grabbing one of the shirts and pulling it on. "Just put one on and let's get going." Now that he knew Erza was in trouble, the priority was getting to her as soon as possible.

Gray was already on his way to the car, shirt in hand, leaving Lucy to struggle to get the slightly too tight t-shirt over her head and start after them, barely getting the door closed before the car took off.

"Do her parents know?" Natsu asked at the first red light, his hand flipping his lighter cap open and closed in agitation at the delay.

"Yeah, they're on their way too."

"Good."

Lucy shifted uncomfortably in the backseat, lifting her butt off the seat to pull random shirts out from under her. Gray's whole back seat was layered in them. The Chat Noir shirt he'd been carrying had already been added to the top of the pile.

It was almost hard to breathe with all the fear and panic and anger coming off of Natsu and Gray. She twitched at the prickles of sweat breaking out across her skin in response. To distract herself, she started gathering the shirts, neatly folding each one before grabbing up the next and adding it to the pile. She felt like she should say something to them. To help somehow.

But she just felt out of place. She was finally getting the hang of being Natsu's soulmate, but this was his family. And family wasn't her forte. _**Maybe I shouldn't have come.**_

"Stop it, Luce," Natsu said aloud. "We need you." _I need you._ "So, stop thinking like that, okay?"

Gray pretended like it was perfectly normal that he couldn't hear the other side of their conversation. It wasn't hard to guess anyway. "Yeah. Thanks for coming Lucy. Erza would be pissed if we left you behind anyway."

"Okay. Well...then...let me know if you need anything, okay?" she said earnestly. _**Whatever you need.**_

 _Thanks Luce._

The stench of their panic still remained.

"Erza will be okay," she professed. "She's the strongest person I've ever met." She sent happy thoughts their way, willing them to relax. And praying for her to be able to give them even just a small amount of comfort to offset their worry.

"Yeah," Gray agreed. "You're right."

Lucy felt a tiny bit of Gray and Natsu's panic dissipate and breathed easier. Maybe she could help after all.

"When this is all over, we can take her out for cake!"

Their apprehension spiked again for a moment for reasons Lucy couldn't understand.

* * *

Jellal couldn't really feel the pain anymore. Just the cold. Even the warmth of his own blood spilling out of him didn't register to his nerves anymore.

He barely notice though, because he couldn't understand it. Why hadn't Death saved him?

Why _now_ of all times? Just when he'd felt something stirring in his heart again… He didn't want to die.

Was that it? Was it because of Erza? This had all started with her, so it made sense. But, he had promised not to take her. Death. He had...promised to take him...instead. Hadn't he?

Jellal's thoughts grew fainter as his head swam. He'd lost a lot of blood. That was probably why…

His thoughts came out of his mouth instead, his eyes widening to resist the pull to fall into sweet oblivion. "We had...a deal."

Midnight looked down at Jellal from his top bunk, where he'd retreated away from the blood. Blood wasn't his thing. "A deal? I guess that's one way of putting it."

Except, Jellal wasn't talking to him.

Death had never left, leaning against the dirty cell wall, and watching him, silently after that first burst of laughter. At the blunette's whispered words, he ambled over, taking his time approaching and dropping to a tailor's seat beside him. And then he did something he'd never done before.

He spoke.

"You never cease to amuse me Jellal. I think out of them all, you might be my favorite." His voice was nothing like Jellal had imagined. And yet was also exactly what it should have been.

Jellal couldn't figure out what he was talking about. Suddenly keeping more than one thought in his head at a time felt impossible. So he focused on the one that mattered. "She can't die. We...had...a deal…"

Midnight gave him a weird look. "She? What the hell are you talking about?"

Death smiled serenely. "Everyone dies Jellal. Who's to say it isn't finally your time?"

"But...always...saved me…" He couldn't get all the words out. His lips were numb. But he knew Death would understand.

Midnight grimaced at his roommate's mumbling. "Damn. So much for a quick death. I really thought you'd have bled out completely by now. Looks like you'll be losing your mind before your life. How messy."

Death reached out a hand to draw a finger down Jellal's tattoo, shivers overtaking Jellal's body as he did. "I couldn't let you die before you saw her again. What would that have proven?"

"Proven?" he echoed, barely audible.

"Besides, you haven't died yet. Maybe she'll save you yet. She does love to wait until the last moment. It's always more dramatic that way." Death seemed amused, lost in thoughts of something that softened his features. Somehow, he knew Death wasn't talking about Erza.

Jellal could barely get the air in his lungs to pass through his lips enough to make a sound, but his lips worked through them anyway. "Save...her _." Please, save her._

Death's smile dropped into a frown. "Save her? After all this time? After everything you sacrificed to keep me away from her the first time? You don't resent her? You don't wish you'd just let her die that day?"

 _Save her._ He mouthed again.

"What if you could live? But only if she died?"

 _Save her._

"Well, damn. You were so promising. What a disappointment."

Jellal didn't hear him, having already fallen unconscious.

* * *

"Dammit, I can't get the bleeding to stop!"

"Maybe he's a hemophiliac? Or has von Willebrand's?"

Erza Scarlet could hear voices. She tried to open her eyes, but couldn't. It was like there was a weight tying down each of her eyelids. So she listened harder.

"That would have been on his health history! There's no way it would still be undiagnosed until his 20s! And she was reacting the same way. The chances of them both having a blood disorder is slim to none!"

Whoever that woman was, she was bossy. But she knew what she was talking about. Erza liked her immediately.

"Late onset? That's possible, right?"

That voice, on the other hand, was the voice of a moron. And a weakling. She could practically smell the inadequacy wafting off of him. The bossy one knew it too.

"Quit wasting time with your idiotic suggestions. Go see if they've had any luck with her."

Then Erza heard a voice that eclipsed the others in a second, somehow, while barely raising past a whisper. It was warm. Like the sunlight on her bare skin in the summer.

"Give him Aprotinin." There was peace in that voice. Joy. Erza felt like she could listen to it forever.

"Let's try something a little more drastic. Hang another bag of O-neg and push 1 million KIUs of Aprotinin! We've got to stop that bleeding! More gauze!"

The bossy one didn't seem to have heard the warm one. But she followed her instructions. How odd...

The moron was back and the warm voice was gone.

"They've got OR 2 ready for you doctor!"

That one was competent, but overeager.

"We've got to get him stable before we can even think about that! Get over here and hold this gauze!"

Erza's mind cleared a bit, though her body still felt numb and unresponsive. And cold. So cold.

"Blood pressure is rising doctor! The aprotinin seems to be doing the trick!"

"Thank the gods for modern medicine. Let the OR know we'll need more when we get there. Prep him and let's get moving. We've lost too much time already. Did someone get consent?"

"Yes! His parents are waiting for news when we have it. Hers too."

"Have they got her stable yet?"

There were footsteps then, and louder voices she couldn't quite distinguish. Hands, moving around her.

"She's stabilizing!"

"Alright, let's get 'em upstairs! Prep her for OR 3."

She couldn't hear the bossy woman anymore. Too bad. Her level of confidence was encouraging.

She must be in the hospital.

Erza remembered the blood. And the pain. It was a like nothing she'd felt before. Even the cuts she'd gotten training with her mother hadn't come close to that kind of agony. But, listening to Mystogan's agonized groans had been worse. He'd reached out for her even through the tears streaming down his face. She remembered the feeling of his hand in hers.

Erza's fingers flexed, looking for his.

Then she felt it: the uneven heartbeat of someone else. Of _two_ 'someone else's actually. Their breathing was erratic, their bodies as motionless as her own. Except, she felt the rasp of breath from one a little stronger. And his lips moving.

Somehow she knew it was a he. He felt familiar, but different. Like when she hugged her parents these days, thinking they felt too small to be the giant heroes who raised her. Familiar, but different.

He was saying something. Erza strained her ears to hear it over the ruckus around her, everything but her and the two other heartbeats dropping away.

Finally she heard it.

"Save her."

* * *

In the next ER trauma bay over, being wheeled swiftly to the nearest elevator, Mystogan's lips moved with the voice he heard in his head, sending out the words to any gods, doctors, or particularly good televangelists who might be nearby.

 _Save her._

 _Please just save her._

Had he been a little more conscious, he might have realized they'd just opened their second origins.

Maybe.

* * *

 **So I finished writing this chapter and immediately knew what needed to happen next, so for once, I'm a _little_ ahead and can give you a preview...want it?**

 **Ah hell, of course you do!**

 **After these few references/translations, that is...**

 **Sûrement pas!** -"Absolutely not!" in French (Many thanks again to blargolp for the speedy French translation!)

 **lemmings** \- rodents famous for their single-minded tendency to follow the rest of the group, even off a cliff. HOWEVER, that's actually a huge misconception. Lemmings aren't that blinded to their own well-being, but since most people don't know that, neither does Ultear. lol.

 **Aprotonin** -a drug given to patients during surgery to aid with blood clotting if they've lost a lot of blood...it took some research, but I think I got all the phrasing about it right...

 **And, now for the preview...**

"Ok, we need to regroup. Everyone stop what you're doing."

It was the weirdest surgery Dr. Grand had ever performed. Things kept changing every few minutes. First an artery was cut, then it was suddenly held closed by stitches she hadn't put in. The anesthesiologist was almost out of his mind, flinching every time he looked at her stats, unable to explain the odd reactions he was getting when he changed the dose in any way. Or even when he didn't. Sometimes everything going haywire for no reason that any of them could see. So, When Dr. Grand had deemed that the patient was stable, she stepped back from the table and tried to collect her thoughts.

There was something they were missing. Something hugely important.

She just couldn't figure out what it was.

 **Excited? hehe**


	49. Magic Singularity

**Ok, yes, it's late! But I have a good excuse! I hit my finger with a hammer. Couldn't type all last weekend, it sucked. And then I came up with like, 4 more scenes I wanted to add to this chapter. So, it's late, but 12k! YAY! Anywho, the finger is fine (aka inexplicably numb...so fine...right?) and the chapter is UP! Also, I noticed, NEXT CHAPTER IS CHAPTER 50! Not sure why but it feel BIG! So...maybe something big will happen...hehe**

 **Anyway, ENJOY!**

* * *

Cana found herself alone. Obediently, the men of Fairy Tail went about their business, most going the fuck to sleep. Because they were men. And sleep was fucking sacred.

Except for those chosen few who shunned sleep for when they were dead. She was pretty sure they were having a Call of Duty marathon in the basement or something. But even though she'd gotten what she wanted, she couldn't take solace in her fistful of alcoholic elixir (aka the precious Dassai) or the silence.

Her brain wouldn't stop replaying the events of the night. She was positive she'd done everything right. Ok, she was pretty sure that she hadn't missed anything massively important. Same thing, right?

In the moment, she'd known _exactly_ what to do and say. It was like the adrenaline pushing through her system had made her brain work more efficiently or something. Or like she was on some kind of high, with a clear path laid out in front of her. She knew what had to happen, and she executed it. But now, she had time to pick apart her decisions. And wonder.

So, like most wonderers, she wandered, her pedicured toes inevitably taking her down a certain hallway, despite her mind's complete rejection of the decision.

 _Or rejection of making the decision in the first place? Rejection of decision making as a whole? The rejection of the decision to reject decision making?_

Fuck. It was fucking late. Puzzling out her own decision making paradigm could happen in the fucking morning. That is, _later_ in the fucking morning.

But, no matter her reasons for being there, the last thing she expected to see when she shuffled across the worn carpet to that fateful last door on the left was Simon, still sitting where she and Nurse Manly left him, covered in now drying blood, and staring numbly into space.

Cana took in the sight. It wasn't what she would call a pleasant one.

A small part of her screamed pettily that she was done being strong and responsible for the night. She just wanted to wallow in her scrambled thoughts and drink enough booze to override the adrenaline so she could also go the fuck to sleep. But, she'd boarded the Fairy Tail roller coaster of her free will, so that meant slogging through the tedious climb to the top of the hill in addition to riding the killer highs in a rush to the bottom.

"Simon. You need to get up and shower," she said wearily, trying to will herself to enter the room. Just the _thought_ of that soggy, deep red, carpet beneath her toes made her faintly nauseous.

Her voice at least got his attention. Simon turned his head to her, the blank look in his eyes remaining.

"Someone should clean this up," he muttered at the air in front of her.

He had a point. But it was also fucking late.

Early.

Whatever.

And neither of _them_ was going to do it. That was _damn_ sure.

"I'll call someone in the morning. Right now, you need to clean yourself up." Cana gingerly stepped through the door, giving the dark irregular marks on the floor a wide berth. She offered him a hand. "Come on."

He didn't seem to see it.

 _Ok,_ thought Cana. _Time for some tough love. Mavis grant me strength._

She leaned down and grabbed a chunk of his hair, pulling until his head tilted up toward hers. Finally he made eye contact. "Simon, you're covered in their blood. Go take a shower."

Simon's eyes teared up as though her words had opened up a floodgate. "Erza almost...and Mystogan...how…?" The wells of his eyes overflowed, rivulets of sadness mapping new paths over the planes of his cheeks. One forged its way through a smear of blood across his jaw. It dripped, pink, staining his already ruined shirt. The day had clearly broken him. The last of Cana's selfishness melted away. The hand in his hair relaxed, smoothing it down.

"You did a _good_ thing today. They'd probably be dead without you. You did _everything you could have_." Cana honestly couldn't tell if she was driving that fact home for him or herself at this point. "And there's definitely nothing else you can do right now. Except wait. And I'm in the same boat." She swished her glass carefully in his eyesight. "You look like you could seriously use a drink."

Simon sniffled, took the glass and drank a sip. His eyes gained a semblance of light as he looked at the glass in his hand with speculation. "That is... _really_ good. What the hell is it?"

"Ambrooooosia," she purred wearily, taking the glass from him again so he could push himself stiffly to his feet. "Also known as damn good sake. Go shower, get some fresh clothes, come to my room, and I'll pour you your own glass."

"Deal," he mumbled, trying on a heartbreakingly small smile and wiping his eyes. Cana couldn't help but want to give him a hug. Big men crying were a weakness of hers. She could blame her dad for that.

A half an hour later found the heroes of Fairy Tail leaning against each other on Cana's couch, fast asleep, with empty glasses in their hands, finding a modicum of peace in each other's company.

* * *

"Ok, we need to regroup. The patient is stable. Everyone stop what you're doing."

It was the weirdest surgery Dr. Grand had ever performed. Things kept changing every few minutes. First something was cut, then it was suddenly held closed by stitches she hadn't put in. Severed arteries were bleeding and then they weren't. No matter how fast she worked, she couldn't seem to keep up with the invisible force working against her. Or rather, with her? It was bizarre.

The anesthesiologist was almost out of his mind, flinching every time he looked at the her patient's vitals, unable to explain the odd reactions he was getting when he changed the dose in any way. Or even when he didn't. Sometimes everything went haywire for no reason that any of them could see. So, when Dr. Grand had deemed that the patient was stable, she stepped back from the table and tried to collect her thoughts.

There was something they were missing. Something hugely important.

She just couldn't figure out what it was.

And of all patients to have problems, it _had_ to be this one.

A loud bellowing curse from the next operating room drew her attention, where she saw a mirror image of her own operating theater through the window in the swinging door; surgeons, nurses and interns stood back wearing bewildered expressions.

"Hmmmm," a voice from her elbow mused with a tone that didn't fit the situation at all. Dr. Grand looked down at the petite woman in the hospital's standard pale pink nurse scrubs.

"Nurse? Do you have something you would like to say?"

The small woman shrugged, gesturing toward the windowed swinging doors between ORs. Her large green eyes met the surgeon's over their masks. If it wasn't for her attire and clearly displayed ID badge, Dr. Grand would have sworn she was speaking to a child. Maybe she had achondroplasia in her family somewhere **.** "Looks like they're having the same troubles we are. Maybe the families or friends might know something that could help. Could be environmental, since it's happening to both of them."

"Environmental? Like what? Mold? Allergies? Not likely. Drugs, maybe?"

"Something like that... It can't hurt to ask, right?"

Dr. Grand couldn't disagree. "Dr. Marvell, monitor his stats and send for me if anything changes." And with those orders to her favorite first year surgical resident, she exited the OR, stripping off her blood-stained surgical smock, mask and gloves. Luckily, they had protected her scrubs from the worst of it. She scrubbed her hands and arms thoroughly and dried them off with a sterile surgical towel. For a moment, she thought about grabbing the girl's surgeon to go with her, but thought better of it. He wouldn't appreciate any suggestion if it came from her, the chauvinistic asshole. Some men weren't worth the air they consumed.

She hit the button just inside the doors that separated the surgical suites from the waiting room and walked out, feeling the tension gather between her shoulder blades like it always did.

Talking to families was the worst part of the job. Hands down.

But this was going to be even worse.

She knew these parents. Her patient's blue hair was pretty distinctive, even in the ethnic salad bowl that was Magnolia. Between his last name and the hair, it hadn't taken her long to put two and two together. It would have been a bit pathetic if she hadn't; she saw that blue hair almost every day.

She walked directly up to them, offering a hand. "Siegrain. Miriam. I'm sorry we're meeting like this." Why did her favorite anesthesiologist's son, of all patients, have to end up on her table today? Operating on young people was sad enough without knowing their life story. Siegrain talked about his son a lot. Mystogan was a good kid.

"We wouldn't trust anyone else with his care, Sky. You know that. We appreciate you clearing your schedule for him." Dr. Fernandes had always been polite. They rose stiffly, offering their own hands. "How is he?"

Always the first question. And this time, the most complicated. "We've gotten him stable, for the moment, but his condition is...fluctuating. We think the cause might be something...environmental. Apparently his girlfriend is exhibiting similar symptoms. Can I ask you a few questions?"

Siegrain gave Sky a confused look. No doubt he was trying to figure out what symptoms she could be referring to. Before he could ask, his wife answered for them. "Actually, when it comes to his environment, you'd probably have better luck with Natsu and Gray. He's lived with them in the fraternity for the last few years." She gestured to the two young men sitting to her left. They immediately stood and joined them, followed by a tall rugged-looking black-haired man, a striking redhead and an extremely well-endowed blonde girl.

 _Fake?_ Dr. Grand immediately thought. If her plastic surgery rotation had taught her nothing else it was that breasts like that were rarely natural. Granted, it did happen. Now that she thought about it, the blonde looked kind of familiar...

"I'm Gray Fullbuster. What do you need to know?" the darker-haired one of the two asked, a slight lilt to his speech that told her he was probably a refugee. Like the pink-haired Pergrandean beside him. And herself for that matter. Magnolia was full of them. Always made for an interesting day at work. Thankfully, the hospital had lots of translators on staff.

She opened her mouth to answer, but was interrupted by the Pergrande-born male next to Gray. "Hey, quick question, do you have a sister? With pink-hair by any chance?"

The blonde smacked him lightly on the arm. "Natsu! Just because I told you I thought they looked alike doesn't mean you should blurt it out like that! I'm so sorry Dr. Grand. It's just that you look a lot like someone we know. Apart from your hair color. I'm...Lucy. Lucy Heartfilia, by the way." She hesitated slightly before giving her full name, accompanying the introduction with a little wave.

Sky lifted a hand to her snow white hair and raised an eyebrow. "I do have a sister actually. Are you acquainted with Porlyusica?" She eyed the kids, noticing the pinkette (Natsu, apparently) and the blonde had on matching shirts of some kind. They didn't _seem_ like Porly's usual crowd...but even her _usuals_ were...unusual. Wait...Heartfilia? Her eyes widened slightly in shock. It wasn't every day she conversed with someone worth more than the hospital she worked in.

At the name of her sister, all the tension seemed to flow out of the college students, their shoulders dropping with relief and small smiles gracing their faces. "That's going to make this a lot easier," the blonde sighed. Sky took that as a yes.

Both sets of parents looked at the kids with confusion and suspicion. The redhead, assumedly the girlfriend's mother (though she honestly didn't look old enough to have a daughter in college), narrowed her eyes at the boys. "Do you know more than you've been telling us, boys? Because if you do…" her hand went to her hip and she paused, seeming to be missing something. "Stupid hospital rules…" she muttered.

Dr. Grand swiftly interceded with a practiced maneuver. "Kids, let's talk in private, this way please. She gestured the way to a meeting room just off of the waiting room. Dr. Fernandes grabbed her arm before she could follow them.

"Hey. If it's about our kids, we're coming too." The three other parents nodded, making it clear they weren't going to take no for an answer. If Sky hadn't had years of daunting surgical attendings questioning her choices for the last twenty years she might have even caved. Fortunately, she's been intimidated by scarier than Siegrain Fernandes. And that was after she'd left Pergrande.

"Listen, this is a matter of life and death. Mystogan is stable, for the moment, but he's far from out of the woods. If those kids have any information that can shine light on the unusual reactions he and his girlfriend are having, then it could make the difference between saving your children and having them die on the table." She looked them each solidly in the eye, ending with her colleague. "Having you there might keep them from sharing what we need to know. You know how this works Siegrain. Take a step back and let me do my job."

With that, she turned on her heel and walked into the room where the three were waiting for her.

The door closed behind her, and before she could so much as open her mouth to ask a question, Natsu was asking his own.

"Weird stuff is happening right? Like, appearing, disappearing? Changing with no explanation, right?"

She nodded, giving them her full attention. That was too close a description to be guessing. They knew what was going on. A small part of her relaxed. At least someone did...

The blonde and the pinkette seemed to be having a silent conversation with their eyes. She waited patiently. Sky found it interesting that Gray wasn't involved in the language of looks they shot each other, but he seemed unfazed, eyes flashing over to them a couple times before he pulled out his phone, swiping over something on the screen. Kids these days and their lack of attention spans.

Finally, they seemed to come to a consensus.

"If we tell you what we know, are you required to keep it a secret? Like doctor/patient confidentiality?" the blonde asked, her eyes very serious.

It wasn't the first time Dr. Grand had been asked a question like that. Usually if drugs were involved. An uneasy knot settled in her stomach. "If it is concerning my patient's condition, it is confidential. I can only share what he/she wants me to, and what is vital to his/her treatment." She rattled the conditions off by rote. "He's over the age of consent, so his parents only get the bare minimum information to make an informed decision about his care."

That answer seemed to satisfy at least some of their apprehension. But, the dark one looked up, concerned. What was his name? Gray something?

"That doesn't protect _you guys_ , then," Gray said, as though he was pointing out the obvious.

Definitely drugs. Their paranoia was a dead giveaway.

"Yeah, we know." Natsu was still looking at the blonde with concern in his eyes. "But at least we're doing it consciously. We won't be outing them without them even knowing it."

How noble. For druggies. She'd heard millionaires could get away with just about anything these days. Apparently billionaires were even worse. She eyed up the blonde again. Whatever she was on, it couldn't be that heavy; she looked to be in the peak of health. For that matter, so did Natsu. Hmm...an amphetamine maybe? Or a steroid laced with something nasty? Both boys did seem to be insanely fit...

Hopefully she wouldn't have to be the one to tell Siegrain that his son had fallen in with such a bad crowd. He wouldn't take it well. To him that boy walked on water.

"Are you treating both of them, or just Mystogan?" Natsu rounded those dark, serious eyes on her again. For just a moment, he seemed decades older than he was. Like those eyes had seen things they shouldn't have. It only enhanced her impression that something illegal was going on. Though, his pupils didn't _look_ dilated...maybe not amphetamines then...

"I've only examined Mr. Fernandes. His girlfriend's case is being handled by another surgeon."

They all traded worried looks at that. "So...you wouldn't have noticed that their injuries are identical then?"

Sky's train of thought promptly derailed. She raised an eyebrow. "I understand their injuries are similar, but them being identical is not physically possible. No two lacerations are _exactly_ the same." And drugs couldn't do something like that. Although maybe hallucinations...her thought train rolled over like a dog and started limping back to the tracks.

Whatever, metaphors had always been more Porly's thing than hers.

Natsu and Lucy traded a look and simultaneously lifted their shirts, showing the bruises they'd received from Gray's blow outside Lucy's apartment.

Dr. Grand leaned forward, immediately intrigued by the sight of what appeared to be identical bruising on both of their abdomens. Even the pattern of burst blood vessels seemed to be the same. However, her training told her that it was impossible. They were strikingly similar, but not identical. "That is very convincing, but I am, unfortunately, _not_ convinced. I'm not even sure what it is you're trying to prove to me here." Had to be drugs. But what kind? Opiates? Could their pupils be contracted? Lucy looked her straight in the eye. It was hard to tell with their deep brown color.

And shining a flashlight randomly into her probably wouldn't go over well… What was Porly into this time? "And how do you know my sister?"

"She's helping us...figure some things out." Lucy gritted her teeth. They were wasting time. "This is taking too long. Anybody have a pen?"

Natsu's eyes lit up as he pulled out the pen he'd borrowed from Simon earlier. At this point he seriously owed him a steak or something. Amazing what difference a pen could make. He handed Lucy the writing utensil and held out his left arm to Dr. Grand for inspection. She looked at him like he was crazy.

Until Lucy started to write.

 **Now do you believe us?**

Dr. Grand leaned forward grabbing her arm to compare the two. The words, handwriting, and color were all identical. Her train of thought, barely back on track, exploded into little bits, derailing half the trains backed up behind it. "Alright. You've got my attention."

"Good," Gray chimed in, finally dropping his now dark phone into his lap. "Because the only way you'll be able to save them is if you listen to us."

It took another half an hour of explanation and Natsu and Lucy getting stuck with a needle multiple times before she was satisfied. She still didn't know how the hell they could do what they did, but she knew that they could.

And that it definitely wasn't drugs.

If Mystogan and his girlfriend were like Natsu and Lucy, it explained everything that had happened with her patient. Except for one thing.

"Do either of them have a history of their blood not clotting? No matter how hard we tried, they just kept bleeding. Like we weren't putting pressure on them at all. Or like the injury was recurring with repeated or continuous trauma."

The three of them exchanged a look, Natsu shrugging as they both looked at the blonde. Lucy, who had taken over the task of explaining some time ago, had clearly been elected again.

"They don't. That we know of. But it could be because...they aren't _exactly_ like Natsu and I."

Dr. Grand waited for the rest.

"Mystogan has a twin brother named Jellal. We're pretty sure he's the one who actually got stabbed."

Siegrain had another son?! "Wait, there's a third patient somewhere? And he, Mystogan, and his girlfriend are _all_...what did you call it?" And why had she _never_ heard of Siegrain's other son?!

"Soul-bonded," Lucy supplied helpfully. "Yeah."

"Why wasn't he brought in with them?!" Sky was alarmed. It was an odd sensation, knowing for certain there was a patient out there somewhere with grievous injuries, probably not receiving any sort of medical treatment.

"He's in prison. At Era Penitentiary. And he _might_ have stabbed himself…we're not 100% sure on the details..."

"Well...that explains…" why she hadn't heard of him. "...the bleeding...probably. But, I'm not sure how I'm going to be able to use this knowledge. Especially if you're insisting I keep this information confidential."

"Based on our tests, if you perform surgery on one of them, in theory, it should have the same effects on the others."

 _Tests? What kind of tests did they do?_ she wondered. "Well, yes, I had gathered that myself, thank you. And if they were both my patients, and I was the only medical professional that needed to be present for their care, in a facility I owned, then it would be a simple matter. But I'm not. And I can't think of a way to explain to my colleagues why we should quit administering pain meds, anesthesia, and surgical care to a patient who is clearly very injured and needs it, while insisting on that same care for another patient. Hell, I don't even know where we'd start. _If_ I even believe everything you're saying." Though, she didn't really have a better theory to work from at this point.

Lucy and Natsu went quiet.

"Well? What is it you expect me to do?"

The couple ignored her, apparently distracted by each other. She opened her mouth to get their attention, but was cut off.

"They're discussing it."

Sky was surprised that the answer came from the quietest member of the trio. Gray had said very little. She hadn't really worked out where he fitted into the whole bizarre scenario, but he was definitely part of the team, his occasional comments knowledgeable and acknowledged favorably by the couple.

"And how, pray tell, are they _discussing it_?"

"They just are. Give them a minute," he snapped wearily, glaring at her. Lucy immediately reached out and grabbed his hand, still looking at Natsu. He flinched when she touched him, but eventually grabbed her hand back, holding it tightly.

There was definitely more going on than they were telling her, but she couldn't begin to put a finger on it. Her entire perception of what was possible had been flipped on its head, so the possibilities were overwhelming. Porlyusica's involvement was making more and more sense.

"So, what does my sister have to do with this?" She directed her question at Gray, by way of making conversation until Joanie and Chachi had wrapped up their inaudible discussion.

"She's helping us figure out what's happening. And providing some training in past life regression."

Ah. That she understood. As a doctor, she was trained to believe what she could see, or test, or prove. But, more than once, her sister had convinced her there was more to the world than what could be seen by the naked eye. She'd only tried past life regression once, to humor Porly, but once was all it had taken to thoroughly unnerve her. Some things did defy imagination.

She mentally swept the debris off the tracks of her mind and opened up her thinking, the way she and her sister had been trained so very long ago. Breathing in the possibilities and breathing out her doubt. She could almost hear their father chanting mantras in their native language, reminding them when to inhale and exhale when he noticed them pulling out of sync.

She took a deep breath in. She didn't have a choice but to trust them.

She released the breath, feeling her lungs compress in its absence.

People were dying on her watch and she was running out of time..

* * *

Meanwhile, Lucy and Natsu were arguing where no one could overhear them.

 _ **Well,**_ Lucy thought to Natsu, _**what do we expect her to do? It's not like she can just bust in and tell her whole staff Mystogan and Erza are under some kind of spell or curse or something and they only need to treat one of them!**_

 _Yeah, but there's got to be something! Can't we just go show everyone in the ER what we can do? Then they can't ignore it!_ Natsu stared back at her, pleading in his eyes. She could feel his anxiety for Erza. It drowned out everything else she was feeling. It was clear he wasn't thinking about himself at all. But he had to. They had to.

 _ **And what, become lab rats?! There's got to be another way!**_

 _Like what? We're running out of time here, Luce!_

 _ **Like I don't know that?! You're not helping here!**_ She took one of his hands and pushed the growing anxiety down, breathing deep and sinking into the green of his eyes. Slowly, his panic subsided. She offered him a small smile. _**Breathe baka.**_

 _Yeah. Sorry._

Vaguely, she heard Gray and the doctor saying something, but she was too distracted on trying to keep him calm. Then she felt a spike of anxiety from Gray of all people. Immediately her hand shot out without looking, finding his and squeezing it, trying what she had with Natsu, willing his panic down to a managable level, pulling it out of him through her fingers. He squeezed it back, the contact already working on him.

She felt a whiff of something she could only describe as...sour coming off of Natsu and narrowed her eyes at him, almost missing his eyes darting back from a glance at where her hand was holding Gray's. Jealousy was an acrid emotion. Granted, she wasn't even sure if that was what she'd felt. He had suppressed it almost immediately, taking her other hand in his firmly. She decided to just thank the gods they weren't panicking so strongly anymore and get back on track.

It was much easier to think without their dread weighing her down.

 _ **We could call Porlyusica. At least then Dr. Grand would have something else to back up our story.**_

Natsu's eyebrows pulled together. _That's true. But what can she even do once she_ does _believe us?_

 _ **I don't know! But there's got to be another way!**_

 _Luce, if it means Erza is gonna die otherwise, we've got to go public._ A shiver went down her spine at the no nonsense way he thought it. Like they had no choice. And maybe they didn't. But she sure as hell wasn't ready to give up looking for one yet.

 _ **What if Erza's parents refuse treatment? They'd have to stop working on her, right?**_

 _Yeah...but aren't they required to treat patients if they're really hurt? I mean, they're old enough that their parents can't decide stuff anymore. Remember, she said something like that?_

 _ **Oh right…her Hippocratic Oath and all that...WAIT! Mystogan's dad! He could help with the surgery! If we have to tell anyone, then at least we'd be telling someone we trust, right? He wouldn't experiment on his own son right?**_

 _I don't know, Jellal sounds like he'd be better off with some experimenting…_

 _ **NATSU!**_

 _No, you're right._ Lucy could feel the slightest bit of hope taking hold in him as his fingers laced themselves in between hers. _But, they won't let him work on Mystogan since he's family, right?_

Natsu felt Lucy smile before he saw it. _**He doesn't have to work on Mystogan though does he?**_

 _True!_ He shot her a grin back. _But Dr. Grand isn't Erza's doctor…_

 _ **But she could be…**_

 _Yeah. We just need to fire her current surgeon, right? Piece of cake!_

 _ **Well sort of. We'd have to tell her parents too, I think they're the only ones who can fire him. And they'd have to ask for Dr. Grand specifically to replace him, I think…**_

 _Well...not necessarily. Maybe the doc knows a way to do it without telling them…_

As one, they turned back to Dr. Grand. Both of them took a breath and started to speak, only to stop when they sensed each other.

 _ **You go.**_

 _Naw. She likes you more. Go for it._

Lucy rolled her eyes. _**Yeah right. She thinks I'm a spoiled brat. You go.**_

Natsu cleared his throat. "We think we've got a plan."

Delicate white eyebrows raised as Dr. Grand leaned forward. She somehow seemed more...receptive than she'd been before. "I'm listening."

"Ok, well, we need to tell Dr. Fernandes. He can help with the surgery then."

Sky shook her head. "He can't operate on family."

"He's not going to. You're both going to operate on Erza."

"Oh. Yes...that's actually doable. If I was requested as the surgeon for both patients, one could be kept under until I was done. They're stable enough at the moment, since we've stopped the bleeding. But we'd need both anesthesiologists to know. Otherwise we'd just be double dosing them. That alone could kill them. Or send them into a coma."

Lucy thought about it for a second. "Not necessarily. If he was helping with Erza, then he could just do nothing, right? The other anesthesiologist would make adjustments to keep them both under, but never know he was doing it for both of them!"

Sky thought about it. It was risky...but it _could_ work. "Alright. But I'd need at _least_ one surgical resident and a nurse in there with us. Anything less would be risking both their lives." Why was she even humoring them? This was all crazy right?! She carefully took in a breath and released it, pushing out her doubts. More things in heaven and Earthland, right Horatio? "The nurse could be kept in the dark, probably, but the surgical resident would definitely notice if the patient wasn't receiving anesthesia."

"It would have to be someone you trust," Natsu said before Lucy could protest. "Someone who wouldn't drag us off to a lab somewhere to study."

Sky hadn't even thought of that. She hadn't gotten past the problem at hand, to be honest. As a surgeon, she lived in the _now_ , cutting out the bad and stitching up the good, healing what was right in front of her. There was no room on her table for the past or future. But they made a good point. She had known lots of doctors over the years that wouldn't hesitate to pull them apart and make their lives a living hell in the name of research. The possible medical applications of their situation were extensive. Suddenly she had a greater appreciation for their reluctance to reveal everything to her. Some doctors were heartless.

But, there were doctors who valued their patients as people too. One in particular came to mind. She smiled. She wouldn't dream of asking anyone else. "I know just the woman."

"Ok. Then, we just need to tell Dr. Fernandes and convince Erza's parents to hire you instead!" Natsu finished.

"I can talk to Siegrain, if you both can accompany me. He's going to need to see this with his own eyes if we're going to get through to him quickly." Dr. Grand gestured at Lucy and Natsu who nodded immediately.

Lucy added, "You might as well get that woman you were talking about while you're at it. And maybe Porlyusica could come too, if she's not busy?"

Dr. Grand nodded in agreement, pulling out her phone and sending a message to her sister.

"You can leave Erza's parents to me. I've got an idea." They all turned to look at Gray. Lucy smiled, feeling his determination thrumming away like a live microphone with the amp turned up a little too high. She could feel his emotions so much more strongly when she was touching him, but the sensation wasn't an unpleasant one. Both he and Natsu were feeling much better, now that they had a way to help Erza.

Natsu grinned at his roommate. "Irene?"

Gray smirked back. "Yep."

Lucy's smile slipped a bit. "Do I even want to know?"

"Nope!" they chimed in unison.

The mental images Lucy was getting from Natsu were suddenly _terrifying._ She tugged her hands away from both of them, her mouth falling open in horror.

 _ **WHO THE HELL IS IRENE?!**_

* * *

Irene Scarlet was a force to be reckoned with. And she liked it that way.

At the tender age of sixteen, when her school had been at risk to be shut down, she'd started a petition to save it. And raised enough money and awareness to expand it instead. She'd never been one to see youth as an excuse to slack off: there were never enough days to seize, in her opinion.

At nineteen, when she had been waitlisted to intern at the Smithsonian, she'd marched into the chairman of the selection committee's office (the committee was anonymous, and an ocean away, but that hadn't stopped her) and demanded a place at swordpoint. It had helped that the sword she used was over three hundred years old. She always strove to make an impression.

At twenty-two, when she had been arrested for threatening an officer (any police officer who whistled at women while on duty deserved to be drawn and quartered) and the captain had accepted her seduction (men were weak, so the same maneuver had gotten her out of more than one parking ticket) in the form of a date, but hadn't let her off the charges, she knew she'd found something special. And once she'd set her sights on Captain Belserion Scarlet, he hadn't stood a chance.

Six years later, when their daughter Erza had been suspended from school for hitting a bully in the face to defend her weaker classmates, Irene had demanded a meeting with the principal. The suspension was lifted the same day. No daughter of hers would be taught to believe defending herself or others against injustice was wrong.

And a few years after that, when her daughter was kidnapped by a crazy cult, she'd marched into Mercurius Palace, demanded the Holy Knights get involved immediately, and organized a group of parents to patrol the streets to prevent any further kidnappings. When the Knights finally did their fucking jobs and found the kidnappers, she arrived just in time to see the compound burning to the ground. She'd never been more proud than when she saw _her daughter_ leading out the children by hand. Because she'd taught her how to be her own force to be reckoned with.

But, as she paced the length of the room, she found herself feeling directionless. A force was was only useful when it could be directed where it was needed. Somehow, Erza had been attacked, and she couldn't do anything to help. She no idea who to hunt down to take responsibility, no idea what to demand from the hospital that they weren't already providing. Nothing to do but wait.

Irene hated waiting. It always felt like such a waste of time.

She wanted to scold Erza for being careless. She wanted to argue with her over the merits of double-edged weapons over single. She wanted to compliment Erza on her excellent taste in fashion (which was definitely all from her side, by the way). She wanted to yell at her for not telling her own mother she had a serious boyfriend, especially since she'd told her _father_ all _about_ it!

Mostly, she just wanted to hold her baby girl safely in her arms and growl at anything that tried to hurt her until they went away.

But she couldn't do any of that.

All she could do was wait.

It made her want to punch someone in the face. Or bring them to tears. Either would suffice in a pinch.

Instead, she paced, almost striding out of sight of their little corner of purgatory before turning back to keep pushing that boulder up the hill (sadly not a real boulder, then she would at least feel like she was doing _something)._

Finally, the door containing the surgeon and Erza's boys popped open. She stalked back toward them, only to see Siegrain slip into the room as Gray took his seat again. What could the spineless Dr. Fernandes possibly do to help? They wouldn't let him operate on his own son and he was useless at motivating people. He and Miriam had been next to worthless when their other son had been taken with Erza.

Seeing them in the waiting room when they'd rushed in looking for Gray had been a bit of a shock. Who'd have expected her headstrong daughter to fall for the twin brother of the boy whose death she'd mourned so long ago? It had felt like deja vu in the worst way, recalling long days sitting together waiting for news. Irene hadn't liked waiting any more then.

She just hoped the other Fernandes boy had more of a spine than the weakling who'd followed her daughter around in high school. _He_ hadn't even been able to look Irene in the eye. Erza would have eaten him alive.

Well, she hoped they both made it through this so she could find out just what kind of man Mystogan Fernandes was.

In the meantime, she was dying to know what they'd talked about, so the minute Gray was seated she took a chair next to him.

"Irene, please don't ask. I can't tell you what we talked about," Gray said firmly. She had always admired his courage. She didn't know the details of what had happened to him as a child, but she knew how long it had taken him to come out of his icy shell. Now, it was hard not to look at him like a son. Erza had always wanted siblings, so it really hadn't been a surprise when she'd brought the two of them home with her one day. It had been a bit of a relief for Irene actually; she had no intention of going through birth again if she could help it.

"Well, then tell me what you can," she coaxed reasonably.

"That is one great surgeon. Dr. Fernandes really knew what he was doing requesting her."

"What about the one working on Erza?" Irene's fingernails dug into the arms of her chair, but her face remained sedate.

"She didn't say anything directly, but I got the impression he's not...well...I don't know. I'm sure he's good. They wouldn't have hired him if he wasn't right?" He turned to look her in the eye then, unable to hide the uneasiness behind his dark gaze.

"Unfortunately that isn't always the case," she replied knowingly, abruptly pulling her hands away from the chair when the upholstery showed signs of tearing. Instead she clasped them safely in her lap, knuckles white.

"The sad thing is, Erza would love her, ya know? Being such a feminist and all, right? If Erza were awake, I'm sure she'd rip that other surgeon a new one and insist she be seen by someone competent, AKA female." He managed a chuckle at that, but she could see the sadness in the droop of his head, the anger in the clench of his fists. Gray was a man of action too. She understood that.

Irene didn't see Belserion glancing sidelong at the two of them suspiciously, but Gray did. He nodded slightly, with a warning in his gaze. Bel sat back and raised his eyebrows. The international male sign that he'd wait it out and see for what stupid reason his pseudo-son was poking the beast.

So to speak.

All of a sudden, Irene's fingers unclasped themselves and she relaxed her shoulders. The smile that had incited many a fellow historian to tears at their own inadequacy took over her face. She jumped up from her chair and made for the front desk.

Gray smirked at Bel and tipped an imaginary hat. Bel rolled his eyes, but couldn't help but smile. He couldn't fault the logic.

Everyone was happier when Irene had a mission.

He just still wasn't sure why Gray had given her that particular one. He or Natsu wouldn't bring down the fury of Irene Scarlet on an unsuspecting surgeon for no reason. Between that and the deep blue-haired woman who had been paged to the oh-so-secret meeting room only minutes later, he was beginning to smell a conspiracy.

* * *

It took longer than they'd expected to convince Siegrain that soul-bonding was the real deal. In the end, he'd insisted on numbing up Lucy's arm and prodding Natsu's with a very sharp needle before he would begin to entertain the idea. Once he did, the rest was cake. As expected, a worried father would do anything to protect and care for his son. Hearing that his other son was also in danger had only increased his determination.

If only Jellal knew how much his parents still worried about him.

Dr. Wendy Marvell had taken even less time to convince. Dr. Grand had been her mentor since medical school, and she'd passed many an enjoyable evening debating science versus the occult over dinner with her favorite teacher and the prickly sister who lived with her. Porlyusica enjoyed arguing about it so much, in fact, Wendy didn't have the heart to openly agree with her the way she wanted to. But observing Natsu and Lucy's unique bond in action brought all of those intellectual debates to the forefront of her mind again. Dr. Grand had eventually had to cut off her eager questions, reminding everyone why they were there in the first place. Wendy had quickly sobered, but the twinkle in her eye didn't die. Performing surgery on someone 'soul-bonded' sounded more thrilling than anything she'd ever yet encountered. Needless to say, she was definitely in, no matter the consequences.

Shortly after that, Natsu and Lucy were sent back to the waiting room, finally through with their double act. Both of them were exhausted. It was close to two in the morning at that point, but the hospital quietly bustled around them. Thankfully, the surgical floor was still less hectic than the ER waiting room had been. Quieter even than they expected. Irene was nowhere to be seen.

Natsu turned to Gray, quirking up a weary eyebrow. He nodded back, with a smirk. The pinkette grinned, holding out his fist. Gray bumped it and slid down in his chair, finally sedate enough to let go of the urgency that had been racing through his blood all night and try to get some sleep. Finally, Erza and Mystogan's safety was in the hands of professionals instead of his. Thank the gods he could fall asleep anywhere.

Natsu watched his roommate nod off and considered his options. Honestly, a nap sounded like just what the doctor ordered, but there was no way he and Lucy would be able to get anywhere near comfortable in the stingily upholstered waiting room chairs. Maybe there was somewhere else they could catch some sleep… His speculation was interrupted as he felt Lucy's stomach gnaw at itself, right before he heard it growling. She stubbornly avoided eye contact with him and his sleepy smile grew into a grin.

"Hungry?"

"Well, aren't you?! We haven't eaten anything since that popcorn, and it's been…" she checked her phone and groaned, " _five hours_ since then! We should have ordered a pizza or something while they were still open…" Magnolia's takeout places closed surprisingly early. She slid down in her seat, letting her head fall against his shoulder.

As if her words had woken up his own stomach, it growled in both of them. Natsu craned his neck to look down at her, an idea forming in the part of his brain that came up with all the best ideas. He suspected it was somewhere near his amygdala. Mostly because amygdala was a fun word. "Hey Luce, do you know what the best thing about Magnolia General is?"

She pulled her head off his shoulder enough to look up at him. _**What?**_

He leaned down and pressed his forehead to hers. Natsu smiled to himself that she didn't even seem to realize she hadn't said it aloud. "The cafeteria is open all night," he faux whispered, like he was telling her a huge secret. His sarcasm was lost on her though as she immediately perked up.

"Really?!" she chirped, eyes losing a little of their tired glaze.

He laughed. "Yeah, really." His eyes sparkled as he leaned back offering her his hand grandly. "Shall we, Milady Weirdo?" He didn't wait for an answer, grabbing her offered hand and taking off confidently down the hall to the elevators, his mind already running through his mental map of the hospital and where they needed to go.

 _ **How often do you come to the hospital?!**_

 _Not much…_ He tried not to think of the various broken bones, dislocated limbs, and cuts he'd had treated there over the years. Yet, none of them compared to what Erza and Mystogan were going through. He hadn't seen injuries like theirs since… For Lucy's sake, he redoubled his efforts to block out his thoughts, this time of Pergrande. Some corners of his mind he never wanted Lucy to see.

Lucy felt Natsu's mood plummet as his mind flashed her images of Erza and Mystogan, hurt to varying degrees. She reacted on instinct, grabbing his hand more securely and intertwining their fingers just as the elevator arrived.

"You know, you still owe me a date!"

Natsu was jarred from his thoughts by her sudden outburst. "Yeah, I guess I do. Sorry about that." _I wonder if there are any other festivals coming up…we could all go together. When Erza's not..._

"Make it up to me now." Again, her voice snapped him out of his thoughts as he pulled her onto the elevator.

"What, here?" He raised an eyebrow at her. "You want to have our second date at a hospital? You are so weird…"

"Hey! I'm not weird! We've just...got time right now. And it's not like it's my fault that you pushed our _real_ second date so many times!" she finished with a small indignant sniff. "It shouldn't matter where we have it anyway. It's fun as long as we're together, right?" Her affronted expression melted into a genuine smile that lit up her face as the elevator doors slid quietly closed.

The air seemed to heat up by ten degrees as they both suddenly realized they were alone. Together. In an enclosed space. The air felt almost too thick to breathe.

"Uh…" she fumbled, turning to the numbers on the wall of the elevator. "Which floor are we going to?" The surgical waiting rooms were on the eighth floor. She assumed they were going down.

"Cafeteria's in the second basement," Natsu murmured in her ear, his breath ghosting over the sensitive skin. He'd gotten a lot closer without her realizing it. Lucy moved forward a bit to hide her shiver and pressed the B2 button. Natsu's body heat infiltrated her space, curling around her back like a cat begging for affection, just a hairsbreadth away from touching her.

A mental image flashed through his mind so quickly, she didn't have time to stop him.

"Natsu! What are you-" She spun around, finding herself enclosed in the cage of his solid arms. He ducked his head to kiss her, as his hand darted out, running down every button between their floor and the button she'd already pushed. Mischief managed, he focused on Lucy, grabbing her around the waist and pulling her body to him. They molded together like her body was made to fit against his. Natsu poured the lingering remnants of his frustration with their situation into the kiss, parting her lips with his tongue and dominating her mouth.

Lucy lost herself in the moment, barely managing a grasping hold on the collar of Natsu's shirt before the bell for the elevator doors dinged and they sprang apart, immediately facing forward as though nothing had happened. Her heart pounded in her chest as the doors slid open to reveal an empty reception area. The woman behind the desk didn't even look up at them. Running her tongue over her still tingling lips, Lucy turned to her boyfriend with narrowed eyes.

"What the hell was-" she started to whisper, but the doors slid closed and he was on her again, one hand cradling her neck as he bent her backward with the force behind his kiss. Lucy had barely gotten her bearings again, starting to kiss him back when the door dinged.

Again, they burst apart, assuming casual poses as the door slid open, revealing an empty hallway. She peeked at Natsu from the corner of her eye. His face was impassive, looking almost bored, but she could feel his mind giddily grinning. The warmth of his joy fizzled in her blood, inciting her to act. Before the doors were even closed again, she was on him, arms flung around his neck to bring his mouth closer to her level. His hands slid under her borrowed t-shirt, caressing the silky skin of her back, one broad hand settling between her shoulder blades.

 _Ding._

They tore apart, panting slightly. Carefully looking ahead as the door agonizingly glided open.

 _ **You're completely insane.**_ Lucy struggled to put the thought together around the golden sizzle under her skin. _**And a child. An insane child.**_

 _Shut up. You know you love it._

The doors closed.

Lucy leapt on him, wrapping her legs around his waist as he caught her, balancing her on the metal handrail surrounding the perimeter of the elevator so his hands could slide up her thighs and under her skirt. Her surprisingly powerful leg muscles pulled him in closer as her hands explored the toned abdomen under his shirt. Lucy's fingertips were just starting to follow the maze of grooves pointing the way to his waistband when…

 _Ding!_

He pulled her off the rail, throwing himself back to lean against the opposite side, one leg bent slightly and raised up to conceal the bulge in his jeans. She quickly tugged her skirt back down into place as the doors drifted open.

Another empty hallway revealed itself and they didn't even wait for the doors to close. Natsu crowded her into the wall of the elevator, lifting her back onto the rail. Her foot slid up the inside of his calf, her thigh pressing between his legs. His hips bucked into her as she captured his groan in her mouth. She moved her leg experimentally against him, rewarded by his sharp intake of breath and a squeeze of her ass, his fingers grasping the swell of her flesh roughly as his hips rocked into her. The rough denim covering his thigh aroused goosebumps as he slid it between her legs, pressing against her core. A whimper escaped her lips at the contact, her entire being focused on the throbbing sensation between her quivering thighs and the rhythm of the silent music their bodies were dancing to. Like he'd pressed a magic button, her legs spread wider, instinctually inviting him closer. Images of what he wished he was doing to her flooded her mind, making her gasp as heat sunk through her body, shooting to

 _Ding!_

Lucy's head lifted, eyes glazed. "Natsu? The doors…?"

Natsu lifted his head just long enough to glance out the opening doors and determine there was no one there before he dove back in, stretching out the collar of her t-shirt to place open-mouthed kisses over her shoulder. Her bra strap slipped down her arm and his tongue slid over the red indent it left behind, soothing the burn. The doors slid closed and Lucy relaxed again, running her fingers through Natsu's spiky pink locks.

 _ **This is insane. We shouldn't be...not in a…**_ Lucy couldn't concentrate enough to complete her thought as the leg between her legs retreated, succeeded by nimble fingers launching an exploratory expedition under her skirt. They made soft circles on her skin, teasing as they advanced little by little, retreating at the last (and worst!) possible moment. _**Oh gods, please…just...**_ Lucy bit her lip to keep the words inside her head.

Natsu's head lifted, his mouth releasing from the skin on her neck to look at her face. His pupils were so dilated, his eyes looked black, but they sharpened on her face as he traced one finger lightly over the soft cotton of her underwear, the fabric immediately wicking with the moisture waiting behind it.

They both held their breaths.

 _Ding! Ding!_

The doubled alert got their attention, both looking up at the panel of buttons on the wall. The only buttons left were the lobby, basement and second basement. Lucy's thighs clamped down on his hand in panic.

 **Shit!** they thought in unison. The lobby was bound to be busier than their last few stops. Natsu barely had time to drag Lucy off her perch and step behind her before the door opened, Lucy frantically pulling her shirt and bra strap back into place.

They were just in time, as the doors pulled away, revealing a man carrying a small overnight bag waiting to get on the elevator. He looked up from his phone and frowned. "Going up?"

Natsu's swallowed hard and shook his head. "Nope. Going down."

"'Kay," the man replied, eyes sliding over Lucy before looking back down at his phone and stepping back.

Natsu glared at him, one arm snaking around her waist possessively.

The doors started to slide closed again and Lucy sunk back against Natsu. "That was too close."

"Yeah."

Suddenly a hand stuck in between the doors as someone yelled, "Hold the elevator!"

They both stiffened as a man holding the hand of a little girl entered the elevator. "Going down, right?" he gasped.

Natsu nodded, twining his other arm around Lucy, pulling her back and into a hug. She could feel a little thrill go through her at the hardness pressing into her lower back.

 _ **Is**_ **that** _**gonna be a problem?**_ she thought at him, swishing her hips back and forth a bit to illustrate what she meant.

He barely stifled a groan. _Only if you keep doing that!_

 _Because I want to be in you so fucking bad right now._

The thought was faint, but she definitely heard it. Lucy stiffened, heat coiling in her belly. He froze.

 _Shit. That just slipped out…_

 _ **It's...okay.**_ She could feel her heartbeat throbbing away between her legs and she subtly shifted on her feet, trying to relieve the almost unbearable feeling of his arousal on top of her own. _**I want you too.**_

She felt the sharp spark of his lust shooting through her as his hands tightened on her hips.

 **OH!** _**Sorry!**_ She tried to pull away, to help by putting some distance between them, but his hands locked her in place. She could see images flashing through his mind. Kittens being drowned, an old man in a speedo, churches, small rocks, a brief foray into a group of knights galloping around with coconuts, Gajeel singing, but nothing seemed to be helping his...problem.

She tried to move away again.

 _Don't MOVE! There's a kid, like, right THERE!_ At fucking eye to crotch level! Stay right where you are!

Natsu looked down at the little girl in front of Lucy, finding himself face to shiny plastic face with a familiar cartoon snowman featured on the little girl's backpack. The goofy grin and wide eyes bore into him with accusation so palpable he knew he couldn't be imagining it:

Olaf knew. The creepy little fucker KNEW. The longer Natsu stared into his lifeless eyes, the more creeped out he became.

His problem immediately started to subside.

Then Lucy chose that exact moment to lean forward to talk to the little girl, brushing against him again.

Hell. This was what _hell_ felt like.

"Your backpack is so cute! I love Olaf too!"

And his boner died the death that awaits all inconveniently ill-timed boners. He couldn't even hear the little girl politely thank Lucy over the maniacal laughter in her head.

She bit her lip to keep it inside. _**Rest in peace Chain Cannon of the Doomsday Dragon...**_ she thought mock-solemnly.

 _Ding!_

The doors slid open, admitting a pair of people wearing scrubs. Natsu stepped further back into the corner, one arm dragging Lucy with him as the Olaf backpack advanced on him, sadistic accusation present in every shiny inch of him. For a singing cartoon, that fucking snowman was judgey.

Lucy choked on the laughter she tried to keep inside, hacking delicately (how was that even possible?) into her arm as the elevator finally approached its final destination.

The door slid open like the pearly gates to heaven and the load of people whooshed out ahead of them, the hospital workers heading right while the little girl dragged her daddy left towards the cafeteria. Natsu could see the fluorescent light of salvation spilling from its archway entrance not fifty feet down the hall as they stumbled out of the elevator.

Lucy collapsed against the wall, the laughter she strove to keep from getting our making her ribs ache. "Olaf?" she gasped at him. "Really?! Your ultimate boner killer is a defenseless cartoon snowman who just wants to be warm? I don't even know _what_ that says about you."

Natsu growled in the back of his throat and glared down at her. "Snowmen are fucking creepy, ok? They have no necks! Or legs! And that one? He sings, dances, dismantles himself on a regular basis, and has a misshapen head. What could be more terrifying? He's like a fucking clown with brain damage! Whatever. It worked, and that's all that matters. That was too close."

"No kidding." His attempt at changing the subject, was, alas, unsuccessful. "I really thought that old guy in the speedo would do the trick to make the _Doomsday Dragon_ back down." Natsu rolled his eyes, but his cheeks heated up. Of course she wasn't going to let him live that down either. And the hits kept coming.

"Instead, apparently you just needed to ' _let it go, let it go!'_ ". Lucy sang the last part, ducking Natsu's attempts to grab her and shut her up. She gained her feet and walked backward away from him toward the cafeteria, smiling radiantly back at him.

He growled at her, picking up his pace, making another grab for her waist, only to have her twist away.

Her laughter twinkled in the air around him, her smile wide and pure.

No matter how irritated he was, it was hard not to be happy just looking at Lucy.

* * *

Mystogan could hear voices.

"Suction! Clamp! Ok, give me...2-0 sutures. Vitals?" The woman's voice was unfamiliar to him.

"Stable and holding." That one was his father's. Why wasn't he at work?

Oh wait, he was in the hospital wasn't he? Maybe his dad was working…

The voices faded away into nothingness until, suddenly, Mystogan sat up abruptly, feeling like he's woken from a dream.

 _Or maybe woken up into one_ , he mused to himself as he examined his surroundings. Everything was made of light. So much so that he was amazed his eyes didn't hurt, just staring into that vast plain of brilliant nothingness. He got to his feet, the unseen ground pretty stable under his feet.

 _Wait, am I dead?_

"Nope! Not yet anyway." He spun at the voice behind him, encountering a blonde little girl with sparkling green eyes who _definitely_ had not been there a moment ago. "You're just unconscious. Well, _mostly_ unconscious. It's actually a very big difference. But, in any case, we've got some time to kill. Do you like chess?" The strange girl gestured at the blank open space beside her.

Which suddenly wasn't blank anymore. A small table and two chairs stood out in sharp relief from the bright nothingness. A beautiful marble chess set took up most of the table. Mystogan wrinkled his nose at the sight of it.

"I'm actually not a fan of chess...sorry." His brother's obsession with the game had turned him off to it long ago.

"Oh…" the girl pouted for a moment, then brightened. "What about Stratego?" The board on the table changed. Mystogan shook his head again.

"I've never played."

The girl's brow furrowed. "Fine. What about Risk?"

"How many hours am I going to be here?"

"Monopoly?"

"Again, how many hours am I going to be here?"

"Dominion? Pandemic? Catan?"

"I have no idea what those are. Sorry"

"This is very disappointing." She stuck out her bottom lip and kicked at the ground. Mystogan noticed she didn't have any shoes on. The thought made him look down. Huh, apparently he didn't either. Must be a mostly unconscious thing. "Alright mortal, what _do_ you play then?"

Mystogan thought about it. It had been years since he'd played any board games, but there had been a particular favorite of his growing up. "Do you have Scrabble?" He didn't see a shelf full of games or anything, but she had to be getting them from somewhere, right?

Her face lit up and she waved off his question, gesturing to the table again. "I have everything. Let's play!" The familiar board, bag of tiles and tile holders were ready and waiting on the table. She even had the limited release collector's edition wooden board. He walked over and ran a finger over the varnished surface with fondness. It was just like the one his mom had.

So they sat and played. He had just laid down a 42 point word proudly, and the girl was contemplating where to play her next word, when he realized he had no idea who she was. "Um, who are you, exactly?" A more artistic person may have thought she was a figment of his imagination, but Mystogan knew his imagination didn't have the capability of creating the little girl munching away on Oreos she'd summoned from nowhere. Plus, she'd played a word he didn't know. His imagination couldn't supply things he didn't know. That was just common sense.

"Oh! I'm...well, I guess for right now, just think of me as your guardian angel," she said conversationally around the Oreo in her mouth. "Pay attention to the game, Mystogan. The truth really is too complicated to get into right now. Aha!" His eyes darted back to the board as she grabbed all eight of her tiles and laid them on the board. "Swizzled! 'Z' on a double letter, and placed on two triple word tiles, plus my 50 point bonus for using all of my letters is...290 points! Yay!" She did a little dance in her seat as Mystogan just stared at her. His highest single word score ever was 165. He hadn't even known it was possible to score that many points in one go! His eyes left the dancing girl, who had begun digging in the bag for new tiles and back to the board. Something wasn't right…

"Hey! There's only one 'Z' in a bag of Scrabble tiles!" he accused. He was certain of it.

The girl did a poor job of looking innocent. "Oh? Well then how did I get two?"

"It's your board!"

"Listen, I don't know if you're accusing me of cheating or what, but I think you're being a very sore loser. Pay attention to the game."

"The game isn't even over yet! How can I be a sore loser when I haven't lost?!"

"Yep definitely a sore loser," she muttered to herself. "Pay _attention._ All's fair in love and war, my dear Mystogan. We're in _your_ head after all. It's not my fault if you aren't utilizing the home court advantage." She shrugged and grabbed her last tile from the bag. "Ooo, look at that! Another Q!" She looked at him slyly from the corner of her eye, daring him to correct her.

Mystogan grit his teeth and stayed silent. There was only one Q in Scrabble. But, her words had been very informative. So...they were in his _mostly_ unconscious mind. _But if that's the case, why it is so...barren? My mind isn't empty!_

"Well, that's kind of a tricky one to explain," the little angel (or whatever she was) said conversationally, as though she wasn't responding to a thought in his head. Which made more sense the more that he thought about it. Why wouldn't she know what he was thinking, she _was_ in his mind. "It has to do with being mostly unconscious you see. Without conscious thought to fill it up, and the complete lack of short term memory to keep new things in, mostly unconscious minds tend to be rather empty, even if they are sort of...awake." She looked down at the board and suddenly scowled. "Dammit Mystogan! I said pay attention! Now look what you did…"

Mystogan looked down at the table, seeing an empty Scrabble board. He looked at his tiles, searching for a word to start the game off with. "What did I do?"

Mavis dropped her head to the table. "This is so frustrating. I was doing so well too!"

Mystogan furrowed his brow at her. "Doing well? We haven't even started playing!"

She huffed in displeasure and glared at him. "This is the eighth time you're forgotten the board! I'm never going to win at this rate!"

Mystogan just stared at her in confusion. "What do you mean? I forgot the board? It's right there." He pointed at the empty board.

"You keep NOT PAYING ATTENTION!" she whined at him, an almost physical sting assailing his body with the words.

"Um...sorry?"

She sighed. "I suppose it's not your fault. You _are_ mostly unconscious. I mean, you forgot your chair four games ago for Melanie's sake!"

"Melanie?" Mystogan questioned, bewildered as he looked down, only to notice he was sitting on air. He immediately fell to the floor.

"The patron goddess of furniture. Obviously," she replied snobbishly.

"I've...never heard of her." Wait...why was he on the floor again? He got to his feet.

"I know, poor thing. No one has anymore. It's a shame too, she's such a sweet girl."

"Sorry, who are you again?"

The girl stamped her bare foot and screamed. "That's it, I'm done. Just wake up already. They're pretty much done anyway…"

* * *

Jellal woke up in his cell gradually, as though someone were coaxing him out of a dream with whispered words. His mouth felt like it was coated with sawdust.

The first thing he saw was Midnight leaning over him with an awed expression. It all came flooding back to him. He scrambled away from his roommate, pressing a hand to his side, where dried blood had made his jumpsuit crunchy. But he didn't feel his own hand pressing into his side. Lifting his hand and pulling apart the blood-crusted material around the jagged hole Midnight had cut he saw a neat, if rather inflamed looking line of stitches. Or rather, indents where stitches should be. Blood oozed around the scab that was forming over the closed opening.

"How…?" he muttered to himself. The last thing he remembered was talking to Death. He glanced quickly around the room, but didn't see the being who haunted him anywhere. Jellal wasn't sure if he felt more relief or dread over that.

"You are one of the chosen," him roommate said solemnly, bowing low and placing his forehead on the dirty floor of their cell. Jellal wrinkled his nose. No one could pay him enough to touch that floor with his face. It had...been places. So to speak.

"The chosen?" Jellal wasn't sure what was going on with Midnight, but he searched for the shank he'd been stabbed with anyway. It was obvious now what had happened, and he didn't want to depend on Erza and Mystogan conveniently surviving another surgery if he got stabbed again. He found the makeshift blade in an unexpected place: in Midnight's hands, offered up to him. He immediately grabbed it, holding it to his cellmate's neck. "What the hell is your game? Tell me why I shouldn't just cut your throat right now, traitor?" he hissed.

Midnight looked back up at him with complete adoration. "That was before I knew you were chosen by the gods. You can't die. I always wondered how you survived so many times when men were sent to kill you. But I get it now. You heal! I would be an idiot not to follow you for the rest of my days. Which god do you serve?"

Jellal paused. But only for a minute. He got it now. Midnight had witnessed his wound being closed, as if my magic, and assumed he was blessed by a god. Like the idiotic televangelists from Bosco. Somehow, they were always from Bosco. So, never one to look a gift opportunity in the mouth, he answered with the first thing to pop into his head.

"I serve Death."

Which, he guessed, on further thought, was pretty close to true. That is, as far as he knew.

* * *

 **Alright, there it is! Hopefully, I'll have the next chapter sooner. FUCKING #50 GUYS! I'M SO EXCITED... the working title? Chain Cannon of the Doomsday Dragon...hehehehehehehe**

 **Continuity error warning! I KNOW!: In case some of your caught it, way back in chapter...shit, whenever Erza and Mystogan meet...so like eleven? Maybe? I think I mentioned that Jellal used the name Siegrain in his identity theft, and one or the other of Mysterza thought it was a ridiculous fake name...BUT, I couldn't pass up naming their dad that. It was just too good not to, so apologies for the continuity error there. If ff didn't make it so hard to go back that far to change things, I would. As it is, just ignore the odd occurrence...or assume Jellal is an even bigger dick for impersonating his father to commit crimes. Whichever you prefer.**

 **Achondroplasia** -A genetic disorder of bone growth, achondroplasia is the most common cause of short stature with disproportionately short limbs - dwarfism with short arms and legs.

 **Joanie and Chachi** -characters from the hit 1970's American TV show Happy Days about kids in the 1950s. (it ran for 11 freaking seasons...ELEVEN! Just one more reason to storm Fox in a mob for canceling Firefly after one season...that's all I'm saying…). They were the younger siblings of two of the main characters, and their cutesy courtship even won them a spin-off show called Joanie Loves Chachi (this shitty show still got 2 seasons...LOOKING AT YOU FOX!). I decided on a throwback reference here since Dr. Grand (aka Grandeena) would probably be a little older than Porly and pretty much everyone from their generation would have at least been aware of Happy Days if not having watched it weekly.

 **Hippocratic Oath-** the oath that all medical professionals take, swearing to do no harm, etc. Look it up. I've written too many words for this chapter already...lol

More things in heaven and Earthland, right Horatio?-a twist on the Hamlet quote: "There are **more things** in **heaven and earth** , Horatio, Than are dreamt of in your philosophy."

 **"she paced, almost striding out of sight of their little corner of purgatory before turning back to keep pushing that boulder up the hill."** -a reference to Sisyphus again, who was doomed in Greek mythology to push a boulder up a never ending hill, his strength failing each day, causing the boulder to roll back down the hill. I've referenced it before, but it's been a while. One of my favorite metaphors, though…

 **Amygdala** \- a part of the human brain that we believe detects fear and prepares for emergency events. Thought to be a part of the **limbic system** within the brain, which is responsible for emotions, survival instincts, and memory. However, this inclusion has been debated heavily, with evidence that the amygdalae function independently of the limbic system. The amygdala is responsible for the perception of emotions such as anger, fear, and sadness, as well as the controlling of aggression. Ironically, I think Natsu's character is very much controlled by his amygdala in canon. But, he just liked how that part of the brain sounded, so it became his favorite when he was taking anatomy. He likes to think his amygdala is badass and keeps him from feeling fear, prompting him to attempt all kinds of crazy things. Aaaand, I dove too far into this headcanon didn't I? *backs carefully away with hands raised in apology*

 **Churches, small rocks, men galloping around with coconuts** -Monty Python and the Holy Grail reference. Natsu's a fan.

 **Oh yeah, and somewhere in there was a reference to the Horatio line from Hamlet again. I like it, so sue me.**


	50. Chain Cannon of the Doomsday Dragon

**I KNOW! I'm later than I intended with this chapter...but it needed a little extra sparkle. BECAUSE CHAPTER 50! I can't believe it's really CHAPTER FUCKING 50?! *wiggles happily in a semblance of dancing* Anyone out there been here since the beginning? Remember when I thought this thing would be 100 chapters long?! *giggles uncontrollably* And the chapters were like 5k long apiece? *laughter turns manic***

 **I'd like to take this moment to give a HUGE shout-out to Shedauwz, who has beta'd this story since...god, maybe chapter 13? Without his insight into Natsu's thick skull and his ability to tell me exactly what I need to hear, I never would have gotten this far. Ironically, he'll probably never see this message since he reads everything before it's posted, but I hope he knows how exceptionally grateful I am that he still reads my crazy long chapters, within a couple of days, even after he graduated, moved, and got a new job. He's irreplaceable, and I hope he knows that. (Now, if he would just finish Hangover my life would be complete...*sigh*).**

 **Aaaaaanyway, here you go. In honor of chapter 50 there's a little something special waiting for you at the end of the chapter... *coughcheckthechaptertitlecough* (fair warning, I probably wouldn't read it at work...or school...or anywhere near your parents...or kids for that matter...)**

 **hehe. Enjoy!**

* * *

"Where have you two been for the last few of hours? We were about to send out a search party," asked Irene as Natsu and Lucy made their way back over to the group waiting for Erza to get out of surgery.

"Just talkin'," the pinkette lied smoothly. He and Igneel had coexisted with a complete-honesty policy, but Natsu had grown up practicing the age-old teenaged art of lying on other people's parents, so it came naturally.

 _ **Mostly,**_ Lucy added in her head with a guilty twinge. His thoughts triggered a voice that she was less than pleased to hear in her head again.

 _Ladies do not lie to their parents! Only hoodlums and juvenile delinquents deceive the people who provide for them!_ It was like Miss Aquarius was standing right next to her. She flinched.

Next to her Natsu jumped maybe a foot in the air, looking frantically around them. Gray, Irene, Bel, and even Miriam eyed him like he was crazy. He didn't even notice.

 _Luce! Who the fuck was that? Are we being brain-hacked? IS THAT EVEN POSSIBLE?! Have we bonded with someone else? I didn't see anyone, did you? Luce? Talk to me! WE are still bonded right? Like, you haven't pushed me off on some other soulmate dying in one of these hospital rooms, right? Luce? LUCE?! TALK TO ME!_

 _ **Shit, Natsu! Calm down. We're still soulmates! Pretty sure the whole point of having a soulmate is that you just get the one. Unless you're Erza, apparently. Anyway, it's just a thing that happens to me sometimes… My governess spent a lot of time drilling things into me. So I kind of hear her voice sometimes. It hasn't happened in a while though...ok?**_

She could practically hear Natsu's brain short out for a second, as his panicked thoughts abruptly ground to a halt. _Oh. Cool. I guess._

Lucy was trying to figure out if his immediate acceptance of the voices in her head was a good thing when a pleasant melodic voice floated down the hallway from the elevators.

"Hello everyone! How are you all holding up? We brought muffins!"

"And more importantly, decent coffee!" Lisanna chimed in next to her sister as they ushered in the sunshine of morning to a new day. Well, sort of. It was still before dawn, but there was something about the Strauss sisters that always brightened a room.

Gray lifted an arm, waving to them with a tired smile, while Irene got to her feet and went to give each of the girls a hug and a peck on the cheek.

Lisanna had spent a lot of time hanging out at her house with Erza and the boys when she'd dated Natsu so she'd gotten to know them as well as any parent did their children's friends.

And then more. Because she was Irene Scarlet.

Mirajane Strauss returned the hug and kiss enthusiastically, adding a comforting rub to her back and a whispered compliment on how great Irene looked. No one gave a warmer welcome than Mira.

No one. Or there would be hell to pay.

And, speaking of hell to pay…

"Naaaatsuuuuu….," crooned the platinum blonde Aussie with Splenda levels of fake sweetness. "A little kitten told me that you're in a serious relationship. That you found your _soulmate!_ And you know, I thought, that can't be true, because _surely_ you would have brought her around to meet me and Lis if it got serious right? We're like family! But, here you are…" she paused to gesture at the hand he rested on Lucy's hip to keep her pulled into his side, " _clearly_ attached to this gorgeous blonde I have yet to learn the name of…"

"Mira, I told you her name…" Lisanna reminded her wearily.

"That you _still_ haven't introduced to me…"

Lucy felt Natsu's forehead break out into a sweat, grimacing at the feeling of the night's oil mixing with his sudden overwhelming fear. His fingers pressed into her hip, his grip tightening until it was almost bruising.

 _Shit. I knew I forgot something._ Natsu's thought was almost quivering with fear. Lucy looked at him like he was insane.

 _ **Seriously? You mount an armed rescue against a team of mercenaries, and you aren't afraid at all, but**_ **this** _**girl…?**_

She turned back to Mirajane and sized her up. She was gorgeous. If Lucy didn't have access to Natsu's thoughts and emotions, she might have been a little jealous. Mira's body was as rocking as hers. Better maybe. _**Is she an even larger cup size than I am?!**_

 _Shit Luce! Don't make me think about her boobs! She'll know! SHE ALWAYS KNOWS!_

"It's really nice to meet you! I'm Lucy," she said, holding out the hand that wasn't looped around Natsu's waist.

 _ **Don't be ridiculous Natsu, she's obviously a really nice girl. She's just hurt that you didn't tell her...**_ Lucy's thought trailed off as she looked back at Mirajane, their hands coming into contact, suddenly sending a wave of malevolent energy through her that made Maleficent look like a horned chibi dragon that breathed rainbows and shat soft serve ice cream. _**That is...terrifying.**_ Lucy would bet anything that the beauty's aura was even scarier than Levy's. She had to be some kind of demon.

 _She knows._ Natsu's thought was filled with horror. And rightfully so.

 _ **Well, she wouldn't if you'd stop staring at them! Avert your eyes or she'll kill us both! HURRY!**_

Natsu and Lucy, as one, turned to the less threatening sister.

"Hey Lis, this is Lucy! The girl I told you about."

"You dated Natsu, right? It's nice to meet you!"

They both stopped, reddening as they spoke at the same time, and then panicking that the conversation had lagged again. Luckily, they had Gray to save the day.

"Hey Lis, Mira. Thanks for breakfast." He reached into Mirajane's basket and pulled out a blueberry muffin. "How'd you guys even know? We didn't want to call anyone and wake them up until it was morning."

Bel followed Gray's lead, going for the basket and taking it with speculative glee when Mira offered it to him. He quickly retreated with his prize, Miriam sidling away to share in his plunder. As each was the quieter of their respective pairs, they locked eyes and silently bonded over their apparent shared favorite of lemon poppyseed, nabbing the only two in the basket.

"Don't be silly, Gray! Elfman told us of course. _He_ knows better than to keep anything from us, no matter what time it is." She shot Natsu another accusing look. "And I'm so sorry to hear about Yukino! You guys were so cute! But, at the same time, how cute are Lisanna and Yukino together, right? I can't wait to see their future Christmas cards! And the babies! I'm sure we could find a blonde sperm donor somewhere! Ooooh, I bet Laxus would do it!"

Natsu, Gray, and Lisanna all choked on their own spit, Lucy choking similarly a second later, having seen the mental image in Natsu's head. Only Mirajane would think Laxus would volunteer to be anyone's sperm donor. Except maybe hers. That seemed weirdly plausible.

Lisanna coughed heavily for about thirty seconds before slapping her sister hard on the arm. "Mira! Gray literally had a date with her less than twenty-four hours ago! How about a little tact…" If Natsu and Gray noticed her lack of denial concerning her future with a girl she'd met only the day before, they didn't comment on it. Natsu was still in panic mode, he and Lucy silently discussing ways to escape before the devil in deceptively well-fitted clothing remembered she was upset at him.

"Naw. Don't worry about it," Gray replied nonchalantly. "I'm over it. Knock yourself out."

Lucy cut her eyes to Gray sharply, feeling the pang of loneliness that shot through him to contradict his lie. It came and went quickly enough, but lingered like an echo, tinged with sadness. Lucy made a mental note to get to work finding Gray's soulmate as soon as things calmed down. Afterall, he'd done a lot for her and Natsu.

 _Yeah...a lot of cockblocking…_ Natsu thought petulantly.

 _ **Natsu, that's not fair and you know it! It's not like he's doing it on purpose!**_

 _I'm starting to wonder…_ his mind growled back at her.

 _ **All the more reason to find his soulmate! Then he'll be too busy to cockblock anyone!**_

Mira and Lucy seemed to be sharing a brainwave.

"Oh! YAY! This means that you're single again, Gray! You _have_ to let me set you up with someone!" Mira squealed, immediately pulling out her phone and scrolling through her contacts while Lisanna handed out the coffees with a roll of her eyes and a mouthed apology to the alarmed noirette. "Lis said you're finally ready to settle down with someone, so I've got a whole list of people who would be great for you!"

Gray tried, unsuccessfully, to dissuade her. Meanwhile, Lisanna asked Natsu about Erza and Mystogan.

"We don't know," Natsu hedged, pulling out his phone. "It's been a while since we got an update on them. We should be hearing any minute now." Lucy rubbed comforting circles into his waist with her thumb when she felt his anxiety for Erza bubbling up again. He laid a hand on top of hers, gratitude overwhelming the fear for a moment.

It ended up being almost an hour later that Dr. Grand wearily plodded out of the restricted part of the surgical wing to let them know the surgery had been a success. Granted, the patient wouldn't be awake for another few hours, most likely, but Erza was stable and the surgery went well. Then, with an uncharacteristic twinkle in her eye, and a bounce in her step, she turned around to start Mystogan's 'procedure'.

Everyone but Miriam breathed easier. In that moment, Natsu wished they could tell her what was going on, but he knew he'd pushed Lucy's comfort on who knew enough for the day already. In a few hours, maybe less, she'd be told that her son was doing just as well anyway. At least they knew she'd be getting good news.

When the sun finally came up over the horizon, they decided it was past time to contact some people.

* * *

' _Hello, darkness my old friend…'_

Levy was awakened by the alarm on Gajeel's phone going off with Disturbed's remake of _The Sound of Silence_ far earlier than her tired eyes wanted to be. She rolled over in her small bed, smacking the man sleeping against her with her elbow in the process. He grunted at the contact.

' _I've come to talk with you again…'_

"Fuck Shrimp, I'm getting it!" he grumbled, reaching out to the stack of books he'd set it on the night before. It was _just_ too far away.

' _Because a vision softly creeping…'_

He leaned a little further and immediately regretted it, losing his balance and sliding right off the edge of the narrow section of Levy's twin-sized mattress he'd squeezed himself onto, landing on another stack of books, only one of which was a hardback, thank the gods. "Stupid books," he muttered darkly, grabbing his phone and finally silencing it.

' _Left its seeds while I was sle-'_

Levy's head, eyes now wide awake popped over the edge of the bed above him.

"Which ones did you land on?! Are they okay?" She shooed him off the books, carefully surveying the damage with her bottom lip between her teeth as she freed herself from her blanket cocoon. Gajeel just glared at her. "What?" she asked, distractedly.

"Ya might care a little about how _I'm_ doing. Yer books are fine." Nonetheless, he was careful not to squash any more of them as he got to his feet. Sometimes he forgot she had a lot to learn about being in a relationship. The little woman was so confident all the time, he often just assumed she knew more than him about everything.

Except maybe tattoos. Or boxing. Or music. As a karaoke god, he knew all there was to know in that arena.

"Oh. Right. Sorry. Are you okay? You're just always so...durable? I assumed you were fine. Plus I can feel that it didn't really hurt you that much. Unlike these poor little babies…" She hugged a worn paperback copy of _Little Women_ and another of _The Languages of Tolkien's Middle Earth_ to her non-existent chest, cooing apologies to them softly as she smoothed out their bent pages.

"I'll live…" he grumbled back, loathe to admit she had a point about his 'durability'. He was also a little embarrassed that he had forgotten she would have felt the fall. The little fantasy in his head of her fawning over him swiftly dissipated.

Gajeel reached his arms up in a long stretch, his fingers brushing the ceiling as he felt his vertebrae pop their way back into place after a night spent in too small a bed that wasn't his. Levy carefully set her books aside and wriggled on the bed, spreading out.

"Stop it! That feels so weird!" she whined, burritoing the blanket more securely around her again as she curled up, preparing to go back to the blessed land of Morpheus.

Gajeel grinned and rolled his shoulders, small pops escaping from his joints as he did.

Levy rolled over and opened one eye to glare at him. "You're doing that on purpose."

He cracked his knuckles in response.

She closed her eyes again, frown taking over her face. "Just go to work already. I'm going back to sleep."

After sniffing the shirt he'd discarded the night before, Gajeel pulled it on and made sure he had his wallet and keys. "I'll see you at...what time is your shift?" He found his leather jacket and slung it over his shoulders.

"Mmmmgrrrrph. Ten," was the response from the heap of blankets with a face.

"Then," he replied, leaning over the bed, caging her in with his arms, "I'll see you at work in a few hours, lazy bum." He leaned in and kissed her on the nose, prompting her eyes to flutter back open.

"I'm not a lazy bum...yer a lazy bum…" she mumbled back at him sleepily.

"Love ya, Shrimp," he whispered, planting a kiss on her frowning lips this time and pulling away too soon for her liking. Her arms tried to keep him from leaving, but the blanket burrito betrayed her, trapping her limbs securely in a giant Chinese finger trap of her own devising. She pouted.

Gajeel smirked, turned and walked out of her bedroom.

Levy sighed, then felt a sudden and indescribable feeling of loss, instantly scrambling to free herself. She barely made it, darting around the familiar path between the book stacks just in time to catch him as he opened the door.

The little blue-haired ball of momentum hit Gajeel square in the back and clung in the form of an all limbs-on-deck level bear hug. Ok, so maybe more like a bear cub hug…

Almost instantly, the overwhelming feeling of loss inside of her subsided, giving way to a sense of peace.

"I love you too!" she exclaimed, as he stumbled forward, barely keeping from falling on his face.

Then he let out a hearty laugh and peeled off her arms from his waist, more than a little bit of him feeling almost physical pain separating from her. He concentrated hard on closing down their connection so he could pull away. It was harder than he would have admitted. "I'll see you in a few hours…"

"You can't call in? Erik can handle it 'til 10...right?"

The noise of a body abruptly sitting up and falling a short distance onto several dozen hard, pointy not-so-paper-backed books startled them both.

"SHIT! OW! NO! HE CAN'T!" came Erik's voice from the floor between Levy's settees. He sat up, rubbing his back and getting to his feet. "Erik absolutely _cannot_ cover six double-booked appointments all on his lonesome because you two want to stay home and screw!"

He scrubbed a hand through his dark red hair, followed the chain attached to his belt loop to his wallet, re-pocketed it, and stormed through the apartment scattering curses as he knocked into and stepped over stacks of books that seemed to magically appear in his way at every turn. Finally, he made it to Levy, threw one arm around her waist, picked her up and carried her back into her bedroom, where he threw her unceremoniously onto her bed. Then he shut the door, pushed his way back through the sea of literature to the living room (only knocking two of the six rare Sevenese weavings hung in the hallway off the wall in the process) to grab Gajeel by the arm and haul him out of the apartment, ranting at them the whole time:

"I'm a pretty easy-going guy. I mean, I just covered my ears when you two went at it last night, obviously forgetting I was here. I didn't even mind sleeping on what has to be the most uncomfortable couch ever made; anything is better than the mattress that was in my fucking cell while I was on the inside, right? But I draw the fucking line at doing the work of three people with a store full of bitchy customers, no matter how much you're paying me…"

Levy managed to open the bedroom door again just in time to see the door slam behind them.

Outside it, Gajeel let Erik pull him along until they were far enough away from Levy's apartment that she wouldn't hear them and shook off his arm. He grabbed the mouthy Puerto-Rican's bicep in an iron grip, and, slamming him against the wall, pressed his other massive forearm against his employee's throat.

"Touch her again like that and I'll break your fucking arms," he growled, his deep maroon eyes seeming to glow bright red with his rage. Erik, caught off guard, nodded quickly, eyes wide with shock and more than a little fear. Gajeel glared at him for another moment before he seemed to realize what he was doing. He backed up, letting his friend go. For a second the larger man looked as bewildered as Erik did, before tucking his emotions away and striding down the hall to the stairs.

Erik gave him a head start, just to be safe. Talk about an over-reaction. He'd never seen Gajeel get that worked up over a girl in the entire time he'd known him. Granted, Levy wasn't just any girl...but still...

Inside Gajeel's head, a war raged: the sensible side of him demanding to know what the HELL that had all been about, while the newer, angrier, possessive side roared back that no one got to touch his fucking soulmate.

No one.

* * *

An hour later, Levy dragged herself out of bed, having spent the whole _fucking_ hour entirely _fucking_ awake.

 _Stupid Gajeel and his stupid alarm…_

Without even changing out of her pajamas, she made a beeline for the door to her apartment, crossing the hall and trying Lucy's door.

It was unlocked.

Again.

How hard was it to lock your freaking door? Hell, Levy'd even done it _for her_ the night before!

Which begged the question, how had it gotten unlocked? There was no way they were already awake...

After noisily announcing her presence by starting Lucy's coffee-maker bubbling with her favorite brew, she padded over to the blonde's bedroom door, which was, surprisingly, _open_. She steeled herself against the inevitable, hoping Lucy and Natsu had at least thrown a blanket over their ridiculously perfect, naked, sex-ravished bodies before falling asleep. She cautiously opened one eye the smallest amount to see…

Absolutely no one.

Lucy's bedroom was completely empty. And her bedspread was barely even mussed. Levy strolled into the room, hands on her perky pajama'd hips and a scowl on her face. She took an experimental sniff and her eyebrows furrowed.

There was not nearly enough sex smell for what the two of them had been headed toward the night before. Nobody had gotten laid in _that_ room last night. Unlike her room… _Hehe._

Curious, she plucked at her sleep-shirt, giving it a whiff. Her nose wrinkled. Talk about bad planning; she _smelled_ like she'd been up to no good, and she couldn't shower while Gajeel was working. Hopefully a quick wipedown and a change of clothes would help. The thought made her look around the room, seeing both Natsu and Lucy's shirts from the night before tossed onto the floor with Natsu's scarf. They'd clearly started out the right way the night before...

 _So, what the hell happened?_ She reached for her phone only to remember it was sitting back in her apartment. And her pajamas didn't have pockets (a design flaw in her opinion; everything should have pockets). Shrugging, she fluffed her blue curls and headed back to the kitchen where her caffeinated elixir had just started perfuming the air.

She and Natsu were going to have to have a chat if this became a trend. Lucy had needs, whether she realized it or not, and it was his duty as her soulmate to fulfill said needs. If he needed a hand (to help lock them in a room until they did the deed, for example), she was more than happy to give it.

The telltale sound of coffee hitting cup sent her floating back to the kitchen, where she doctored that bitch up with every cream, sugar, or vanilla flavored accompaniment Lucy's fridge had to offer. Then, she flitted back to her own apartment, turning the knob on Lucy's lock before pulling the door shut.

Back in her own apartment, Levy took a few minutes to carefully restack the books the boys had knocked over, skimmed her email, and finished her cup of coffee before picking up the notebook full of her flashback notes.

If she was up and awake anyway, then she might-as-well spend a few hours trying to get back to the 80s…

Settling into her now customary 'flashing' meditation position, she breathed in deeply and fell right into a flashback.

But not the one she was wanting. Mentally, she sighed and took note of her surroundings until she could try again. Which she did. Many times.

Until she checked her phone a few hours later and discovered Lucy's message about Erza, she kept trying, unsuccessfully, to uncover the truth of her most elusive past life.

* * *

Six hours and 22 fraternity brother visits later, Natsu, Lucy and Gray were wilting. Multiple times, they nodded off, abruptly awakening again at the slightest sound. Eventually, the parental units sent them home.

And, being the stubborn _mostly_ adult kids they were…they gratefully did exactly that, practically weeping with relief.

Because SLEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEP.

But, being so sleepy was causing some issues getting home.

So, they had come up with a plan.

Which _sort of_ worked...

It was Lucy's job to watch Gray and tell Natsu when he was starting to fall asleep at the wheel, usually by pinching the pinkette awake, and it was Natsu's job to wake up and slap Gray back awake. The plan worked great (ok, 'great' _might_ be an overstatement, but it kept them moving) until Lucy fell asleep.

Then they sat at one light through two full cycles before a car finally pulled up behind them and honked.

In hindsight, it was a miracle they made it back home alive. Home, in this case, was Fairy Tail, because Lucy didn't have a parking space for Gray's car at her apartment.

Or, the less thought out reason: because he'd gone on total autopilot and driven there without dropping her off.

The three of them stumbled through the house, barely acknowledging the sympathetic pats on the back and questions sent their way before they made it to the boys' room. Gray immediately stripped down to his boxers and hauled himself up into his loft, pulling a blanket over his head to block out the weak light streaming through their windows.

Lucy tried to do the same, sleepily attempting to remove her shirt three times, prompting Natsu to follow her around the room and pull it back down each time, reminding her that Gray was in the room. Eventually, she gave up on her shirt, shimmied out of her bra instead, and attempted to climb the boards nailed to the wall that made up Natsu's ladder to his loft.

He barely managed to catch her when she fell, eventually standing behind her with a hand on her ass (for safety) until she'd managed to bridge the gap between ladder and loft. Finally, satisfied that she was not going to fall out if left unsupervised for the next ten minutes, he stripped off his own Chat Noir shirt and cargo pants and headed for the shower, his hand questing blindly for his scarf until he remembered he'd left it at Lucy's. The smell of his own body odor was actually keeping him awake now, so rinsing off before zonking out was a necessity.

The minute she felt the water running over Natsu's body, Lucy stuck her head out from under the blanket and cracked an eye open in Gray's loft's direction.

"Psst, Gray," she whispered, singing the lyrics to _Call Me Maybe_ (the most annoying song she could think of) in her head carefully, while hoping Natsu was too tired to listen-in.

Gray groaned and threw back his blanket. "What?" He squinted at her in the light.

She got distracted by his chiseled chest for a second, shaking her head to get back on track. "Gray! I have to tell you something!" It was actually really hard to sing in her head and talk at the same time. Especially when he brain kept screaming at her to go the fuck to sleep already.

"What? Lucy, spit it out, or I'm going back to sleep," he grumbled.

"Olaf from Frozen kills a Natsu boner!" she whispered quickly, breaking into giggles and singing the next verse of the song in her head a little louder...somehow. Whatever, it made sense to Sleepy Lucy. She wiggled her eyebrows suggestively, hoping Gray would catch on without her having to risk saying more.

Gray blinked at her and then suddenly started grinning. "I can work with that. Can't he hear you thinking about this though?"

As if on cue, Natsu yelled from the shower, "LITERALLY _ANY_ OTHER FUCKING SONG, LUCE! ANY. OTHER. SONG!"

Gray raised an eyebrow, pulling his snowflake covered bedspread back up to his chin.

" _Call Me Maybe_ miiiight be stuck in my head," she giggled, settling back into Natsu's nest of bedding too. She switched to _Let it Go_ instead and squeaked when she felt her nipple get tweaked, hands flying to cover her chest.

 _Ha. HA. How are you still awake right now?_ His thought was sort of fuzzy. Lucy wondered if her thoughts sounded fuzzy too... _I'll be there in a sec, just go to sleep already. I can feel your eyelids fighting you. And what is so damned amusing? That stupid song?_

Before she could answer, she felt his hands sliding southward, suggestively. _I know what will get that song out of your head._

Lucy was suddenly very awake. She glanced over at Gray, relieved to see his eyes were closed, his breathing evening out. As quickly and quietly as she could, she rolled over and pulled the blanket over her head for one more layer of privacy. _**Are you seriously doing this? Right NOW? Gray's**_ **right there!**

It took all of her will power not to make a sound as Natsu started pumping away like a single twenty-two-year-old college graduate still living in his parents' basement: quickly, quietly, and with a hint of desperation.

 _So, don't make any noise then,_ he thought wickedly, his breath growing ragged.

She clapped a hand over her mouth and reached down between her thighs with the other, desperate to relieve the pressure he was building.

Both their minds went blank, riding the endorphin high their tired bodies fed them.

She pressed harder between her legs and jumped when she heard a groan from the bathroom, peeking carefully out from under her blanket over at the still sleeping Gray.

 _ **We're so fucked up.**_

 _Naw, we just seriously need to get laid. This is getting...ridiculous…_ His mind's voice cut out as the wave building in them crested, his pleasure shooting through her. She could feel him breathing hard for a few gasps before he rinsed himself off and cut the water. Lucy's legs quivered as the aftershocks of his orgasm spasmed through her. Hearing the bathroom door open, she rolled over, leaning over the side to get an starry eyeful of buck-ass naked Natsu exiting the steamy room.

HBO couldn't have done a more perfect job of framing the shot:

He emerged from the mist as the steam curled around him, like a cat vying for his attention. He stood tall and confident, like he felt as comfortable in nothing but his skin as he did in a t-shirt and jeans. The only thing marring the otherwise dazzling view was the distinct tan line around his hips, the lighter part fading into his sun-kissed skin at mid-thigh, right about where his boxers would end. It reminded her of the first day they'd met, her eyes following the trail of barely visible pink hairs down to his… She swallowed hard.

That was a _whole-lotta-Natsu_ on display.

 _ **Fuck you're hot.**_ The thought directed itself at him as naturally as breathing. Which, honestly, wasn't happening so naturally at the moment (not with that kind of view).

Natsu looked up at her and leaned into the doorway, forearms braced on either side of it. He was clearly teasing her. _Thanks…_ He upped the wattage of his smile, one hand dropping to grab the back of his neck. He was putting on a show.

And her lady parts were enjoying every moment of it. _**Hell, they're giving a standing ovation and buying lifetime member season tickets.**_

His sexy persona broke as he snickered quietly at her thought, leaving the bathroom with a gait that reminded her of a tiger pacing in its cage, sort of like...coiled danger. _**If you sold perfume, that's what it would be called,**_ she thought giddily. She puckered her lips and mouthed her next thought sultrily: _**Coiled Danger by Calvin Klein.**_ Then she kissed the air in his direction.

He bent his head and shook with silent laughter. _Then yours would be, Bounce by Victoria's Secret._ He summoned up a mental image of her prancing around in skin-tight, shiny black pleather, her assets jiggling more than humanly possible.

Lucy wrinkled up her nose, unimpressed by his comeback. Her ass was pretty nice, but no one looked good in fake leather. Period. Well...Natsu could probably pull it off...

 _ **All joking aside, your body is freaking gorgeous. You should really model.**_ She offered the thought lazily, scooting closer to the edge of the bed so she had a better view as he bent over to put on a fresh pair of boxer briefs.

 _Naw,_ he thought back at her, looking over his shoulder to meet her eye. Her heart beat a little stronger in her chest. _Being famous would just go to my head._

Then the bastard winked, striking a ridiculous, stereotypical bodybuilder pose, containing none of the raw sexuality the one before it had had.

Lucy rolled her eyes again, resisting the smile her lips were fighting to achieve. _**Ha. Ha. So much for being serious.**_

Natsu dropped the silly pose, covering a yawn with one hand and coming over to the edge of his loft, raising up on his toes to meet her lips with his in a rough kiss. His hand threaded through her hair, pushing it behind her ear. _You're...everything, Luce. Gorgeous just doesn't begin to cover it._

Lucy couldn't identify exactly what the feeling was that tightened up his chest and threatened to almost strangle him, but if she was pressed to say, she might have said...yearning.

 _ **I love you.**_ Every time she said it, or thought it, it got easier. At this point, if was almost a relief to express it. She was amazed at how far she'd come from the girl she'd once been, bottled up behind her perfect smile.

Her words eased the tension in him as much as they did in her, and he smiled up at her.

Then his jaw-cracking yawn triggered one of her own, dispelling the moment.

 _Fuck, I'm tired. Move over._

Lucy obliged, scooting as close to the wall as she could in the tiny loft as he hauled himself over the side. In a way, it was an even better show than before, his muscles contracting and relaxing in perfect harmony, like a well-trained rowing team working in perfect sync. Heat shot straight to her core at the sight. _**I must be seriously tired if a thought like that is turning me on...**_

 _Keep thinking like that and neither of us will get any sleep. And neither will Gray…_

He settled in next to her, throwing an arm over her waist and pulling her in close. Pulling their foreheads together, he closed his eyes, sighing contentedly and finally giving himself over to the complete heaven of being horizontal on a reasonably soft surface and not having to move for the foreseeable future. In other words, the closest to heaven mere mortals can get on Earth or Earthland.

 _I love you too, Luce._ He tucked her head into his chest and buried his nose in her hair.

She didn't think she'd ever get tired of hearing him tell her that. Or of feeling her body heat up from toes to nose with the reflection of his adoration.

Then he pulled away again, ruining the moment: _Your hair smells like ass._

 _ **Shut up and go to sleep, dickhead.**_

In seconds they were both dead to the world.

* * *

The days in the week following Erza and Mystogan's attack took on a pattern of sorts for the soul-bonded pairs.

Levy went full on proactive hermit: admonishing Lucy for not messaging her about the attack until more than a day later and bringing the injured couple each a stack of books to read in the hospital before settling into her Bookworm Cave to push her flashbacks further and further in search of the truth of Gajeel's past life. Every moment not flashing or studying-for/taking midterms, was spent researching all of their past lives, compiling the research into summaries to add to Lucy's master timeline wall.

Gajeel worked his ass off tattooing butterflies on bitches (Was it dumb-as-fuck-bitch season or something? Couldn't any of them pick another fucking insect or something? And OF COURSE, the minute he thought that some dude comes in wanting a ladybug tattoo...), and, secretly, worked to hone his own epic ability to nullify the bond. Levy wasn't fooled by his 'meditating' while he sat in the shower. It was pretty obvious what he was doing when she realized she didn't feel the water, but she let Gajeel smile smugly and brush her off. It was cute that he thought he was that mysterious.

Erza and Mystogan, after waking up and dealing with their suddenly very present and very worried parents, settled-in to heal and take their midterms (despite the fact they'd both received an extension). Not that they were making much headway there... Once the endless stream of visitors trickled out, Irene took a leave of absence from work to stay with them and became...well...less than helpful. In the end, it took Erza calling Bel to bodily drag her out of the hospital for them to make any progress. And after they were finally finished with their take-home exams and left in peace, Mystogan had his hands full keeping Erza from storming out of the hospital (ripping their stitches in the process) and demanding Gajeel teach her how to 'conquer the bond'. He and Wendy became fast friends, the young, blue-haired doctor recognizing early on that the only thing that would stop Erza from being a danger to them both was being sedated.

Though, Mystogan would have been lying if he hadn't acknowledged that being knocked out on a regular basis was also quite helpful in preventing his father from questioning him about his bond with Erza. He knew Natsu and Lucy had filled his dad in on most of the particulars, but it just wasn't a discussion he was ready to have. Particularly with his father when Jellal was involved. His parents hid it well, but they were like well trained dogs waiting for treats when it came to his brother: politely keeping their frustrated wriggling in check while they constantly watched for every dropped scrap of news. And he didn't have any good news to feed them. So he hid from it, holding Erza's hand in his sleep, not seeing the smile his father bestowed on them every time he passed by and ducked in to check on them.

For his side, Siegrain couldn't help but be relieved his boy had finally found someone to _really_ care about, even if she was the daughter of the Crimson Terror (as the other Tower of Heaven parents had long since dubbed Irene). The knowledge that Jellal was tangled up in the whole crazy thing concerned him, but for now, he was content in knowing both his sons were alive and recovering. It felt good to know that for certain for the first time in years.

Jellal, meanwhile, found Midnight to be an unexpectedly influential and devout follower again. Within a day of discovering the blunette's close association with Death, he had shanked Zero, who turned out to be his own father, pledged his solemn allegiance to Jellal, and recruited the rest of Zero's crew to their side. In a way, being in a prison was oddly helpful; seeing the stitching of Jellal's wound and hearing Midnight's story, while knowing that it was impossible for anyone else to be in their cell that night, helped weed out a lot of doubts among the non-believers. Then the prison guards had caught wind of it and managed to find convenient camera footage of the event itself. From that point on, Jellal found himself with allies he hadn't previously thought possible. So he bided his time, planning constantly in the rare moments he wasn't falling asleep...inexplicably. Midnight kept faithful watch over him every time he did. Granted, no one would have dared mess with Death's prophet on Earthland anyway.

When the warden himself brought the prison doctor to examine him, Jellal couldn't help but smile. He couldn't have planned his accession to power better if he'd tried.

Though, one thing still troubled him. He had no clear idea of what Erza and Mystogan would do next. Anyone who played paintball in the middle of the night to send a message was clearly insane, which made them unpredictable. He could feel what their bodies did now if he concentrated hard enough on it, but their minds were still a mystery. It would take many leisurely days of plotting before he'd figured out the right strategy in regards to his 'soulmates'.

And as for Natsu and Lucy? Well...they were met with an almost unbelievable number of...interruptions?

Coupling frustrations?

Inconveniences in regards to their privacy?

Fuck, honestly? They couldn't seem to get off together in the same room if their lives depended on it!

Lucy had decided that night in her bedroom that she was ready to let Natsu take her to places she'd never been before (yes, full-on sex, ok?! Forgive her for loving the English language enough to use euphemisms. Godsdammit.), but it was like the universe had decided it would _never_ happen.

 _EVER._

In just over a week, they had been cock-blocked by a pigeon (that's right, a godsdamned fucking pidgeon!), eight fraternity pledges, two power outages, Dora the Explorer, Levy, Erik, Gajeel, Loke, Elfman, Cana, Irene, Ultear, the blue-haired girl who lived down the hall, an inconveniently placed bottle of Fireball, dozens of pictures/plushies of Olaf, and a live chicken named Kawazu.

Not to mention the unprecedented _seven_ times Natsu's cat, Happy, had eaten something poisonous at just the wrong moment and needed to be rushed to the vet. The last instance (before Natsu locked him up in a cage with nothing but Salmon Fancy Feast and his favorite green blanket) had even managed to turn Happy blue. They were still mystified as to how it had happened, but three very hostile baths had done nothing to bring back his fluffy snow white coat. Lucy's working theory for his behavior was that he was acting out because Natsu hadn't been giving him as much attention lately. Natsu just thought he was being an asshole, which would have made him quite proud if the cat had been fucking with anyone else's sex life.

BUT, nothing, absolutely _nothing_ , came close to catching Gray's now _36_ unintentional cock-blocks of the couple (Natsu had started counting at the Moon Drip party). And if it weren't so painfully clear that he was trying everything he could to _not_ do exactly that (with the exception of Operation Olaf, which Natsu blamed entirely on Lucy), he probably would have been dead instead of very bruised. It was like the gods had decided he was destined to be the mortified wedge that kept them apart, no matter how hard he tried not to be. Only the day before, he'd literally been reading in a random closet on campus so that he couldn't possibly get in their way again, when they busted into said closet already half-undressed. If it weren't for Lucy's insistence that Gray stick to his newfound mission to find his soulmate, he would have found a random girl to crash with for the week and gotten the fuck out of it. Honestly, that option was sounding better all the time. Even his soulmate would understand after the week he'd had.

So, in light of everything, Natsu and Lucy had decided to throw spontaneity to the wind and do what needed to be done:

"How about two?" Lucy tried, looking over her notes. She balanced her cell phone awkwardly between her ear and shoulder as she flipped the page of her planner, notes scrawled over every inch of free space detailing the habits and schedules of everyone she knew.

"Nope, Gray doesn't have class. And I've got class until three. Three-thirty?" Natsu ran a finger down the beat up schedule Gray had pinned over his desk, his phone hammocked comfortably against his ear with his scarf. Just one more reason people were crazy not to wear scarves all year round. So fucking handy.

Lucy shook her head. "Nope, Levy gets back at three and doesn't go to work until four-thirty. Uuuum, I have class until five-thirty after that...what about six?"

Natsu checked a post-it stuck to a book on his desk. "Gajeel doesn't get off work until...seven! And…Gray's got an evening class, I think…" He twirled back to the paper over his roommate's desk. "YES! And he's across campus!"

"Levy gets off work the same time as Gajeel, so she's good 'til seven! Erza and Mystogan don't get discharged for another couple of days, right?" Lucy checked, flipping pages frantically in her notebook to get to the list she'd written out of all the people they needed to avoid to make this happen.

"Right! Doc texted everyone with an update, so they won't be a problem!" Natsu said with confidence. _I'm like 85% sure it said that...I'll check it later._

"85%! Just check the damned text!"

"Fine! I'm checking, I'm checking!" Natsu extricated his phone from his scarf and quickly navigated to his texts. This would all be much easier if Lucy didn't insist on still using their phones to talk. He didn't get why she thought mind talking from far away was so weird. It was just so much more convenient. And it wasn't like they didn't do it unintentionally all the time anyway. He finally found the text he was looking for, scrolling past the last hundred or so messages; Irene had a habit of dominating their group chat with Dr. Grand. "Yes! Three more days! We're clear!"

"OK! So, six o'clock tomorrow then! We're finally doing this! My place or yours?" Lucy sat back in her chair, leg jiggling with anticipation.

Natsu grinned as he felt her leg move, his own bouncing in sync. "Definitely yours. Too many guys in the house to guarantee they'll all stay the fuck away. Plus," his smile dropped into an irritated frown, "thanks to you and Gray, I can't look anywhere in our fucking room without seeing that demented fucking snowman! Was the Pin-the-Nose-on-the-Olaf with the carrot as an _**erection**_ _really_ necessary, Luce?" A mental image of the goofy snowman looking suspiciously pervy with his carrot nose tilted jauntily up from his base snowball swiftly followed his admonishment.

"Ok, my place," Lucy confirmed, carefully ignoring his reference to her and Gray's Operation Olaf. She wondered if he'd found the snowman plushie in his sock drawer yet...wait...dammit, she'd just given herself away! _**Stupid mind reading!**_

"My sock drawer?! That little shit is dead!" Natsu stalked over to his dresser and rummaged around until he'd found the offensive poly fiber-filled fucker. He swiftly threw it into Happy's crate and watched the cat tear it to shreds, the bits of fluff joining the paper, cardboard and fleece making up the mutilated corpses of every other Olaf Natsu had found. It turned out Happy wasn't a fan of Olaf either. His cat was fucking awesome. Even if he was an asshole. "Just don't come crying to me if Olaf shows up _again,_ and fucks everything up. That's _all_ you! And the Ice Princess. Speaking of which, your door locks, right? You checked it? Just in case?"

"Of course it locks! You think I just leave my apartment unlocked every day?! _You've_ bought protection, right?" she replied snippily, really only asking to get back at him for (rightfully) doubting her ability to lock her own door . She was sure he wouldn't forget anything as important was contraceptives.

"...um...yes?" _Shit. I knew I forgot something._

"DAMMIT NATSU! I swear to the gods of everything you hold dear, if we manage to get time alone to finally fucking FUCK already, and you _don't_ have a condom, I will straight up murder you. I won't even care if I die in the process!" Images of very _not_ sexy methods of torture danced through her mind to land in his consciousness.

Natsu leapt to his feet almost dropping his phone as he shoved sandals on his feet and took off at top speed. "I'm going now! I'm going!"

"Good!" Lucy yelled back, grinning. She could feel Natsu smiling.

"Gods, I can't wait until tomorrow at six..." he said breathlessly as he dashed around the guys hanging around the house as he made for the exit.

"Me either!" Lucy agreed, grin threatening to split her face open. Her mouth went dry just thinking about what it would be like to, at long last, have uninterrupted time with her soulmate. The pervier part of her brain took a little detour into all the possibilities...

Natsu tripped over his own feet at some of the images she was conjuring, barely catching himself before he face planted on the sidewalk.

 _I fucking love you._ He grinned, his feet coming to a stop as he sent pervy thoughts back at her, narrowly missing tripping up a runner coming from behind him.

 _ **I fucking love you too. Now focus! Condoms, condoms, condoms!**_

* * *

Lucy checked the clock again, breathlessly cursing her professor's idea of a 'short last midterm' as she dropped her backpack to the floor and dashed into her bathroom. She just barely had time to wipe off the sweat from the jog back to her apartment and attempt to find something alluring to wear for when Natsu got there. Maybe.

How Happy had managed to get out of his crate and shred the fuck out of the lingerie she had laid out so carefully that morning, she'd never know, but at least Natsu had been able to come over his lunch break and haul him back to his cage, this time zip-tying it closed. They weren't taking any chances. Not this time.

Adequately freshened up, for the most part, Lucy fluffed out her hair, shucked her current bra and panties, and dug through her lingerie drawer looking for something that would take her body to the next level.

She wanted him drooling the moment he saw her.

 _You know Luce, if you want me to drool on you, all you need is a bucket of fried chicken. Lunch at the house was shit today. And I didn't even get to finish it thanks to Happy's new obsession with destroying your underwear!_

She rolled her eyes, grabbing a red lacy set that felt appropriate for losing her virginity in and slipped on the skimpy excuse for clothing, arranging her breasts as best as she could without looking. She didn't trust Natsu not to peek and she wanted to see his reaction to her firsthand.

 _ **I should have known. I've got leftovers. We'll eat after.**_ A zip of anticipation whipped through her at the thought of what came _before_ that 'after'. She couldn't help but think back to the last time they'd really had time to be together. Getting each other off with just their hands had been pretty damn incredible, but the increasingly frantic showers they'd been taking and what felt like the hundreds of sweltering makeout sessions in the past week that had been interrupted before anything really good could happen had her yearning for stimulation. His body was all she could think about.

It didn't help that Natsu had been picturing fucking her on every surface of her apartment since eight o'clock that morning.

Though, honestly, she hadn't been a lot better. She had too vivid an imagination not to speculate a little…

Ok. A lot. She speculated A LOT.

 _Hell, let's just go get something to eat afterward. We'll both be starving._

 _ **Deal.**_ Lucy grinned. They were doing this all so backward: sex then a dinner date. And she really couldn't care less; it sounded like perfection. She grabbed her body spray, spritzing the air of her apartment instead of her body. A couple of over-exuberantly perfumed days had revealed that Natsu was definitely not a fan of her wearing scent (going so far once as to spray himself down with a hose to get it off her). But maybe the air smelling good would block the odor of the day that she hadn't managed to get off...

 _I'm here. Buzz me up, wouldja?_

Lucy froze, body spray halfway back to its shelf. Her eyes cut to her alarm clock again. She had ten more minutes! _**HEY! You're early! I'm not even dressed yet!**_

 _...seriously Luce? Why are you getting dressed? I thought you were just making it easier on me to start in your underwear…_ The note of teasing in his thought stirred up a little rebellion in her.

 _ **Oh? Well, then you can just wait while I get ready. I'll buzz you up at six. Like we agreed.**_

 _What?! Like hell I'm waiting anymore for that!_ The playful note was gone, replaced by disbelief and hot ire. _You're literally just gonna take it off! What is the fucking point of that?_

 _ **The point is to set the mood. And half the fun is taking it off, right?**_ She walked purposefully to her closet, pulling out a tight red dress that she'd been meaning to wear to something special. _**And you'll wait if I say so...**_ Lucy had the sudden realization that Natsu was running. _**Hold on…**_ And grabbing something abrasive with his hands. _**What the hell are you doing?!**_ _**Natsu?!**_

She closed her eyes, calmed herself enough to sync with Natsu and opened them, getting a view of her window! From the outside and _way_ too close. She spun on her heel just in time to see Natsu jump from the tree outside through her bedroom window, a look of pure determination on his face.

Ok, _mostly_ through her window, because when he caught sight of her, his face went blank and his foot caught on the ledge, leaving him suspended in air looking at her for one stretched, hanging moment.

And in the moment, the only thing Lucy could think was:

 _Hi._

Nailed it.

Then he was sent sprawling over the bed, barely saved from hitting the floor by the same roughed up Chuck Taylor that had tripped him. Lucy couldn't help but feel a little justified as she ran to help him up. _**THAT'S why I get dressed!**_

That one moment of awe as he looked at her had flooded his stomach with butterflies and made his mind go totally blank. She'd felt it. _**That's what great lingerie can do,**_ she thought smugly. Well, according to her romance novels anyway.

What she didn't realize, was that Natsu had not really been looking at her. At least, he hadn't been looking at the _now_ her. Now, he'd flashed back for a single moment to a past life version of her, standing just that same way: flush on her cheeks, eyes wide in surprise, wearing nothing but unruly curls of long blonde hair.

Which wouldn't have been much of a shock really (he already knew he'd find her in her underwear), except...in that life? She'd been really, _really_ pregnant.

With his baby. And his past self had been so fucking happy about it.

Which partly scared the crap out of him...

But mostly didn't.

 _No...in fact..._

She couldn't even make it all the way to him before he was up, pulling his shirt off and tugging at his belt, his shoes left wherever the fuck they landed.

"Natsu! What are you-" Lucy was cut off by Natsu's mouth covering hers roughly. His name on her lips sent a thrill through him, just like it had the first time she'd said it, just like it had every time after that. It drove him mad: what such a simple thing from her could do to him. He didn't like feeling so out of control, but at the same time couldn't imagine living without his craving for her. He could hear her mind, starting to recover from his swift attack. But he didn't want her to. He wanted her as engulfed in him as he was in her. So he pouring his feelings into her, showing her what she did to him as he bent her backward and made them both forget that anything else existed.

But kisses weren't even close to all he wanted from her. Every time he thought he could be satisfied, his appetite for her grew. Her skin was too far away, though there wasn't a breath of space between them. His pants had to go, so they did. Her bra was in the way, so it followed his pants. Finally, he felt relief at her ample chest bare against his, his hands exploring every inch they could find.

Lucy had lost all ability to think. Her body acted on its own, clinging to any part of Natsu she could to stay upright. His fingers were hot, sliding over her skin, coaxing arousal from her that shot straight to her core, soaking the last delicate scrap of lace she still wore in seconds. But it wasn't the feeling of his hands that had her mind completely fried.

It was the singing note of his joy.

It was the ever-present, overpowering brilliance of his love.

And it was the heatwave of his insatiable appetite for her, permeating everything else in her mind like the oppressive swelter of a midsummer's day.

He wanted her so badly. All of her. And he wanted her _now._

It almost hurt him how much he yearned for her. His chest was tight with it. His hands clutched and squeezed, and grasped in response to it, constantly searching for relief, and loving every moment of the sweet agony.

She felt it too: the undeniable pull of their connection. She couldn't keep her hands off him any more than he could. Their arousal was so acute it was almost painful. Every touch left tingling, raw skin in its wake. His hands seemed to be everywhere at once, one minute pulling her knee over his hip, the next seizing the fullness of her breast in his calloused palm.

Lucy was lost in it, drowning in sensation and feeling. It felt like all she did lately was flounder in the depth of what her soulmate was feeling, but with so little to separate them and their skin pressed together the experience she'd almost grown used to was compounded exponentially, simultaneously unbearable and euphoric. But deep inside her, below the thrumming of his blood through her veins and the harsh pounding of her pulse between her legs, a tiny part of her, the part that had been only recently liberated from its malevolently crafted cage, cried out.

Her feelings mattered too!

Her love mattered too.

Lucy didn't want to be passively overtaken. She didn't want to lose herself.

She wanted to do a little ravaging of her own. And she wanted to do it her way.

Slowly, her hands crept up his chest, gaining confidence as they trailed along until her fingers were buried in his hair. The leg he'd hitched over his hip, slid seductively back to the floor, her knee trekking agonizingly slowly up his inner thigh instead, sliding against the hardness straining to reach her.

Natsu's movements slowed as he noticed the change in her, his kisses becoming less frantic, his hand moving to bury itself in her cascade of golden hair. His lust didn't subside in the slightest, but he exerted more control over it, trying to clear his mind to make room for what was going on in hers. The thought hit him all at once, helping to make his hunger a little less ravenous. Lucy. What was Lucy feeling? What was she thinking?

What he found was striking. The first glimpse of her mind was serene: a glass-smooth lake of tranquility. No doubts, no worries, just complete determination. But the more he sank into her, the more he proved his first impression wrong. It might look like calm water, but it was electrified, alive and dangerous. The intensity of the current she controlled was...exciting. It was a side of Lucy he'd seen in brief moments, flashes. But it had never been so assertive. He pulled back, breaking their kiss to stare into her eyes in surprise. Her fingers tightened in his hair, forcefully drawing his head back. Natsu struggled to keep his eyes on her as she leaned in and placed an open-mouthed kiss on his neck, licking her way over his scar. He tensed at the touch of her tongue, feeling as though 100 volts were running through him at the touch of her tongue. And he panicked, visions of his time in the sands of Pergrande fighting to overtake him. He fought her hold, his hands grasping her shoulders, preparing to push her away, to save her from the monster he would undoubtedly become.

But then it stopped.

The impending flashback was overcome by searing light, the pain of the memories faded into a dull, warm ache, and he felt like he could breathe deeper than he had in years. Her fingers tugged at his hair again, this time downward. Her lips ghosted over his skin to his ear and whispered, softly, "Still with me?" at the same time her mind reassured him, _**You're still with me. I've got you. Just let it go.**_

Lucy burned through his eyelids like the sun, leaving after images behind, but when he opened his eyes, her skin barely caught the evening light streaming through her window.

 _What did you just do?_ he asked, his hands slithered over her skin, as though to reassure him that she was still there. Still his Lucy. Something profound had just happened. But the fog of lust shrouding his mind couldn't see just what it was.

 _ **I burned away your pain,**_ she answered faintly, looking into his eyes like she could actually see the mind behind it. Hell, maybe she could.

 _How?_

 _ **I have no idea.**_

She smiled sweetly up at him, her eyes closing to leave more room for her joy to get out. His heart squeezed in his chest.

Lucy felt it and took a sharp intake of breath, breaking the silence.

The bubble of grace she'd somehow built around them burst, leaving the two of them lost for a moment, her hands clenched in his hair, his encircling her petite waist.

Then, she was dragging his head to her level and their desire fought to devour them. What little clothing they were wearing hit the floor as they tore at each other, the sensation of nothing but skin against skin sending shivers of unquenchable desire through them.

Lucy pulled back from their kiss and threw herself at Natsu, too carried away to worry if he'd catch her. He barely noticed, instantly pulling her legs around him as he stumbled forward seeking any surface he could set her on. Or against. Or, fuck, maybe he could just make the middle of her room work…

Thankfully, his thighs hit her desk and he dropped her on it, freeing his hands to spread her legs wide. Hers went to his swollen member, imitating the motions she secretly watched through his eyes for months like a pro as she stroked and pulled and squeezed. He let out a groan at the relief of it. It was ecstasy just being touched by her. But she also knew exactly what he liked, reacting to each minute reaction, be it emotive or physical.

Lucy's eyes were riveted to his face, like it would reveal every secret he had to her. Or like it already had. Hell, at this point, how could she not know everything? They'd been in each other's heads for more than a week. They'd been in each other's skin for so much longer. Her mouth fell open, panting at the pulsing satisfaction her motions brought them both.

Natsu felt the gasping breath in her throat and the swipe of her tongue over her lips, but his eyes were fixed lower: on the glistening paradise laid bare and waiting for him just inches from where she worked his cock. The promised land was so fucking close it nearly killed him. Her ministrations had frozen him for a moment, the pleasure overtaking his fine motor skills, but Lucy's legs shifting back together, just slightly, woke him up.

One hand slipped between her legs and into her before she realized he'd begun to move, the other pushing her legs wide again. Despite her open stance, she was tight, clutching at his fingers with strong inner muscles. His mouth went dry thinking how much better even than her hands that clenching warmth would feel like when he was inside her.

Lucy gasped, closing her eyes and reopening them with a view through his eyes, seeing what he saw as he gazed mesmerized at his fingers disappearing inside of her over and over again. Low moans fell from her lips and her hands released his length to draw back behind her, supporting her weight on the desktop as she rocked her hips into him, riding his hand, grinding against the sweet relief he brought them both. She was so wet his hand dripped onto the polished wooden surface. He wrapped his other arm around her back, pulling her as close to the edge as he could get her and suckling a path down her neck. She tipped her head back and moaned in rhythm with his motions, hands clutching his shoulders like a lifeline. He feverishly kept going, curling his fingers inside her, exalting in the pleasure he brought her as he leaned over her, his erection sliding tantalizingly against the silky skin of her inner thigh.

So close, and yet way too fucking far away.

The moment she felt his arousal against her, her eyes flew open, searching for his. They found each other's gazes, panting hard as he pushed deeper into her and Lucy let loose a roar driven entirely by lust. Her mind scrambled for the words to tell him what she wanted. What she needed, constantly whirling away again before her tongue could form the words. Every new thrust or swirl of his fingers left they both breathless. Eventually, she stopped trying, crying out in her mind to him as her lips managed to form only one word:

"Naaatsuuuu!"

 _ **Naaatsuuuu! NOW! Pleeeease!**_

That was all he needed to hear, pulling back and plunging forward. His hand slid out of her just long enough to guide himself inside his soulmate, sliding easily into her tight, slick warmth. Lucy cried out, clenching down on him before he was even halfway in. He immediately froze at the sound, but melted almost immediately as her foot looped around his hip and pulled him in further, a surge of bliss starting from him, but ending with her, drowning out any discomfort she might have felt. Her arms crept up around his neck, her powerful legs locking them tightly together. He leaned almost completely horizontally over her, hand braced on the desk behind her, supporting both her weight and his own as she clung to him.

Natsu watched her face, resisting the urge to move, swearing to himself that he would wait. He could feel her body resisting the intrusion, clenching his teeth as her muscles worked around him. _Just one moment more. Just until she opens her eyes. Just...one...more...moment._

Her eyes finally fluttered open, dewy and dilated. She was closed so tight around him, it took effort to pull back with his hips before seating himself even deeper into her, the small motion pulling a groan from both of them. Her eyes rolled back and her thighs tightened around him, a drop of saliva sliding around her top lip and down to her fuller bottom one as her mouth dropped open. He watched the bead of glistening moisture, waiting for it to drop. Then he would move again. He was grasping at anything to keep him from rushing headlong into the Eden he knew awaited the.. She had been so ready for him. _So wet and inviting…_

 _ **Oh gods...that feels…**_

Her mind didn't go on any further, instead sending him the ecstatic wonder she was experiencing.

Natsu gazed desperately at her mouth, willing the moisture on her lip to drop and put him out of his misery. The velvet touch of her mind almost pushing him over the edge. But he hung on. They hadn't even gotten to the best part yet. The brief moment seemed to stretch on forever. Instead, Lucy's tongue darted out, spreading the moisture across her lip and catching his attention. She licked both lips again, wetting where her ragged breath had parched them. Their eyes met again and she broke into a wide smile. His cock twitched in automatic response inside of her and his hips bucked automatically. Her smile dropped into a gasp.

As though the volume on her mind was suddenly dialed up, a string of repeated thoughts swiftly invaded his mind.

 _ **Please please please, oh gods, please, Natsu Natsu Natsu NATSU! I...I need more! Natsu, please, please more...PLEASE! NOW!**_

Her crowded thoughts entered his thoughts and he dove in with relief. He pumped steadily into her then, the two of them sighing in sheer relief at the movement. He started gently, euphoric as he lost himself in the sensation of her unbelievable grip on him. A similar chant of thoughts took up residence in his head, echoing hers, just a beat behind.

 _Fuck, Lucy...I need you I need you I NEED you, I love you, fuck...please...just..._

Then he was pushing further, searching for that one more millimeter of heaven, the end of the road he was racing along, the climax at the end of the tunnel. She responded in kind, the movement of her hips unpracticed but enthusiastic, her strong legs fighting to take over control of their rhythm. He shifted his weight to one hand and gripped her hip with the other, guiding her motions to match his. As they fell into sync with each other, rocking more and more smoothly against one another, Lucy's legs crawled higher up around him. Her hips followed, searching for the angle her body could sense would end it all.

Natsu let go of her hip, following what her body was telling him. She was so close. A coil of heat and tension on the edge of painful wound up in her, contracting her muscles. She gripped the edge of the desk with one hand, her other digging her fingernails into the rock hard pillar of his arm as it supported them both. With his now free hand, Natsu grabbed her leg, pulling it up over his shoulder, and rocketing into her again at the new angle. She exclaimed at the change, her mind chanting 'yes, that!' over and over as tears leaked from the corner of her eyes and she gave up trying to match his out-of-control movements. Instinct completely took them over.

Lucy clung to him for all she was worth as brightness exploded behind her eyes and her muscles spasmed around him. A scream ripped from both their throats. He kept going, feeling her peak and stubbornly pushing through the amazing feeling of her coming around him and her own pleasure until he felt like he would burst. Then, at the last possible second, when he could feel his own climax coming, a brief flash of clarity prevailed and he pulled out of her, coming harmlessly across her midriff as the arm supporting them both quivered with overuse. They froze in place, each closing their eyes in order to bask in the golden moment they'd shared and the aftershocks of pleasure vibrating through them. The only sound in the room was their panting in unison, unable to catch their breaths long enough to form words.

 _ **That was…**_ Lucy unpried her fingers from arm and dropped down onto her desk, to give her aching abdomen a rest.

 _Incredible._ Even relieved of Lucy's weight, his arm had finally decided it had had enough, collapsing. He barely managed to catch himself again in time, his head landing on her chest as he kept the rest of himself from crushing her.

 _ **I was gonna go with fanfuckingtastic.**_

 _That too._

 _ **And mind-blowing. Just...unbelievably awesome.**_

 _No arguments here._

 _ **Though, admittedly, the adjective I'd most use right now is...sticky.**_ They both grimaced at the mess they'd made, between them, growing tackier by the minute.

 _Uh, yeah. Sorry about that. So much for the condoms._ Natu glanced across the room trying to remember where the fuck his pants (and the package in his pocket) had ended up. Not that it mattered now.

 _ **Well…**_ The tone of Lucy's thought had him lifting his head to look at her face. His exhausted body protested as his attention perked up. _**...I don't think they'll go to waste. We've got at least another hour until someone has the opportunity to interrupt us…**_

Natsu felt a part of him twitch at the images she conjured. _You're insatiable._ Ok, more than twitch.

 _ **Then it's a good thing you're packing a dragon, huh?**_ she thought playfully, her breathing patterns just returning to normal.

He pulled back, grinning down at her. _Be careful what you wish for, Luce. Dragons have been known to live for a very long time..._

 _ **Bring it on, Doomsday Dragon.**_ She thought back cheekily, running the foot still over his shoulder down his chest.

Until she hit something sticky. _**Ew. First, we seriously need to shower.**_

Just the thought of finally being in the shower _with her_ had Natsu hard as rock again.

 _Fuck yes we do._ He scooped her up in his arms and headed to her bathroom, visions of all the things he hadn't done with her yet dancing in his head.

And for three more glorious hours (one spent entirely in the shower) they basked in the warmth of their shared happiness before falling asleep boneless and exhausted. Needless to say, they did _not_ make it out to dinner.

* * *

 _Meanwhile, across the hall…_

Gray scowled at his captors as they flipped through Netflix on Levy's laptop, trying to decide what to watch. For the hundredth time, he strained against the ridiculous amount of rope strapping him securely from bicep to navel to Levy's kitchen chair. "Is the rope really necessary? It's been three-and-a-half hours, surely it's safe by now for me to go home!"

Both Levy and Gajeel shook their heads, the blunette turning to look at him sympathetically. "You've proven you cannot be trusted to stay out of their way, even when you want to, so you'll stay right here."

"But it's almost eleven! At least let me lay down so I can get some sleep!"

Gajeel lifted a foot and knocked over the chair on its side, inciting a very unmanly squeal of surprise from the tied up noirette.

"...ug... _thanks_ ," he replied sarcastically.

Gajeel hmphed back, throwing an arm around Levy's shoulders as she snuggled into him.

"Hey Gajeel, should we check on the other one?" Levy gestured with one hand in the general direction of her bathroom.

The tattoo-artist-turned-cuddle-bug growled under his breath and pulled her closer. "The bastard's fine."

Levy sighed, but didn't feel much remorse. Loke really should have known better than to try to grab her ass. Or break into Lucy's apartment.

Not while the Majestic Bookworm and her trusty sidekick Iron Panther were on the job.

A few feet away, Gajeel's cat looked up from his nap on a world atlas (with a fun little bit of peeling leather he liked to sharpen his claws on) and sniffed. No matter how awesome his human was, he looked nothing like a panther.

* * *

 **IT FINALLY HAPPENED! I hope no one was too disappointed after the god-only-knows-how-many-chapters you guys have been waiting for that. There will be more shenanigans in their future...their very near future in fact...**

 **Anyway, I hope Chapter 50 was a good one for you too... *lays back in bed and smokes cigarette* Leave me a review and let me know how you liked the chapter! OR, if you haven't reviewed at all yet, let me know what you thought of the first 50 chapters! XD**

 **I also feel like I should maybe give a small public service announcement here... Condoms only work if you use them! And USE THEM. And birth control. And all that fun stuff. I find it unromantic to write in someone putting on a condom, but this is fiction, so I get to do that. Don't be a dumbass in real life. Nothing ruins the fun of sex like finding out you're pregnant (or have gotten someone preggers) when you REALLY don't want to be. That is all. Go forth and screw safely like bunnies.**

 **And here are a couple of things you might not have known...**

 **blessed land of Morpheus** -Morpheus is the Greek god of dreams, as described in Ovid's Metamorphoses, so his realm would be the land of sleep.

 **and a live chicken named Kawazu** -Kawazu is Japanese for frog, but also the name of the Grimoire Heart member who looks like a giant chicken and attacks Levy with eggs on Tenrou Island. I've been trying to work this in since chapter ten. Yes, you're right, I have no life. Fairy Tail _has_ taken over my life in an unhealthy way. Blah, blah, blah, yada, yada, yada. No regrets.

 **P.S. I LOVE YOU ALL TO DEATH! YOU'RE THE BEST READERS A GIRL COULD ASK FOR AND YOU MADE MY DAY EVERY DAY FOR MORE THAN A YEAR.**

 **OK, now I'm done.**

 **Riot out.**


	51. The Shadow: There and Back Again

**Yep! It's me! And, it's a 12k chapter to boot! I know some of you have been wondering if I died...sorry about that. I was hoping to get a chapter done before I left for Hawaii in July and then didn't quite make it, but I think there is nothing more disappointing than getting a chapter update and having it be nothing but a lame-ass explanation of the author's whereabouts, so I wanted to wait until I had a chapter done before I posted. Anyway, I went on vacation...and read a book...which led to reading another book...and then some manga...and then pretty much every decent romance manga I could get my hands on until I'd read the top 50-60 in the genre. And then I entered the cosplay crunch for my local con and spent a month sewing cosplays for Mira, Aquarius, Aries, and Frankenstein from Fate/Apocrypha (which I competed and won with!). I'll change my profile pic to Mira so you guys can see it as soon as I get this posted. Sorry to those I promised this would be posted last week. In my defense, I was done with it a week ago, but my beta is hardcore adulting right now and then got sick. So, forgive us!**

 **And, with no further ado, but warnings of citrusy moments throughout, I present, Chapter 51. Enjoy!**

* * *

Levy had decided today was the day.

She was done with waiting. She was done with worrying. And she was done with letting her flashbacks drag her around wherever they wanted. She was Levy Fucking McGarden, the most majestic of bookworms, the best student researcher in the greater Fiore area, and there was nothing that could conquer her! War and Peace hadn't slowed her down. Moby Dick hadn't stopped her. And James Joyce's complete lack of regard for his reader's sanity in Ulysses hadn't broken her, dammit!

A spider skittered across the rug she was sitting on in Porlyusica's study, heading straight for her bare, orange-polish-bedecked toes.

EXCEPT SPIDERS! Spiders could conquer the shit out of her!

She leapt up immediately, springing onto the piano bench as elegantly as a cat (though she couldn't have repeated that beautiful, perfect, backwards leap if there was a roomful of kitty lives depending on it).

"Back, back foul demon!" she cried in a voice that would have been a lot more threatening if it hadn't been an octave too high.

Porlyusica, sighing with exasperation, grabbed one of her neatly set aside knock off Birkenstocks and brought it down solidly on the invader before gesturing back at Levy's vacated space.

"Quit getting distracted girl! Every moment you waste before gaining control of your abilities is a moment the blue and red ones are in danger from their evil twin. And since you _refuse_ to seek for answers to the bond until you sort out this business with your unruly aura, we need to accomplish this as quickly as possible. So, sit girl!"

Though it took a minute for her mind to decipher the older woman's briskly confusing explanation of Mystogan and Erza's situation, her body reacted immediately, hopping back to the floor and plunking into her place again.

"Aren't you concerned that the spider you just killed is someone who has been reincarnated or something? All the research I've done on reincarnation seems to suggest being reborn goes hand in hand with respecting every life. I mean, that could have been your ancestor or something..."

"Tch. If some relative of mine was unfortunate enough to be reincarnated as a spider, they will thank me for squashing them and sending them on to a more pleasant existence as a squirrel or manta ray. Now, FOCUS!"

 _Really? A manta ray?_ With that last stray thought, Levy ducked her head obediently. "You're right. Let's do this."

Because today was _the day_ ; the day she uncovered the secret of her aura.

If she had to live through every past life since the Stone Age to get there, she would know the truth.

* * *

Natsu wasn't sure how they'd gotten to this point.

Actually, if he were telling the complete truth, he couldn't even tell you where exactly they were. All that mattered was that Lucy was there. Because ever since their mind-blowing first time (and the subsequent 2-6 times that followed) they couldn't get enough of each other. It felt like Lucy was a drug, and no matter how much he touched or tasted her, there was always a hunger in his chest burning for more. Every spare moment they had was spent together...and mostly naked.

He was pretty sure they were both going to fail the semester if they kept this up.

Because in one of the few moments they'd been able to rip themselves apart to at least collect the notes they'd missed, Lucy had come out of nowhere, grabbed him from wherever he had been going to (or coming from? Shit, he honestly didn't give a fuck anymore...), shoved him into a dark, unused closet or something and told him she was going suck him off like a lollipop.

Yep, those exact words. (Ok, thoughts, because she hadn't said it aloud. But who fucking cared what the difference was? Not him. Nope, he was definitely not gonna nitpick that in any way.)

He sent up a beautiful little thank you to the author that had written that particular phrase in the smutty book she'd stolen it from and made a mental note to buy her the sequel.

Being able to hear Lucy's thoughts had given him a definite newfound appreciation for smutty literature and its effect on the female libido.

Seriously, it was like this vast porn collection under the radar of pervy males everywhere that secretly controlled their sex lives. Don't even get him started on fanfiction. It was like romance novels on crack, apparently.

Because now she was on her knees, with her gorgeous lips wrapped around his cock as she reenacted the scene in her head.

Between the moaning and her _very_ enthusiastic tongue he was hanging on by a thread. His head was spinning.

He blamed lack of blood. Which was 100% acceptable. It was needed elsewhere. Obviously.

Even in the dark, he could see her golden hair swaying as she bobbed on him, working up a rhythm. If he was being honest, he was no stranger to a good blow job. He'd had some pretty great ones in the past. But, even though Lucy still lacked the experience some of the other girls had, her whole approach to the task was unbelievably hot. Because there was nothing submissive about it at all. In her mind, she was driving, and he was along for the ride. Every time she did it, even from the first, when she'd been nervous as fuck, she always told him how it was gonna be. Her mind made the decision that she was gonna blow his mind so thoroughly that he'd be at her mercy and that was it. Her show.

Plus, it was _Lucy._ Everything was just...better with her. He'd quit questioning it long ago.

And it was his absolute pleasure to sit back and take in the performance. Well...she was the one 'taking it in' actually...heh.

 _ **Less comparing and more whimpering.**_ The voice in his head had an irritated growl to it.

Natsu grinned down at her, eyes meeting her glaring ones in the darkness. _Yes, ma'am._

His head fell back against the door and he let out a breathy moan at the feeling of her sucking hard and swirling her tongue around the tip of his dick.

 _Fuuuuuuuck, yeah,_ he thought. _Thank the fucking gods for literary porn._

* * *

 _Past Levy carefully balanced on top of the fence post, taking a step out onto the crossbar, skirt hem clutched in one hand and her new hat in the other. If he could do it, then so could she! She'd show that imbecile what she was made of!_

 _Present Levy couldn't help but get caught up in her past self's little battle, her heart pumping along at the thought of falling and hurting herself in front of the whole school gathered around her. But another part of her sighed. This was definitely not the flashback she was looking for. Maybe Porly would stick her with a pin soon…she really needed to figure out a way to shock herself out of flashbacks so she didn't waste so much time._

 _As though her past and present minds were truly linked, her moment of distraction turned out to be her downfall. Literally._

 _Her slick new shoes (that she'd so carefully avoided scuffing on the concrete slab in front of the schoolhouse all week) betrayed her, sliding off of the worn cylinder of wood like a chunk of ice in her hand on a hot day. Her world spun as she went into free fall._

 _So much for doing everything_ _ **he**_ _could. The image of a young, cheeky, black-haired boy danced before her mind's eye as she anticipated hitting the ground..._

Levy jerked out of the flashback and blinked rapidly, trying to reorient herself with her position on the floor again. Then she growled in frustration, shook her head at Porlyusica's inquiring look and squeezed her eyes shut.

Not. Good. Enough.

She hoped Gajeel was having better luck training Erza than she was sorting out their past.

Levy's eyebrows came together, creating a deep furrow of frustration and worry as she grabbed handfuls of her dress with both fists and set about clearing her mind.

 _And...AGAIN!_

She fell into yet another flashback, easy as breathing, and waited to see if it was what she was looking for.

* * *

Gajeel took a deep breath and tried to get his anger under control, but was interrupted as he ducked another of Erza's counter punches. "Dammit woman! The point is not to hit me back! Quit fighting me and fucking pay attention."

If Erza were a lesser woman, her expression could have been described as sheepish. "You used to be better. But, I will attempt to refrain from schooling you."

"Listen, you're the one who wanted to learn this shit, ok? I'm perfectly happy to get the fuck out of here and spend my afternoon with my girlfriend to keep her from nearly killing herself over finding out useless shit!" Gajeel barked back. He slammed the door of the private practice room they were using at Metalicana's and turned back to the pupil that had been forced upon him. Why couldn't anything just be simple? Trying to train the headstrong redhead in anything just seemed like a giant waste of time to him. With Erza, she was always either naturally talented or not interested.

"What I don't get," Mystogan said casually from his place in a folding chair in the corner of the room, "is why I have to be here."

Gajeel turned to smile at him with a sharky grin, his fist darting out behind him and nailing Erza squarely in chest before she could react. "Motivation."

"OW! What the FUCK is wrong with you?!" Mystogan yelled back, jumping to his feet as Erza went for another punch at Gajeel's head on pure instinct.

Gajeel ignored the slightly injured blueberry as he caught Erza's counter and glared her direction.

"That's it. You just can't keep your punches to yourself, woman." He grabbed another folding chair from its place against the wall and dragged it to the center of the room, gesturing Erza into it. Then he grabbed his bag and started rummaging through it, searching for something. "Sit yer ass down. You too, Mysty."

"Don't call me that!"

Erza stayed where she was, monitoring him with narrowed eyes. "How will any of this help? So far, you haven't taught me anything!"

"You wanna learn this or not? This is the only way I can think of to show you. Get yer ass in that chair." He dropped his bag and grabbed the end of the duct tape roll in his hand, pulling it off the roll with a ripping sound amplified by the bare battered walls caging them in. He rolled his shoulders in discomfort. Why did she have to make the whole process even more difficult. It's not like he _liked_ taping people to chairs.

She resisted a moment more.

She could hear Mystogan whispering something to her, but didn't bother to look his way so she could keep her gaze on Gajeel. Still, her ears had other plans, straining for his words without her permission. Stupid, love-sick ears.

"Erza, sit down and let him tape you up. You need to be defenseless," Mystogan whispered. But she could hear it as though his lips were next to her ear. Despite her reservations, she did as she was told.

"Fine. I get it...dammit." She muttered the last word under her breath, rolling her shoulders to relieve the sick feeling of dread. Her heart rate sped up as she felt her limbs get caged to the chair. A little part of her screamed out at the idea of being restrained.

Erza had promised herself: never again. Her fingernails dug into her palms as she resisted throwing Gajeel across the room, tossing Mystogan over her shoulder, and bolting out of there like the Heart Kreuz outlet was having a doorbuster sale. She bit her lip and twitched as Gajeel ripped off another piece of tape to restrain her, her face slowly draining of color. She didn't even realize she was holding her breath.

And then she heard Mystogan humming. Again, it was more like he was right beside her than across the room. She wondered if this was part of the second origin they had opened sometime while they were in the hospital. It had been unnerving to feel his every breath and heartbeat for a while. Even more disconcerting to hear Jellal's too (though their heartbeats strangely synched up more often than not). But, after a week of always feeling like there was someone breathing over her shoulder, she'd grown used to it and hardly noticed anymore. However, as far as she knew, they hadn't advanced to hearing each other speak yet. At least, they hadn't until now.

It probably should have freaked her our, hearing that soft sound in her ear without anyone close enough to be making it, but instead it calmed her. As Gajeel wrapped the last sticky restraints around her legs, securing them firmly to the chair legs, her heart stopped pounding and she focused on the task ahead of her. She wasn't just doing this for herself. Mystogan had to be protected too.

"Alright, how do I start?" Erza asked.

Gajeel smiled grimly back at her. "We already have. The pain you felt seeing ol' Mysty there getting your punches? That's the key."

"Hey! I thought we agreed to never call me that again?!" the blunette grumbled.

Gajeel continued as though the blueberry were complaining to a wall. "Remember it and close off your mind so he never feels it again."

And then he threw his first punch.

* * *

Lucy moaned as Natsu hiked her leg up higher, testing the limits of her _totally_ regular weekly yoga workouts.

 _Yeah, more like once every two to three weeks,_ Natsu chastised in her head. _You should really take care of your body better, Luce._

She didn't have time to defend herself as he thrust into her from a different angle, releasing a high keening whimper that mellowed quickly into a poorly suppressed cry of pleasure. He grabbed one of her ankles and pulled it to the side, bracing it against the graffitied underside of the table above them before placing a hand over her mouth.

 _Quiet, this is a library, remember?_ he thought at her with a wicked grin.

 _ **It's not like...anyone comes down here...anyway,**_ Lucy argued back brokenly with her scattered brain as she bucked her hips into him and moaned quietly into his palm. Her tongue darted out to taste his salty skin and she felt a lump form in his throat. The jackhammering of his hips picked-up in pace.

She grabbed him by the hair and dragged his head down to her, forcing him to take his hand away to keep himself from dropping his full weight onto her. The motion made him thrust particularly deep and they both closed their mouths around ecstatic groans. Lucy pulled his shoulder closer and bit down, running her tongue in circles over his bare skin. She was starting to think Natsu should just be shirtless all the time. Everything was more fun when he was shirtless. That and his ability to know just what buttons to push to drive her crazy.

He reacted to her thought with a grin and rebalanced, freeing a hand to reach down under her skirt to push her _buttons_ a little further. He kept shoving his way into heaven as she climaxed, biting his neck to stay silent. He didn't even pause when her teeth connected with the once taboo spot.

Lucy welled up with pride that his thoughts no longer threatened to strangle him when she went for his neck. He barely even noticed, even as she licked away the sting of her bite. That tiny miracle made all the trouble the bond had caused so very worth it. It was like a burden was lifted from his shoulders. He even walked with a bounce in his step that hadn't been there before (ok, so that also maaay have had something to do with all the amazing sex they were having lately too…).

Her body clenched and retracted as she clung to him, her head falling back to read the names scrawled under the massive old library table. She couldn't help but smile wider when she saw their names freshly Sharpied-on in a heart. It was such a cheesy thing to do, but it was _so_ Natsu.

Natsu shifted position and sent her flying again, hitting that one spot he seemed to have been born to find. When he'd asked to see where he'd drawn on her that first time, she had not anticipated this was where his mind was going.

Ok.

She lied.

She had _totally_ known where this was going.

hehe

* * *

Gajeel didn't stick with punches.

Erza almost wished he did. Instead, he alternated between twists, holds and pinches that caused an immense amount of pain but not permanent damage. She almost wished he would just hit her again. She knew how to deal with that pain. Not that it mattered. Because her pain meant nothing.

Not when _he_ was in such agony.

Watching Mystogan curled up (as much as he could taped to his own chair), hiding his pain from her was killing her slowly.

The only thing keeping her trying, over and over and over again to block him out of her mind was the desperation to save him from the pain.

And the soft humming in her ear letting her know he was still with her.

But she just...couldn't do it!

Desperately she steeled herself and redoubled her efforts.

* * *

 _Past Levy dove into the clear blue water of the lagoon, naked as the day she was born and quickly chilled to the bone. Nearby, Artemisia/Lucy twisted her long golden hair into a knot off her neck and poured scented oil over her skin. Using a metal hook-shaped tool, she scraped the oil, and the dirt clinging to her body, off in smooth practiced motions._

 _Any member of her naval troops would have killed a million Greeks for her just to see a glimpse of this sight. Past Levy was used to it. She took the tool from Artemisia, more used to seeing that powerful, confident side of Lucy (in her time) than she used to be, and repeated the process on herself. Present Levy took a moment to revel in not only seeing a strigil, but using one herself. Before soap was invented, she knew Greek and Roman cultures had used brass or iron strigils and oil to clean themselves. Though she was pretty sure they were mostly used by men._

 _Then again, Artemisia was no average woman._

 _She finished with the strigil and tossed it and the small earthenware jar of oil ashore with their things. Then she lay back in the water and took the moment of peace while she could get it, floating on the rippling surface, rocked by the small waves of her liege's movements._

 _They wouldn't be bothered. The specially picked soldiers standing guard a mile away in every direction would ensure that._

 _So she closed her eyes and drifted, allowing the small moment of peace to overtake her._

* * *

"Where to next?" Lucy panted breathlessly as she jumped down from Gray's loft bed and her boneless legs re-trained themselves in how to stand. Natsu steadied her with a devious grin. It felt good to take revenge on Gray's cockblocking. Even if it was unintentional. Mostly.

But she mused that the three times they'd had sex in his bed were probably overkill.

 _Nope. Bastard deserves at least three more times._ Natsu was perhaps enjoying his revenge a little too much.

"I'm thinking his car?" the pinkette suggested aloud with a grin, pulling his shirt back over his head. He tossed Lucy her dress to do the same, but when she reached for her underwear, he shoved it into his pocket instead.

She raised a brow at him, trying her best to ignore the blush they could both feel spreading over her cheeks. _**Well aren't you kinky.**_ She desperately attempted to suppress the little voice yelling _Ladies do NOT go commando!_ to herself.

 _In ways you don't even know yet,_ Natsu thought back at her, unable to drag his eyes away from the sight of her chest moving as she breathed, but grinning at the voice she tried so hard to suppress. He'd gotten used to the voices that haunted her thoughts surprisingly quickly, and, to Lucy's constant embarrassment, found them hilarious.

 _ **I don't doubt that...**_

It felt odd wearing a dress with no underwear (especially with how short her dress was), but the heated look he sent her way and the thoughts running through his head as they casually walked out of the fraternity house, past his unsuspecting house mates, and out to the Fairy Tail parking lot had her practically dripping. Apparently the feeling of her most sensitive areas brushing against the soft fabric of her clothing directly turned him on as much as it did her.

He'd been going commando for days just for the convenience of fucking her whenever he or she wanted, but that was nothing compared to the dangerous feeling of knowing the breeze threading between her legs could give him a show at any moment. She gasped at the visions he sent her way as she swayed her hips in front of him, swallowed hard at the hardness in his jeans, and bit her lip to keep from squealing at his reaction to the view of her ass as she climbed into the car. She turned around when the door slammed shut behind him and held her breath.

Natsu crawled over her in the back seat, locked the doors, and tossed the keys into the front passengers seat, taking his time to brush his body against hers every chance he got.

Then he started trailing kisses down her neck and Lucy fell into the happy place in her head she'd fondly named Sexy-Times-With-Natsu-Land.

His tongue dragged over her nipples through the soft, wet cotton covering them. He bit down and reveled in her reaction, twice as sensitive as normal with the clinging barrier between them. He pressed on, planting kisses on her abdomen as he slid the flounce of her skirt ever higher, his excitement and arousal burning into her the further up his fingers got...and the lower his mouth traveled.

By the time his mouth landed in the bare, soft, blonde curls between her legs, she was frozen and clenched in hot anticipation. He dove in like a drowning man seeking air, sucking and licking and pulling and nipping. She barely noticed him loop her thighs over his shoulders as he got his fingers in the game. Any lingering soreness from the numerous times they'd fucked over the last couple of days faded away as her whole world became about three square inches of real estate and the love of her life working his tongue in ways only she would ever fully appreciate again. Even the ache she felt in his jaw didn't give him pause.

She had to admire his dedication. His _oh-so-thorough_ dedication.

And the fact that Gray had parked his car in the darkest, farthest corner of the parking lot. It definitely made it easier to keep from getting caught having sex in it.

Multiple times.

* * *

 _Present Levy took in her surroundings, mentally sighed and sat back to observe the show._

 _Another failure..._

" _Don't be a fool! If you duel him, you're just going to get hurt or die!" Levy's past self yelled, tears blurring her vision of the version of Gajeel in front of her, still tall and long-haired, but sporting a jaunty mustache and goatee to boot. "I don't care what he tells your friends he has done in my bedchambers! It isn't true! And 'tisn't worth your life!"_

" _You don't care? Are you intentionally inviting every rake in the province to spread the same manner of falsehood? The scurrilous knave has crossed the bounds of common decency and I must have satisfaction! It's a manner of your honor, and will not have it sullied! You are pure and perfect and I will not yield the higher ground to such a rapscallion!"_

 _Present Levy couldn't help but mentally smile at hearing such romantic, eloquent phrasing coming out of her soulmate's mouth. She would have to tease Present Gajeel about it later. Meanwhile, her past self tried again to reason with the hothead cavalier she'd fallen in love with. "You...you dalcop! What good is honor without a life to go with it!?"_

" _What good is a life without honor? I'm going whether you approve or not, so will you lend me your favor, or send me into a duel without it?" He grabbed her forearm, dragging her closer as he looked down on her with eyes blazingly earnest._

 _Past Levy lost the wind in the anger of her sails and felt tears pricking her eyes. Slowly, she leaned into him, grabbed the laces of his almost embarrassingly ruffled shirt and pulled him down to her level. Then she gently placed a kiss on his cheek before stepping away and wiping her eyes with the handkerchief she kept tucked in her bosom. "If you die, I shall never forgive you."_

" _Very well, I simply mustn't die then." He paused, his gaze devouring her as though for the last time. "Farewell, dearest Elizabeth." Then he spun with a flourish of his gaudily trimmed cape and stalked from the room, leaving his love to count the tears running over her ivory cheeks._

" _Farewell, my love," she whispered into the silence he'd left behind._

 _Levy felt her heart clench. And, in all honestly, she couldn't have said which version of herself felt the despair more acutely in that moment._

* * *

"Shit...well...what now?"

Gajeel didn't know what else to try. Erza seemed to be working as hard as she could, yet they had made no progress. Maybe it just wasn't possible. Maybe no one else could do what he could. They all seemed to have their own gifts when it came to the bond, so why did Erza even think it was possible? He'd already tried explaining that to her, but her response was always the same.

"Again." Erza sat up straighter in her chair, panting slightly. Her eyes were glued on Mystogan, his head tilted downward so she couldn't see the tears scrunched in his eyes. It didn't matter, she could feel them. She looked away again, a tear leaving the corner of her eye as she turned her desperate gaze back to the black-haired ex-boxer cracking his knuckles absentmindedly in front of her. It was a nervous habit of his. In high school it had given him a threatening reputation that he'd never really lived up to. But, she guessed Gajeel had never really minded.

The noirette sighed and stepped forward again, grabbing the arm that he'd freed from her tape prison, carefully bending back one of her fingers again.

For just a split second, her determination dissolved, despair setting in. What was the point in continuing? They hadn't made any progress...there was just...no point.

" _ **Try protecting yourself for once, you idiot."**_

Erza's head sprang up a the sound of the harsh voice in her ear, eyes meeting Mystogan's as he gave her the same amazed look back.

But...she could have sworn _he'd_ been the one talking to her.

However, she wasn't given time to think about it, as pain blossomed in her hand again, almost drowning out thought. A small whimper escaped her lips and Gajeel immediately started to back off.

"Wait! Don't stop yet! I think…" Mystogan exclaimed in surprise.

Gajeel looked over at him, pressing gently on Erza's finger again. He carefully watched the blunette as the redhead cursed up a storm of words she'd never admit to saying and tears leaked from the corners of her eyes. He quirked a brow in the blueberry's direction, hope beginning to glimmer in his dark red irises. Mystogan smirked minutely and shook his head, opening his eyes wide to show the lack of tears in them.

"It worked! Let her go!"

Gajeel immediately let go of Erza and sat down hard on the floor, feeling more exhausted than he maybe should have. It was more difficult to inflict pain on a defenseless person than he ever would have imagined. Even for a good cause. His hands ran through his hair, smoothing his worried hair into a neat ponytail again. "Fuck...finally. What'd you do Erza? What finally did it?"

Erza looked down at him, using her free hand to wipe away the tears still streaming from her eyes. She flexed it a few times, trying to relieve the soreness deep in her bones. "I...I don't think I did anything. My concentration dropped when Mystogan said that and I sort of just gave up that time…"

"Huh? Mystogan? He didn't say anything until after you stopped his pain..." Gajeel raised a brow, looking from Erza to Mystogan and back. "Right?"

"Yeah, he's right, I didn't...but I heard it too Erza… And, I think I'm actually the one who stopped it." Mystogan's eyes were downcast. "I just did what he told me to...I tried protecting myself. And it worked." His head came up and he caught her eyes with his pained expression. They didn't have to have the ability to read each other's minds to know they were thinking the same thing.

 _Jellal._

"Well...ok…" Gajeel started, getting to his feet. He didn't care how they'd figured it out; as long as it worked and he could get the hell out of there. "Let's test it, shall we? Erza, protect yourself this time." He walked over to where Mystogan was, placed the heel of his boot over his toes and dropped his full weight onto them.

"Son-of-a-BITCH Gajeel! What the FUCK man?! We know how it works now, so you can stop with the 'motivation' bullshit! Just pinch me or something!" Mystogan griped, glaring at the 200 pounds of muscle squashing his foot.

"Ah, shut up, I didn't even stomp on yer foot or anythin'. You're fine."

Erza ignored them, picturing a huge shield between her and Mystogan, keeping out his pain. And steadily, the pain disappeared, replaced by relief so sweet she almost felt numb. "It worked... I can block out his pain..." She knew she should feel elated, but she just couldn't muster up anything but relief.

Gajeel stepped back and grinned. "Alright, now we're getting somewhere. So, it doesn't work quite like mine then, huh?"

Erza used her free hand to tear off the duct tape keeping her confined. She winced as the tape pulled out hairs, glancing at Mystogan out of the corner of her eye to see his eyes slightly glazed, but not registering the sting of the forced hair removal. "No, it looks like we have to think about ourselves instead of the other person...what does that say about us...I wonder?"

She got up out of the chair and stretched, using the opportunity to hide her face from her lover. Part of her was relieved. Well, most of her actually. They'd definitely found a way to stop the bond and keep whatever Jellal did from being a danger...but, that tiny minority of her thoughts felt...troubled...and sad. The way Gajeel protected Levy was noble, and romantic. Through just his desire to keep her safe and free from pain, he was able to shut down the bond without hardly trying. Erza knew he would sacrifice himself for his tiny soulmate in a second if it came to that. It spoke volumes of his inner sense of chivalry.

So, why couldn't that way work for her? Did she not love Mystogan enough? Was she so selfish that the bond had decided the only one she was capable of saving was herself?

The part of Erza that drove her to protect everyone around her flatly protested the thought. She had spent so many years helping women who couldn't help themselves, and teaching people self-defense, but deep down, was that all an act? Did she really care more about protecting herself than she did saving someone else? And was she ok with that?

Did it even really mean anything at all? What determined the power each bonded person received? It had to be personality based right? It seemed fairly obvious to her: Levy, in seeking for information, was given insight into their past lives. Lucy, striving to learn and grow emotionally in her relationships for the first time, was given the power to perceive and feel the emotions of those surrounding her. Gajeel, instilled with the strong sense of justice and protection his father had always emanated, was given the ability to protect the one dearest to him. Natsu, always yearning for a deeper connection with someone who would really understand him, had been given the ability to literally see through that person's eyes, hear that person's thoughts, and walk a mile in her skin if he wished, gifting Lucy with the same invasive understanding of him. The reasoning behind the talents of her friends was easy to see.

So...what did her talent mean? What did it mean that her and Mystogan seemed to have the same power? What did it mean that they were only given the ability to protect themselves? All she really wanted was to help everyone around her grow stronger...right?

In the process of removing the tape to set the blunette free, both Gajeel and Mystogan looked up in surprise at the sound of the door to their small room slamming shut with Erza nowhere to be found. Silently, they stared after her as the nicked up wooden door still quivering in its frame.

Then Mystogan cleared his throat. "I'll talk to her later. I think she just needs to be alone for a bit." He didn't add that he needed to be alone with his thoughts just as badly.

Gajeel shrugged and added the last piece of tape to the ball forming between is hands. "Do whatever you want. I've done my bit, so I'm going home to take a freaking nap. I'm fucking exhausted." He tossed the ball of tape in a nearby trashcan and grabbed his bag on the way out the door, leaving it open behind him as he went.

Mystogan didn't know how long he remained there, just thinking...but it was a while.

* * *

 _Meanwhile, in the private training room right next door…_

Lucy breath came out in short gasps as she tightened her grip on the bar above her. The muscles in her biceps screamed as she lifted herself up.

The rough hands gripping her hips pulled her back down again, providing leverage for Natsu's hips to grind up into her as they locked together again. They both let out a groan at the feeling. Lucy tilted her pelvis and ground down against him again, wriggling to keep her underwear and shorts they'd pulled aside from getting in the way. She could feel the Natsu's pleasure rip through her at the sensation of her muscles firmly gripping his length inside of her and bit her lip to keep from making a sound.

 _Come on Luce...just one more rep…_ Natsu coaxed teasingly. _You said you wanted help with your workout._

 _ **You know…**_ she thought back at him as she struggled to engage her arm muscles again, her thighs tensing as she tried to keep them from coming apart completely. _**This wasn't really what I meant…**_ She sank back down in relief, his hands guiding her and his hips coming up to meet her from the bench they'd dragged under the bar. _**But it**_ **is** _ **one hell of a workout.**_

Sweat dripped down them both in rivulets, one drop pausing on the edge of the well of Lucy's collarbone before sliding down between her breasts. Natsu leaned forward and snatched it up with his tongue, tracing a path back up to her neck. Lucy hung motionless for a moment, caught up in the combined sensation of his tongue gliding over her skin and the throbbing heat of his lust as his hands practically lifted her on their own, picking up the pace of their rolling rhythm. Between the warm hum of his love and the hot lust the pinkette emanated every time he was within five feet of her, Lucy had taken to wearing summer clothes again just to stay comfortable. It was like she was perpetually in a sauna. Natsu leaned away from her, shifting his hips slightly more under her so she came down on him at a different angle and Lucy gasped, forgetting completely whatever she'd been thinking about.

The ache in her arms faded, the fatigue in her body disappeared, and the quiver of her over-tired muscles abated. Her body and mind couldn't handle doing anything more than helping her ride her boyfriend's cock, hanging onto the bar above her for dear life, limb, and sanity.

 **Fuuuuuuck.** The simultaneous thought had them both searching out the other's eyes, a wide grin reflected between them.

* * *

It was a few days before Mystogan and Erza were able to find time to talk about what they'd discovered. True, their schedules were as busy as usual, but they both knew their separation was one of their own making. For people who were used to being alone, feeling each other's heartbeats and overhearing an occasional conversation was more invasive than they were used to. Add the weight of their newest bond development and they had both needed a break from their currently reality.

But, in the same way they had decided simultaneously without discussion not to see each other, they found themselves drawn back together again. Each cupping a styrofoam cup of hot coffee, their jacket collars turned against the wind, they fell into step, walking the less sheltered paths of campus that had been abandoned by all but the hardiest students. October was doing its level best to usher in autumn with a vengeance, the wind blowing crunchy, skittering leaves against their denim-clad legs as they walked at the brisk pace that came naturally to them.

Per usual, Mystogan was the first to initiate contact, reaching for her pink, weather-chapped hand and tucking it into the pocket of his jacket with his own. The action made them both smile and slow their steps.

"So...are you feeling as mixed up about this as I've been?" he murmured, taking a sip of his coffee.

Erza took a moment to enjoy the feeling of warmth spreading through her throat and chest from him before taking a sip of her own. "Probably more, honestly." She gave him a wry smile. "Guess we're just selfish beings deep down no matter how we try not to be, huh?"

Mystogan shrugged, looking ahead of them as they turned a corner and veered off the sidewalk to a small area full of trees that usually hosted those students who couldn't resist the fresh air of Magnolia between classes...when the weather was a little warmer. That day it was deserted.

"After thinking about it a lot, I think it's possible it's not a reflection on either one of us. It sounds kind of petty to push it on him, but doesn't this whole thing just scream 'Jellal'? Everything he does is about protecting himself. And, he was the one who figured it out first, right? How else could he tell us what to do? Maybe it's really _his_ bond superpower, or whatever we're calling these...abilities. It's the only explanation that makes any sense to me anyway..."

"You know…" Erza suddenly stood taller, her steps slowing a bit. Mystogan immediately matched her pace without thinking about it. "...that actually makes a lot of sense. It doesn't really explain why you and I can do it too, but so far, it seems like nothing in our bond is following exactly what is happening to everyone else."

"Right?" the blunette agreed immediately, perking up.

"So, what if we all have individual 'powers', but because the bond isn't supposed to be between three people, it's messed up somehow, and we're all able to use each of our abilities?" the redhead continued, feeling energy returning to her for the first time in days.

Mystogan tilted his head with a hum, the scientific half of his brain revving up. "Ok, maybe...but then what powers do each of us have? What points to that being the case instead of all of us just getting _his_ power instead? What evidence do we have to the contrary?"

"Well...everyone else has their own individual power. We know that. It's pretty obvious with the other couples. So, even though I could see you and Jellal having the same power, since you're twins and all, I would at least have to have one of my own right? We had to bond just like everyone else, so it stands to reason I would at least have a power of my own, or at least a strength in a certain area. And you and Jellal are so different that I can't see the power manifesting due to his personality being the same for you! I know you've noticed it too: the powers have a lot to do with the bonded person's personality. So yours would have to be too!"

Mystogan nodded slowly turning it over in his head. "While I'm not sure that's a good enough reason for Jellal and I to have different 'gifts', I can't refute your logic when it comes to you. It makes perfect sense that you should have a completely different bonded power, especially since your personality is anything but selfish. And, if that's the case, then somehow, in our bond with Jellal, we're all getting all of our powers. But we can't really prove it without finding out what your power is…"

"True…" Erza looked down at herself, as though it would become obvious what her special skill was if she could just see herself better. Neither of them noticed they'd come to a complete halt and were standing facing each other under the flame-colored fall foliage. "So, we need to figure out what my power is. Then we'll know if this really is just a reflection of Jellal, or ourselves too!"

Mystogan let go a deep, satisfied sigh when her eyes, burning with the incredible intensity they'd been missing lately, met his. Now that she had a goal, Erza was back to her usual self.

Little did he know, Erza was thinking the exact same thing about him.

With their new mission in mind, they set off walking again, clasped hands swinging between them as they brainstormed what kind of power she might have and what to do to make it show itself.

* * *

Many miles and several thick cinder block walls away, Jellal mused on the conversation he'd overheard as he observed two inmates fighting to the death for the chance to join his crew (well, honestly it was more like an overzealous religion at this point).

It would be interesting to see if their conjectures proved to be true. Grimacing, he cracked the knuckles of his fingers on one hand and nonchalantly massaged the aching muscles there. Whatever they decided to do, he just hoped it didn't involve as much pain as their first experiment had caused. Midnight had given him some very suspicious looks when he'd spent all that time humming to Erza. True, he'd figured out he could cut off his own pain pretty quickly after Gajeel had started in on her fingers, but her screams echoing in his ears had been...annoying.

That was the only reason he'd bothered telling them the secret to stopping the bond.

 _Erza is just much less annoying when she isn't in pain. That's all,_ he thought to himself.

Midnight, lounging next to his new Messiah, gave Jellal a sidelong glance, as though he could smell the denial rolling off of him.

Jellal ignored him.

* * *

Lucy and Natsu lay on the floor panting heavily in the afterglow of their most recent lovemaking session. As usual, Natsu was the first to recover, letting his eyes wander around the room as he waiting for his slightly out-of-shape (by Natsu's standards) soulmate to catch her breath.

 _So, why here?_ he mused, trying to estimate just how many books Levy had accumulated in her tiny apartment. _Revenge for something? Like with Gray's cockblocking?_

Lucy let out a little puff of laughter. _**No. Actually, I just really like the way it smells in here. It's kind of like the stacks at the library, but like a coffee shop too. I'm pretty sure it's what heaven smells like…**_ She stretched out her arms, careful not to knock over the stack of books above her as her fingers gently ran over their spines. She closed her eyes, took a deep breath and hummed in satisfaction.

Natsu drank in the sight of her, oddly thinking she reminded him of a very naked, well-endowed female Happy. He could almost hear her purring.

Lucy's eyes popped open at his thought. "I am not!" She sat up, her arms flying to cover her chest and her eyes losing their glazed look. Which was when she noticed the open balcony door behind the billowing curtains. Her eyes darted to the apartment door, still deadbolted, before she leveled an exasperated gaze in his direction. "It's one thing to climb through my window, but can't you learn to use the door like a normal human being in someone else's apartment?!" she cried.

Natsu just shrugged with a smirk. "What? You just said to meet you here. You didn't specify how to get here. Horniness waits for no door!"

"How did you possibly survive before? You're absolutely insatiable!" Lucy responded breezily, not really paying attention to what she was saying while she tried to figure out where her clothing had ended up. A walloping twinge of guilt pricked at her as she thought of Levy. This was definitely not what she'd had in mind when they'd exchanged keys to their apartments...but with all the crazy places she and Natsu had been...frolicking lately, it just hadn't seemed like that big of a deal. Especially after the science lab...or the lounge in the English building. Hell, those had even been tame compared to the time in Erza's room. Lucy's heart rate spiked just thinking about how dead they would be if she ever found out...

"Nah, it's been years since I've fucked this much," Natsu laughed, unwittingly adding the thought: _and never all with the same person._

Lucy's back stiffened, the shirt she was holding falling from her fingers, forgotten. She hated to be reminded of Natsu's past conquests. Particularly when she got the faint whiff of nostalgia mixed into the usual barrage of emotions he was constantly pelting her with. It was a combination she had figured out only showed up when he was reminiscing on happy memories. But it was another thought entirely that had her planted in place.

 _ **OH MY GOD HAS HE EVER EVEN BEEN TESTED?! He's slept with so many people and I didn't even ask! WHAT'S WRONG WITH ME?! HE COULD BE DISEASED!**_

Natsu cringed as her thought-yelling sank in. "Oi! Wanna turn the intensity down a bit? I can't think!"

Lucy turned leveling a panicked glare at him. Don't ask how a glare can be panicked. It just can. It's a very specific look. "You get exactly one chance to defend yourself. And there is exactly one right answer, Mr-Fuck-Anything-That-Moves!"

"Luce! Seriously? I'm not diseased! Do you really think I'd expose you to something like that without telling you?!" he glared back at her. _Shit, now I'm pissed at you. What the hell…_ He found his gaze slipping from her face down to her cleavage though. Thankfully she'd at least gotten her bra back on. _Dammit, put on a shirt already. It's hard to think when you're naked._

Her panic immediately deflated. _**Yeah...sorry. Got carried away there for a second. You're right. You would never do that to me.**_ Lucy pulled her top over her head and turned away to look for her skirt, the relief and guilt fighting for first place. _**Thank the gods…**_

Natsu, still a little irritated, pulled on his jeans and went to see what Levy's kitchen had for snacks. He was staring incredulously into the freezer as he tried to figure out where the fuck she kept her food (after finding nothing but paperbacks in all the cupboards and on the counter) when Lucy's arms wound around him from behind.

"I'm sorry. Really. I was really just freaking out on myself since I didn't even bother to ask. I relapsed to not trusting anyone there for a sec." She leaned against his back, her cheek resting just above his shoulder blade. _**I'm really,**_ **really** _ **sorry.**_

The feeling of her warmth pressed against him did what it always did, draining the tension from Natsu's body and filling him with the seemingly endless need to hold her tight so she could never disappear.

"It's cool, Luce. I get it." He rested one hand over both of hers at his waist and resisted the urge to crush her in a massive hug. Instead he turned his attention back to the odd contents of Levy's freezer. "Anyway, do you have any idea what the fuck is up with all the books in Cyan's freezer?"

 _ **I'm not even gonna mention how weird it is that you remember her code name from when you guys rescued me but not her real name.**_ "Oh. Right. Yeah, the library basement apparently had a flood a couple years ago and they found all these moldy books in the stacks they were going to throw away. She rescued them and is trying to freeze the mold to death. Honestly, it's the first time I've even seen her put anything in there."

 _I remember her name! I just like Cyan better. Nicknames are cool. Not my fault if you're not cool enough to get it, Weirdo._ "Does that even work? Freezing them?"

Lucy shrugged, rolling her eyes at his thought comment. "No idea, but she swears it does, so probably…" _**What, Mr. Chemistry Major doesn't know? I thought you knew everything science related.**_

 _Chemical engineering, Weirdo. Bio is so not my thing. Plants are fucking boring. Now, I could probably tell you what color those books would burn with pinpoint accuracy..._

Suddenly, there was a rattling noise from the door as something unlocked the regular lock and tried to open the door of the apartment, encountering the deadbolt. Both of their heads snapped to towards the noise.

Faster than Lucy thought humanly possible, Natsu had slammed the freezer door closed, thrown her over his shoulder, and bolted to the balcony, swinging them both over the railing inciting a bloodcurdling scream as she felt her body leave the ground.

Seconds later, Droy burst through the door, sure that he'd heard screaming, but found only an empty apartment full of books. "Levy?! Are you okay?!"

He scratched his head, checking all the rooms before shrugging and going towards the balcony to water Levy's plants, shaking his head at Levy's scatterbrained tendency to leave her balcony door open and his overactive imagination.

* * *

Levy was trying to stay calm.

She was trying to be patient.

She was practically chanting mantras in her sleep every night.

She was _one_ with her _immortal soul_ …

It _had_ been more than a week since she'd decided to end this farce...

but...she could wait forever...if...she...needed...

…

NO, DAMMIT! SHE JUST WANTED TO SEE _ONE THING_ IN _JUST ONE_ OF HER PAST LIVES, SO WHY COULDN'T SHE JUST FREAKING DO IT ALREADY?!

She had never failed at ANYTHING so many times in her entire short life! Why, when it mattered so godsdamned much could she not just do what needed to be done?!

WHYYYYYYY?!

Ironically, it was as she gave into the temper tantrum over her frustration, going so far as to throw her stack of notebooks full of flashback notes into the wall next to Porlyusica's piano that she finally fell into the flashback she had been not-at-all-patiently seeking for weeks.

 _She picked up the empty mug on her desk and chucked it full force at the cinderblock wall of her makeshift office, not getting a modicum of the satisfaction she thought she would as it exploded into a spray of razor sharp ceramic shards._

 _How?! How had they lost him? That was the whole plan. They didn't have the evidence to hold Black Steel any longer, but he was bound to strike again. Killers like this were compelled. Even under scrutiny they couldn't help themselves! Or, sometimes_ because _they were under scrutiny! So, if they couldn't get him on the murders already committed, their only chance was to catch him in the act._

 _But he'd slipped their tail! He had managed to get away from a highly decorated and capable undercover FBI agent as easily as a kid wandering off in a candy store!_

 _Past Levy picked up her stapler and sent it after the mug. It was even less satisfying, not having the decency to shatter on impact like the mug. Maybe she could find another mug somewhere..._

 _DAMMIT! Someone else was going to die! They had to stop it!_

 _She didn't know how she'd gotten so involved in this case. Normally, she was brought in to seal the deal. In, out, on her way. But it hadn't gone that way this time. The suspect hadn't broken. Which was rare, but not unheard of. She'd had at least one other person who had withstood her abilities to this extent. But, Black Steel...he just...got to her. Something about him was calling to her. Like she KNEW he was the culprit. Or something. Because it wasn't quite like that. The feeling deep in her gut just kept pulling her attention back to him._

 _But she also had her doubts. There was a reason they didn't have any damning evidence on him after all. She just wasn't sure if that was because there wasn't any, or he was too smart to leave any behind. But very few people were_ that _careful..._

 _Granted, the evidence getting contaminated by the detectives at one of the crime scenes hadn't helped. How anyone had made it onto that crime scene without gloves just boggled the mind. The first thing she was going to do when she got back to HQ was find out who could lobby for better forensic education across the country and become a thorn in their side until they did something about it. There were just too many cases like this out there. Too many killers getting away with it because of stupid cops leaving behind fingerprints, or corrupting fiber samples. (Then there was that whole DNA testing thing. That showed so much promise…)_

 _Present Levy had a brief moment of amusement at her past self's thought as she paced the room._

 _And now, the agent they'd assigned to Black Steel had been given the slip. They just couldn't catch a break. She slumped into her borrowed desk chair, staring blankly at the board in front of her as she played with her carefully teased out bangs. They were still missing something. She could feel it in her bones._

 _Something important._

 _Something right in front of her. She stood up and paced again in front of the board, looking at the crime scene photos posted for each of the victims. She'd seen them so many times she could have drawn pictures of them with her eyes closed._

 _No...the thing she was missing...it wasn't there. She moved on, eyeing a colorful folder halfway down the pile of folders sitting neatly next to the board. On instinct, she pulled it from the stack and flipped it open. It was filled with receipts, neatly stapled to papers with explanations of how they fit into the case._

 _The forensic accountants had really done a nice job. She remembered flipping through the folder early on, looking for something to use as leverage: suspicious pay-offs, nursing home bills, school fees for a relative, basically anything that would show a weakness or person Black Steel wasn't willing to have dragged into his mess. She hadn't found anything then, and Officer Martinez hadn't found anything either to give them a lead. But maybe he'd missed something._

 _She started shuffling through the pages, adjusting her mindset to view the big picture, looking for similarities quickly over lots of information. It was a skill she'd worked hard to perfect and what had made her the best at what she did._

 _It took a few minutes, but a pattern began to emerge. She started pulling specific receipts from the pile, her stack growing steadily until she'd gone through everything. She flipped through again, just to be sure and tossed the file aside, eyes glittering as she spread the dozen or so pages she'd spotted across the desk in front of her. There was plenty of room with her various office supplies and knick-knacks laying broken near the wall._

 _They were food receipts, grease-stained and crumpled, but glaringly similar. She didn't know how Martinez had missed it. True, they were mixed in and often under other receipts, and they were badly made photocopies, but anyone with a good set of eyes would have noticed them._

 _All of their victims had frequented the same diner. So had Black Steel!_

 _And crazier still, she'd been there. Some of the guys had treated her the first night she'd arrived in Chicago when she'd asked for a recommendation._

 _How had no one realized it yet? The diner was the only thing all the victims had in common! She'd just found their serial killer's hunting ground! And all the receipts were from between five and seven in the evening!_

 _She looked up at the clock on the wall._

 _Adrenaline shot through her as she flew from her seat, scattering the papers with her blazer as she flung it over her shoulders._

 _Black Steel might have given them the slip, but she knew where he was going to be! This was their chance, and there wasn't a moment to lose! His next victim could already be dead!_

* * *

Gajeel tried Levy's phone again and growled as it went to voicemail. She never seemed to be available outside of work hours lately, and when she finally came into work, her eyes had dark circles under them. She'd even taking to sleeping over at the dragon lady's house. He suspected...no, he was damn sure she wasn't doing any sleeping at all, just using the time to continue her completely ridiculous 'search for the truth'. Gajeel muttered incomprehensibly (about shrimps who didn't take care of themselves) to himself and slammed his cell back into the drawer where he kept it during work hours he didn't want to be disturbed.

"Something up, bossman?" Erik asked, as he closed the door behind their last customer of the night. "Ya look like you could use one helluva drink."

"Yeah, or five…" Gajeel grumbled back, leaning on the counter next to the register.

"Well, as long as we aren't leaving Magnolia, I'm free to go anywhere you please," Erik joked. "Invite my parole officer and I'm pretty sure we could go as far as Crocus without much trouble…"

Gajeel snorted briefly. "Yeah, while that sounds like a _great_ way to spend a night, I think I'll pass this time. The shrimp is making me twitchy. Knowing her, that means tonights probably the worst time ever for a road trip."

Erik cocked an eyebrow as he grabbed the broom, sweeping up the leaves tracked in by their clients all day. "What do you mean? Is Little Blue sending you erotic poetry again? Because while that was hilarious, I really don't want to hear about it…"

"I _wish_ it was that simple. No...it's just a feeling. She's getting impatient and antsy...can't sit still for long. Plus, she hasn't slept well in at least a week by how dried out my eyes are. Combine those and she's gonna make a shitty decision nine times out of ten. I'm starting to learn it's just easier to track her down when she's like this instead of waiting for a call and running like hell to get there in time."

"Hmmm. Yeah, that definitely doesn't sound good."

"No shit. It's driving me crazy. And she's not picking up her phone. So I'm just gonna stay at her apartment tonight. Hopefully she'll go back there before...well...whatever she's bound to think up."

"You want some company? I've been itching to practice my poker face." Erik put on a massive fake smile, placing a hand on his chin to better frame the goofy look he was displaying.

"Only if we don't play for cash. I pay you enough as it is," Gajeel retorted sarcastically. His body relaxed at the suggestion though. He had been dreading the inevitable wait alone. He didn't know how he did it, but somehow Erik always cut right to the heart of his weaknesses. It made him glad to be on his good side. It was a scary talent for an enemy to have.

"What?" the insightful redhead asked a little too innocently. "Like little ol' me would cheat you out of your hard-earned cash? Never! I always play a nice clean game of cards! Don't believe everything you hear! It's just that I have the luck of the Irish on my side!"

"Whatever. If you're Irish, I'm Japanese."

"Are you? Huh, who knew…"

"Shut up and grab your bag if yer comin'." Gajeel gestured to the door he held open as he flipped off the lights. Erik just grinned, grabbed his bag and zipped past him with a little salute.

"Aye, aye mon capitaine!"

* * *

 _Past Levy, AKA The Blue Inquisitor, paused on the sidewalk opposite the diner to catch her breath. The last thing she wanted was to draw extra attention to herself. Quickly surveying the area, she found a narrow gap between a couple of buildings and tucked herself into it, affording herself a decent view of both the front and side exits of the diner._

 _She didn't have to wait long. She had just hung up from her (admittedly belated) call for backup when she saw a woman exit the diner, look around with a drunken grin and stumble around the back of the building. Only moments later, a familiar hulking figure followed her out, also glancing around before heading for the same back alley._

 _She was out of time. Black Steel was making his move, and her backup wouldn't make it for at least another ten minutes...but she had no choice. That woman was in grave danger!_

 _Throwing caution to the wind, she darted from her hiding spot, unholstering her standard SIG-Sauer P228 pistol as she ran. She got to the corner of the building and glanced around it. The stench of trash and rotting food in the alley made the air almost unbreathable. She stifled the urge to cough and tried to see what was going on in the pitch blackness. If there was ever a streetlight illuminating this particular patch of scorched earth, it had long been snuffed out. The darkness seemed to muffle the noises of the night, but she could hear gruff words and scuffling movement happening further down the narrow passage._

 _She couldn't see more than a few feet into the darkness in front of her. Her feet froze to the ground in terror._

 _Anything could happen in that alleyway. For once, her exemplary imagination worked against her favor, illuminating all of the ways this situation could go badly. For everyone involved._

 _Mere moments felt like hours as she stood there with her mind doing battle against her body. Her eyes threatened to leak frustrated tears as she struggled to make her decision._

 _Then, she heard it: a woman's cry, muffled by something, but brimming with fear and pain. She couldn't wait any more. This was happening now._

 _She turned the corner and raised her gun, moving forward as quickly and quietly as she could in the almost absolute darkness. She felt like she was descending into hell._

 _Tears cleaned tracks down her cheeks as her gun trembled in her hands and her eyes steadily adjusted to the darkness._

 _Trash cans held shut by straining chains lined the alleyway, eventually giving way to stacked bags that buzzed with flies. The garbage collectors' strike had started a week ago and showed little sign of being resolved. Chicago lay under a cloud of foul odor made stronger by the summer heat, but that alley was a whole new level of disgusting._

 _Still, she pushed forward, half hoping the murderer was already gone and hating herself for it._

 _Then the shape she'd been praying not to find separated itself from the darkness in front of her._

 _Amid the heaping refuse at her feet, an unforgettable image was burned into her sight: the mutilated body of a young woman, painted with her own blood and bloated with the heat._

 _She was already too late. Guilt formed a heavy knot that filled her stomach with acid._

 _But she didn't have time to give into it._

 _Deeper in the alley, she saw the tall outline of a man, but couldn't make out his features._

 _Her knees betrayed her, quaking with fear as the vaguely familiar shape sidled cautiously towards her down the dark passage. Her heart was in her throat, choking her. She drew in a breath and coughed at the putrid air that lay stagnant over most of the city. She struggled to keep her watering eyes on the threat, falling back on her academy training to keep her planted where she was when her instincts were yelling at her to run. It was a close battle, helped only by the solid feel of steel against her palm._

 _The dark shadow lurched forward and she reacted in an instant, pulling the trigger on her weapon._

 _The shot went wild, but seemed to spur the dark shadow on, as he staggered towards her faster than before. She searched for her voice and barely found it._

" _H-h-hey! St-stop right there! FBI! Don't come any closer or I'll shoot!"_

 _The hulking figure stopped, swaying on his feet. Was there something wrong with him? Had his latest victim managed to wound him maybe? Could she be that lucky?_

 _Then a voice, one she recognized, choked out a response, "So yer gonna kill_ me _now? What a joke...what a fucking sick joke…huh? That? You bastard...you fucking bastard..."_

 _His words didn't make much sense. He didn't ever seem to be talking to her and she couldn't see what he thought was so funny. But, when Black Steel reached for his chest, probably to a pocket or holster she stopped caring. He struggled with something before his hand came away with a knife that glinted in the darkness, wet with blood._

" _Here, little FBI bitch...just take…hey!" With those words he lurched forward again and she panicked._

 _This time her shots range true, colliding with the man's chest over and over. He didn't fall and she didn't stop firing until her whole clip was in his chest. It was finally the sound of his heavy body falling with a splash into the gutter water that stopped her finger from pulling the trigger on her now empty gun, lowering it._

 _But, as though he'd never fallen, the dark outline of another man stood where the notorious gang leader had._

 _Her mouth went bone dry and she struggled to swallow, the stench combining with her fear to send tears cascading silently over her cheeks. Had anything about the murders even suggested an accomplice? Why hadn't she saved just one more godsdamned bullet?! She raised her gun anyway, hoping like mad he didn't know she was defenseless._

 _For one horrific moment she and the man stood there in silence staring at one another._

 _And, without any other evidence but his poised silence, she came swiftly to the realization that she'd killed the wrong man. This unassuming figure, little less than a foot shorter than Black Steel had been, casually holding a knife in one hand, hat pulled down over his eyes, was without a doubt the Ripper they'd been hunting. She could feel his bloodlust just looking at him; no anger, just the desire to kill for the sake of killing._

 _She held her breath, waiting for him to come for her, but he stood immobile, face concealed by the darkness even though her eyes had adjusted enough to see him casually flip his grip on the handle of the knife multiple times. A nervous tick? No...more likely just a familiar habit. Something about the gesture was familiar, but she couldn't have said what._

 _Seconds stretched to minutes as they both waited on the other. For her, she waited to meet her death, for him...she couldn't say. Prolonging the sick anticipation, maybe?_

 _Until, as with all surreal bubbles of frozen time, the moment was popped by the sound of approaching police sirens. She gasped, realizing her long awaited backup had arrived, but only had enough time to draw a single breath before he was on her, his knife wedged neatly between two of her ribs, his other hand holding her close, like a lover. Her gun hit the ground with a clatter, as useless there as it had been in her hand._

 _With some sort of sick fascination or curiosity, she clawed her way out of her shock just long enough to tilt her head up and see the face of her murderer._

 _Present Levy was just as numb with shock. Of all the people...what kind of sick joke was the universe playing on them all? She barely noticed her words echoed those of the man who she had just killed. By a sick twist of fate, the soulmate she had just killed. The shock barely covered up the whistling black hole of horror sucking away the feelings concerning what her past self had done._

 _The red-haired Latino man smiling sedately down at her seemed resigned as he slowly lowered her numb body next to her soulmate's. "I liked you, you know. It's really a shame you didn't just run when you had the chance. I gave you ample time, you know. Instead, I've had to destroy something as intriguing as you. Who knows what you could have achieved. Oh well...no use crying over spilled milk."_

 _With a lot of effort, Past Levy gasped for breath and struggled to form words, which she forced through her cold, uncooperative lips, "Martinez?...how could you? Why..."_

" _How? Easily. Why? Because I can. And no one has stopped me. Yet," he replied casually, as though they were discussing the weather over a cup of coffee. "Honestly, there was a part of me that was sort of hoping you'd be the one to figure it all out. You and that amazing brain of yours. But, as usual, I am once again disappointed."_

 _He squatted next to her, carefully placing her gun back into her hand, wrapping her finger around the trigger again._

 _She coughed on the blood flooding her windpipe from her lungs, choking on the lack of air. But she persevered anyway, fighting to leave him with at least a troubling thought. "You'll pay...they'll...figure it out...you…"_

 _Her vision went darker around the edges as his laughter echoed quietly around her._

" _Nah, I really don't think they will."_

 _It was only for a brief moment, but right before everything went black, she saw another face join Erik's. His eyes were as black as his hair, but his smiling face mirrored Erik's perfectly. He reached out to touch her face and she instinctively flinched away._

 _Everything about him had reeked of Death._

* * *

 **And with that, I'm officially BACK! Hope you enjoyed the conclusion to Levy's long-awaited search for the truth behind her black aura. Next chapter (which, yes, is already started! See, I really am back! I didn't lie!) will deal with the aftermath of that and explore the next step for everyone. For those wondering, no, I'm not just going to write smut galore for Nalu now. It was just something fun I really wanted to do for this chapter. From here on out, there are going to be some time skips and an actual move to finish this bad boy up with a bang! So, stay tuned!**

 **And now, for your regularly scheduled educational programming and credit for the snippets that came from viewers like you:**

" **War and Peace hadn't broken her. Moby Dick hadn't broken her. And James Joyce's complete lack of regard for his reader's sanity in Ulysses hadn't broken her, dammit!"** -I've referenced three of the most frustrating books I've ever tried to read here: War and Peace by Leo Tolstoy, Moby Dick by Herman Melville, and Ulysses by James Joyce. War and Peace is actually quite good, but, honestly, I could never in good conscience recommend the other two. Jame Joyce deserves to be put in a room for creating that dizzying monstrosity.

 **Strigil** -metal, hook-shaped tool used for cleaning one's self in ancient Greek and Roman times. Before soap was invented, scented oils were poured over the skin and then scraped off with the dirt and sweat in order to cleanse the skin, usually before bathing. They were mostly used by the men, who tended to get sweatier/dirtier due to manual labor, fighting, etc. But, since Artemisia leads a navy of her own and takes on those tasks suited to a man of the time, I figured she'd avail herself of their bathing techniques too.

 **dalcop** -'cop' is an old English word for the head, making a dalcop (literally a "dull-head") a particularly stupid person. You can also be a harecop, or a "hare-brained" person.

' **Horniness waits for no door'** -an AWESOME turn of phrase gifted to me by they . call . me . bridge . that I HAD to use. Thank you again for that!

 **SIG-Sauer P228** -standard issue FBI sidearm between 1992 and 1998. I'm going for about 1998 here, if anyone is trying to keep track of the flashbacks


	52. The Night Our Feelings Intersect

**I'm back...blahblahblah...excuses involving the holidays, blahblahblah, not dead, blahblahblah...**

 **We've got to stop meeting like this...**

 **Anyway, here's a new chapter! That's all you care about anyway right? lol.**

 **Enjoy!**

* * *

Levy came back to herself gasping for air against the phantom fluid in her throat. Her mouth tasted of blood that wasn't there and her ribs ached with the memory of steel where it shouldn't be. She felt like Alice coming back from Wonderland, opening her eyes from a different world, only to feel stranger there than in the fantasy. Or, more so like she was drowning in her own blood. She hacked and coughed until her eyes watered and a glass of water was pressed into her hand. Only then did she realize a warm, steady hand supported her back and a soft voice was murmuring comforting...er, insults?

"...foolish idiot of a child going in too far and risking too damn much. Damn foolish brat-"

"Porly?" Levy whispered through her raw throat, cracking her watering eyes enough to see a blurry rendition of the elderly pinkette's living room. She blinked, puzzled, before she remembered where she was...

...and the significance of what she had just seen. Horror crept up her throat from the pit of her stomach like icy fingers.

"Are you satisfied now, you brat? Have you found the oh-so-important truth you were searching for? Because you look like you've been through hell! Heck, for all I know, you _have_ been! Did you know your heart stopped? It just, stopped! What have you seen? What did you _do?!_ That shouldn't even be possible! We'll be lucky if that beast of a man that follows you around doesn't break down my door! He doesn't know where I live does he? Your cell has been vibrating off your hip, so you better give him a call and keep him from doing any property damage or so help me gods…"

Porly trailed off when she took the time to really look at Levy's face. Tears streamed down her cheeks as she stared blindly at the air in front of her. It was obvious that something was very...broken behind her wide brown eyes. Reluctantly, Porlyusica wrapped her arms around the girl and gave her what could only be described as a hug. Levy didn't even seem to notice.

So much for Porly's first hug to another human being in five years.

After a few minutes, the pinkette pulled away, uneasy and slightly unnerved by the blunette's uncharacteristic silence. "I need to call my sister and see if she can come check you out. You were basically _dead_ for a moment...can I call someone to come get you? Gajeel?" If Levy were aware of her surroundings, she might have been surprised that the pinkette even remembered his name. She certainly never used it.

But, for the first time, Levy did react to something she said. However, it was definitely not the reaction she was hoping for. The blunette's eyes cut to her in panic and she barely shook her head, even that motion abbreviated. Her whole little body was so tensed up, it was a miracle she managed that amount of movement even, her eyes pleading like a child's: afraid of the consequences awaiting her. Not for the first time, Porlyusica wondered what she could have possibly witnessed.

"Ok, not him. I get it. How about the blonde one? Lucy?"

Levy's shoulders dropped and the panic faded from her eyes, which Porly took as consent, shaking the blunette slightly to prompt her to unlock her phone so she could find the number.

Just as Porly finished her call with Lucy, who was thankfully on her way, the phone in her hand rang and, seeing who it was, she answered. Well, she tried. She didn't really have time to say anything before a booming voice exploded from the phone.

"WHAT THE HELL HAPPENED?! WHERE ARE YOU?! WHY HAVEN'T YOU ANSWERED YOUR PHONE!?"

"Levy is not available to speak right now."

"...where the hell is Levy, you hag? Your place? Where the hell is your house? Don't fucking touch her until I-"

Which was roughly when Porlyusica hit her limit:

"LIKE HELL YOU WILL! Don't you DARE come near her, you brat! She doesn't want to see you right now, so stay away from here or I'll have you hauled off my property by the cops! You hear me? Good."

She hung up without waiting for a response and tossed Levy's phone aside.

She was getting too old for this shit.

It took Lucy less than ten minutes to get from her apartment to Levy's side, Natsu right on her heels.

And wearing a t-shirt that was very obviously inside out.

Porlyusica tched her teeth and gestured at his shirt, criticism in her gaze. He rolled his eyes, but blushed slightly as he stripped it off to turn it right-side out. Porly's eyebrows rose into her hairline at the sight of his toned physique. Hadn't Levy said this guy was a _chemistry_ major?

"Levy-chan! Are you okay?! What happened?" The blonde knelt beside her friend, hands hovering around, but not quite touching her. Levy hadn't even bothered to look her way. The waves of dark emotion rolling off of her friend were making Lucy feel ill. The idea of intensifying the feeling by touching her was not something she was looking forward too, but the spunky blunette's lack of movement, or awareness of anything, was freaking her out even more. Finally, she steeled herself and reached out her hand to gingerly lay it between her best friend's tiny shoulder blades.

Immediately she was swamped by the distress and guilt raging through Levy. Horror, betrayal, panic, sadness...Lucy could hardly keep up with all of what she was feeling. She almost immediately drew her hand away again, fighting the urge to vomit.

"Oh Lev…" she whispered.

 _Fuck...it looks like she's seriously seen some shit…_ Natsu thought, squatting down next to Lucy and resting a reassuring arm around the back of her waist, squeezing for good measure. _She looks like Gray when he's been drinking._ A corresponding mental image of Gray popped into his head automatically. His icy counterpart could have been mistaken for another person. It was as though the cocky spark that usually lit up his eyes had died.

Lucy's eyes widened as she turned to Natsu in surprise. _**I've never seen Gray like that before…**_

 _Yeah, it's better if you never do._ His hand tightened on her waist. _What're we gonna do about her? What's she feeling?_

 _ **You really don't want to know. We need to get her home. And talk to Gajeel.**_

 _Can you help her? Like you did with me?_

Lucy bit her lip, uncertain. _**Maybe. I don't know. It just feels...different than with you. I'm not sure I can purge that kind of darkness...but I could maybe try…**_

She reached out and placed her hand on Levy's back again, not noticing Natsu's arm jerk as he suddenly felt a shadow of the violent miasma biting away at the little blunette. His vision spun as he was suddenly assaulted by flashes of memories, from his current life and those before, of bloody clashes and darkness. He swayed on his feet, his muscle memory's excellent balance the only thing keeping him from falling over.

Lucy frantically fought not to get lost in the darkness swamping the two most important people in her life. She closed her eyes in vain on the carnage in her head. Instead, she breathed deeply tried to summon the mental image of something that made her happy...and calm…

Instantly, the image of Levy's living room, full of books, the sun shining through the balcony door filtering through the dust in the air, took center stage; the particular happiness of being snuggled under a fluffy blanket with an afternoon of reading ahead of her. She added to that the memory of the peace she got after finishing writing a particularly difficult story and the fizzy joy of a satisfactory accomplishment. Then the treasured feeling of laying in Natsu's arms as they both drifted off to sleep each night.

The images stopped abruptly and Natsu fell back onto his butt at the abrupt change, hand still gripping Lucy's waist on reflex. He couldn't help staring in wonder at his girlfriend as he steadily felt the muscles in his own body relax little by little. The panic and worry he felt for Levy steadily faded, leaving him with the urge to stretch and purr like a cat. He could even feel the little hairs that had pricked up at the sudden _wrongness_ of what was going on inside Levy falling back to the surface of his skin. He shivered at the sensation.

Lucy gathered every peaceful memory she could think of and built a tiny bubble of calm around herself. Then, slowly, she started trying to push back the darkness in Levy with it. It didn't want to yield, and the harder she pushed, the harder it was to maintain the barrier of peace she'd erected. So she stopped pushing against the immovable darkness. Instead, she adjusted her attack, mentally blanketing the darkness in calm, smothering it, until it stopped roiling and snapping, settling into a steady fog of weary despair.

She slowly opened her eyes, fighting to keep the deep hopelessness from getting past her personal barriers. It wasn't ideal, but it was the best she could do for now.

Thankfully, it seemed to have done something. Natsu reached out just in time to catch Levy as her eyes fell closed and she slumped over, totally asleep.

Porly, who had watched the whole thing with more interest than she revealed, cleared her throat. "You've come a long way in a short time, brat."

Lucy blinked at the sound, losing her concentration and jumping a little. "Yeah...I guess. I think she'll be ok...for the moment, anyway." Her eyes sharpened as they turned on the elderly pinkette, the dreamy peace in them gone in a flash. "What happened to her? I thought you were supposed to be helping her do this _safely_!"

"It's not my fault that child didn't respect the barriers her own mind put up. She was determined to see what happened in the past life that tainted her soulmate's soul, and, from the looks of her, she found it. There's only so much I can do for you brats if you won't respect your own limits. You're all too stubborn for your own good."

Before they could discuss that or anything else any further, a deep blue-haired young woman burst through the door. "Porly! Where is...oh. There."

"What are _you_ doing here?" Natsu asked, immediately recognizing the blue-haired resident from the hospital, even without her scrubs on.

Dr. Wendy Marvell smiled soothingly at him. "Dr. Grand wasn't able to make it, so she called me to examine the patient. I assume, since you two are here, she's another of the soul-bonded ones, huh? What happened to her?"

While Lucy and Natsu engaged in a mental argument of whether it was ok to disclose Levy's status without asking her first, and Wendy began gently checking Levy's vital-signs, Porlyusica made the decision for them.

"Yeah, she's one of them. She's a troublesome brat, but she's a strong one. It would have taken quite a shock to put her in the state she's in. She suffered from cardiac arrest about twenty minutes ago. She was trying to get to a specific flashback of her previous life again."

Wendy's eye's went round and she checked Levy's pulse again automatically, reaching for her stethoscope. "Wait, so you guys can _see_ your past lives too? That's crazy. What _doesn't_ the soulbond do?" She seemed to be speaking more for her own benefit than actually asking, but Lucy bit down hard on her tongue to keep Natsu's mouth shut, mentally chewing his out for even thinking about spilling all the cool things he could do with their bond.

 _ **That's the last thing she needs to worry about right now! Let her focus on Levy.**_

 _Yeah, fine. Whatever,_ he finally agreed, but pinched her lightly on the ribs in retribution.

Lucy turned to give him a mildly murderous look, but quickly lost her composure and looked away with a blush as a wave of his adoration hit her like the business end of a sledge hammer right in the heart. _**You're so weird.**_

 _You're weirder, but I'm kiiiinda totally in love with you, so I guess you're stuck with me forever._

 _ **Sounds like a dream come true to me.**_

Lucy froze and panicked as she could hear is ego inflating at the automatic thought that had formed before she could stop it. _**Uh, I mean...shit. You didn't hear that. IGNORE THAT THOUGHT!**_

Lucy's face continued to get redder and redder as she fought to keep her thoughts under control and Natsu fought to keep from laughing out loud. For some reason, her thought had summoned a mental picture of some cartoon robot thing screaming "IGNORE ME!", her head appearing after a minute like it had been pasted onto the cartoon character.

Boys were so weird.

"Well, she seems to be fairly stable for now. Normally, I'd recommend taking her to the hospital for observation overnight, but considering your... _situation_ , I doubt you'd agree to that…" she trailed off, nodding to herself at the matching stubborn expressions on the couple in front of her. "Yeah, that's what I thought. Ok, well, I guess there's no helping it then. My next shift isn't until tomorrow evening, so I guess I can keep an eye on her. But, have any of you contacted her parents yet? They need to be informed."

Lucy shook her head. "I don't think we can get a hold of them right now. They're both off on this research trip thing and outside of cell service. I know Levy has someone she can contact in case of an emergency, but I have no idea who that is. We won't be able to ask her until she wakes up...and it was hard enough getting her to sleep, so I would really prefer not to wake her up for a while yet..."

Wendy nodded, stood up, and brushed the dust off the knees of her white jeans. "For now, then, we need to get her somewhere she can be comfortable and warm. Her body is still in quite a bit of shock, though it's stabilizing pretty well now that she's passed out. The body has a way of healing itself after all. Sleep is the best thing for her right now."

"Well, let's get her home then," Lucy said without hesitation, eyebrows coming together as she refocused on the problem at hand. "Natsu, carry her to the car."

"Uh, Luce, isn't this really more something Metal Face should be doing? Shouldn't we call and let him know what's happening? He's gotta be going nuts right now…" Despite his words, Natsu gently picked up the little blunette without much effort and got to his feet. _Although, compared to you, Luce, she weighs practically nothing._

Lucy suppressed the urge to kick him.

"I spoke to him already," the older (and definitely wiser) pinkette in the room cut in, briskly producing a blanket and tucking it around Levy as best she could while Natsu held her. "She didn't want to see him and I told him that, so don't go letting him see her. Whatever she saw, it definitely has to do with him and she needs time to work that out. For both their sakes, keep them apart until she's ready." A pang of worry went through her at the memory of Levy's uncharacteristically expressionless face. Somewhere along the line, Porly was surprised to find she'd grown rather protective of the little brat.

"Well, then her place is out. I think he's been sleeping there for a bit now," Lucy mumbled, biting her lip as she puzzled over their options. "I guess she could stay with me...but I doubt he'd fail to notice she was right across the hall, and I definitely don't have the capacity to keep him out. What about the frat? Don't you have an extra room or something she could stay in? That place is huge!" She turned to Natsu, her eyes lighting up. He resisted the urge to puff out his chest that she had turned to him first. It felt good to be relied upon.

"Sure. I mean, we probably shouldn't let her _fan club_ know that she'll be there, but they're pretty oblivious anyway, so it should be cool."

"Fan club?" Lucy quirked an eyebrow, a smile quirking the side of her mouth at the pride bursting out of him in tingly shocks as he tried to suppress it.

"Jet and Droy. And, well, half of Quattro Puppy's old members now too. Apparently her pranking abilities have raised her to fraternity-legend status. We had to make up a new rule for her and everything!" Natsu grinned fondly down at the unconscious woman in his arms. _She's got some epic skills!_

 _ **Oh gods, that's just what she needs...**_ **more** _**encouragement. Don't you dare tell her any of this! I'm still finding catnip hidden in places no cat should ever go!**_

 _Catnip? Huh, that would explain why Happy keeps ending up your apartment…_

 _ **Wait...he's still coming to my apartment? WHEN?!**_

 _Uh...nevermind...I TOTALLY haven't had to drag him back home at ALL this week…_

 _ **When were you in my apartment without me?**_

 _You know...just...every so often. You have a very extensive collection of lingerie, by the way. And I've barely seen you wear half of it! Such a waste..._

 _ **NOW YOU'RE NOT EVEN**_ **TRYING** _**TO FEEL GUILTY, YOU PERVERT!**_

Their mental argument continued in this manner as they smuggled Levy and Wendy into Fairy Tail fraternity, ninja-style, got them settled into a vacant room, and retreated back to Natsu's room.

Where Gray had plastered Natsu's side of the room in promotional posters for _Olaf's Frozen Adventure_. Apparently Frozen had spinoff movies. Who knew?

After that, Lucy was too busy trying to convince Natsu that lighting everything in Gray's closet on fire was not the 'best payback ever' to worry about when Levy would wake up. Or what they would do when she did.

* * *

Meanwhile, Gajeel was losing his fucking mind.

At least, that was Erik's professional assessment of the situation. And hell, if an ex-member of Jellal's gang of nutso freaks couldn't smell crazy from a mile away, then he just wasn't trying.

So, after watching Gajeel lay down his cards and say 'hit-me' for the fifth time during their _poker_ game, Erik just started dealing blackjack instead.

The guy was seriously wrecked, and it showed. It looked like the tangled knot of this thoughts had burst out of his head through his scalp, leaving behind a fried mane of hair that was slowly trying to consume his head. And if the face inside that nest of madness wasn't locked into a permanent scowl for the rest of his life, it wasn't from lack of trying.

"Eat," Erik ordered impassively, nudging a greasy, half-empty box of pizza across the floor with his foot. Gajeel had settled into the corner of Levy's bedroom almost six hours before and flat-out refused to relocate. So, Erik had followed, with cards and pizza: the go-to food of the lazy and broken-hearted.

Gajeel mechanically opened the pizza box and picked up a slice, but seemed to forget he was holding it before he could get it to his mouth. So, he just sat there, staring at the cards laid out in front of him, holding the pizza in midair as the pointy end of the slice drooped lower and lower.

"Eeeeeat," Erik intoned again, this time lifting Gajeel's hand to his mouth for him, earning him a dirty look. That little glimmer was the most emotion the big man had shown all night.

"Shuddup. I'm just not hungry," Gajeel growled, but still took a bite. Before he knew it the piece was gone and he was halfway through another.

"Uh, yeah. Sure. Whatever you say, almighty bossman." Erik relaxed a little. He was itching to ask about Levy again, but that had not gone so well the last time...for him or for Levy's wall. He glanced at the Gajeel's-hand-shaped-hole in the wall next to him and grimaced. Thank the gods they hadn't been at the shop with a crowbar in reaching distance when he'd breached the subject…

"Just...shut up." The noirette seemed to grow a foot in height as he straightened his shoulders from where he'd spent the last few hours hunched over, the crackle and pop of his back and neck piercing the otherwise stagnant air. "We got any more pizza?" He tossed the now empty box out of the way.

"I'll order some." Erik got off his semi-numb ass and headed for the door of the bedroom, stretching out his own weary bones as he went. Being supportive was surprisingly draining. "I'll just...get some air while I'm at it. Pepperoni good?" He assumed it was from the noncommittal grunt he received in response.

Whatever. Gajeel didn't really care about the pizza anyway.

The redhead exited the room casually, and then swiftly made his way to the balcony, closing the door securely behind him before whipping out his phone and trying Levy's number. Sure, she hadn't picked up the first six times he'd tried, but he'd always found seven to be his lucky number.

As it rang, he tried to think of what the hell could be going on. All Gajeel would tell him was that Levy didn't want to see him. And that he hadn't done anything wrong. Any further enquiries on his end had resulted in violent attacks to the drywall. There was no way they could have broken up...they were soulmates...right?

"Hello?" The voice on the phone startled Erik so much he almost dropped his phone off the balcony. But it wasn't Little Blue's perky tones.

"Uh...hi? I'm trying to get ahold of Levy…" he replied awkwardly, glancing over his shoulder to make sure Gajeel hadn't left the bedroom and overheard him at all.

"She's not available. Please stop calli-"

"Wait! Please don't hang up! I'm a friend of Gajeel's and I just need to know what's going on, okay!? He's out of his mind over here and I'm not far behind. Is Levy okay? What the HELL is going ON?!" Erik surprised himself as his voice got louder and louder. Yelling was definitely not his style. But the whole situation had him on edge.

" _Is this the Erik that works at the tattoo place?"_ The girl's voice seemed a little less defensive than it had a moment before.

"Yeah, that's me. Who the fuck is this?"

" _It's Lucy. Natsu's girlfriend. We met at that meeting that time I think? Listen, I'm sorry. I can't tell you where Levy is, because you'd tell Gajeel and he'd go to her. And she's...not doing so great at the moment. Do you remember how she was trying to figure out what they did in their past life to taint her soul?"_

"Oh yeah. I know more about that than I ever wanted to. Gajeel has been pissed about that for weeks. Loudly."

" _Well, we're pretty sure she saw it. And it was bad. Really,_ really _bad. She basically went into shock. And her heart stopped for a bit. But, physically she's okay now! I mean...I think I was able to help a little with what's going on in her head too, but she's asleep now."_

"So, why can't Gajeel see her? I'm confused."

" _Apparently she freaked out a bit just hearing his name. I don't know what she saw...but with how the flashbacks work, Gajeel's past-self pretty much had to be there too. Until she wakes up and can decide for herself, she's off-limits. Or she could get worse, according to the old lady."_

"Well, shit." Erik turned back around to look through the glass doors, gaze shifting over the stacked books to the open doorway of her bedroom, where Gajeel was slowly circling the drain of sanity.

" _Yeah, that pretty much sums it up."_

* * *

Gray had lost track of the number of nights it had been since he'd slept in his own bed.

It's not like it was all _that_ unusual an occurrence for him, having spent most of his college life hopping beds, but this was a new record. And ironically had nothing to do with getting laid.

Well, with him getting laid anyway.

His skin crawled as he laid his hand on the doorknob to let himself into his room and heard the telltale giggle heralding the fact Lucy was in their room and probably spending the night. Again.

It's not like he didn't get it. Fuck, if he had a soulmate, (especially one as hot as that) he'd probably be bending her over every surface he could find too. But there was a fucking line. And Natsu was doing a motherfucking _jig_ on the wrong side of it and flipping him off with a grin as he did. Gray couldn't even sleep in his fucking _car_ now, thanks to that asshole.

If Lucy wasn't paying to have every inch of the vehicle detailed, he would have just set the damn thing on fire. Or pushed it off a cliff, because Natsu would enjoy seeing his car as a blazing inferno too damn much. Rather like he'd enjoyed announcing to Gray just how many times they'd fucked all over his car...and bed.

Which reminded him, he really had to buy new sheets at some point. And maybe a mattress. Fuck...how much did mattresses even cost?

But, in the meantime, he had to find somewhere else to sleep. He sighed, pulling out his phone and scrolling through his contacts.

He'd stayed on Lisanna's shitty futon for the last couple of nights, but apparently she had a date with Yukino tonight, and while _he_ wouldn't turn down getting in on that kind of action (because what single guy turned down a threesome with their hot lesbian friend and equally hot sort-of-ex-first-date-only-girlfriend? A dead man, that's who), he was 98% certain she would not be cool with him staying another night. So, he was back to looking for other options.

He scrolled past a dozen or so girls who he knew would take him in for the night and considered calling one of them...but there were expectations there, and he _was_ legitimately still trying the whole dating (and hopefully soulmate) thing, so he was at least _attempting_ to stay away from temptation (minus the miracle of a possible threesome. Because...again...single and not dead), so he mentally crossed them off too. Having exhausted his usual options, he put his phone back in his pocket and glanced around in frustration.

He wandered into the kitchen, waved away Elfman's offer to play Quarters in the dining room, grabbed a bag of Doritos and an apple, and wandered back into the entry hall.

Which is when he remembered the empty rooms on the second floor of Fairy Tail, as though it was an epiphany from the gods. He immediately redirected his feet to the staircase.

If the gods had any mercy, he would have a good night of sleep on a real fucking mattress for a change. And if someone had done elicit things on said mattress, at least he didn't know about it.

* * *

Wendy's stomach growled again and she stared longingly at the scuffed-up door across the room. How the hell did she get herself into these situations?

Well, she knew the answer to that: she was too nice. Sky and Porly told her that all the time. But, wasn't that part of being a doctor? She had taken an oath to help the people she could help, so she did.

Buuuuuut, sometimes she really regretted it.

Like now. For instance.

Because she was supposed to be hiding with Levy (from some sort of stalkers that lived in the fraternity house they'd hidden her in? Or girls weren't allowed or something? Wendy still wasn't super clear on the situation there...) and monitoring her vitals (to make sure she didn't suddenly go into cardiac arrest...again), but all she could think about was how she hadn't had anything to eat in WAY TOO MANY HOURS. Because she'd been too stupid to bring her phone with her, or stop for snacks on the way. Hell, even her cat was getting a better dinner tonight since Porly was going over to feed her, which meant she'd get spoiled like crazy. That woman had always loved cats more than people.

So, it was as Wendy sat in the dark with an unconscious college student, listening to her stomach growl and cursing herself for not being more forward-thinking, that her salvation arrived in the form of a surprised, sleep-deprived noirette with a bag of chips and a half-eaten piece of fruit.

"Oh, uh, sorry? I didn't know anyone was in...here…" Gray trailed off as he got a good look at the dark room he'd assumed was empty. Fairy Tail was a pretty odd place, even for a fraternity, but he was pretty sure they weren't housing any girls...at the moment.

Then he saw who was passed out on the bed, a blood pressure cuff looped around one arm, next to a table full of other portable medical devices. "Shit, what's Levy doing here? Who are you? What are you doing to her?!" He stepped into the room and slammed the door not-so-softly behind him, causing Wendy to jump.

She held a finger to her lips, eyes wide. But it was too late. Levy was already gasping awake, sitting up abruptly with wide panicked eyes. She gasped a few more breaths, glancing side to side without seeming to see the room or the other people in it. Wendy immediately reached out an arm to comfort her, but had it slapped away. Gray reassessed the situation and decided the strange blue-haired woman was probably not stealing Levy's blood for experiments or performing weird tests on her, or any of the other explanations his brain had supplied. She seemed genuinely concerned for the other girl. So, he jumped on the calm-down-Levy train instead.

"Whoa, chill Levy, you're okay," Gray supplied, glancing at the blue-haired girl for confirmation automatically. She gave him an enthusiastic nod and directed her attention back to Levy.

"That's right. You're just fine. Take deep breaths Levy. That's it. I'm Dr. Wendy Marvell. I don't know if Lucy has told you about me, but I work at Magnolia General. You had an episode during a flashback and your heart stopped, sending you into shock." _Probably,_ Wendy added to herself. From what she'd heard it actually seemed to have more to do with what her patient had seen, but it clearly wasn't a great idea to bring _that_ up again. "I'm here to keep an eye on you as a favor to Porly. How are you feeling?"

As Wendy spoke, Gray watched Levy go from panicked, to confused, to well...nothing. It was eery how completely the emotion seemed to drain from her face. He could almost hear her heart freezing up as she carefully shut down all feeling. His own squeezed in response as he recognized what she was doing.

Gray was all too familiar with the desperate need to just...stop feeling. Connecting the dots of what he knew she'd been trying to do, he came to a swift conclusion and acted on it. Years of being Natsu's keeper had given him a trigger response time in tight spots and emergency situations.

"Dr...uh, Wendy, can you give us a minute?" Gray said abruptly, his words coming out harsher than he intended.

The blunette looked back and forth between Levy and the newcomer who clearly knew her patient. She was torn. They might know each other, but she wasn't sure if that merited her leaving Levy in his care. Plus, she still didn't really have anywhere else to go... "Well, um...if it's okay with Levy, I guess that's alright. But, where exactly would you like me to go? I'm kind of not supposed to be here, I think? Something about stalkers?"

Gray crooked an eyebrow at her. "Let me guess, Natsu and Lucy smuggled you in here? Like it was some sort of secret mission?"

Wendy nodded, her stomach growling audibly with impeccable timing in the dark room.

Gray groaned and shoved his bag of chips at her. "They're just really over-dramatic. You're fine. Here, take these and just step out into the hall for a bit. No one's going to blink if they see a random woman sitting around in the house, even this late. You're welcome to hit the kitchen too if you're still hungry. Just tell anyone who asks that you're visiting Gray and don't mention Levy." He paused, looking back at the blunette in question. "I'm not sure how long this is going to take."

Wendy followed his gaze, noticing Levy's eyes avoiding them both. "Okay...I don't know if I'm feeling up to braving the kitchen, but I could definitely use a snack. I'll be right outside if you need anything okay, Levy?" She waited until the blunette nodded infinitesimally before she left the room, the sound of her opening the chip bag abruptly cut off by the door closing behind her.

Gray took a seat in the beat up rolling desk chair the doc had vacated. He could see why Natsu had chosen to hide them away in this room. It was one of the only empty ones that still had a bed on the floor, the wooden loft platform above shoved full of random boxes for storage instead.

He leaned back in the chair, fingers already unbuttoning the front of his shirt without him really noticing. Levy didn't seem to notice, still staring into nothingness. He gave her another minute of room or so before he leaned forward and smacked her lightly on the back of the head.

Her eyes shot to him, the faint fire of irritation flaming up in them.

"Oh, yeah, hey." He gave her a sarcastic little wave. "Thanks for finally looking at me. Nice to see you again too."

She ducked her head for a moment, and when she looked up at him again, the dead stare had returned, all glimpse of fire extinguished. "What do you want Gray?"

"For starters, it'd be nice to know what the hell is going on with you..." He shifted in his chair again, shrugging his shirt off and hanging it over the back of his chair before crossing his well-toned forearms over his chest. Dealing with other people's feelings always made him twitchy.

If Levy had been herself, she would have made sure to enjoy the view and made mental notes to fangirl with Lucy later. Gray's stripping habit was a source of unending amusement for them. But, as it was, she barely even noticed his shirtlessness, averting her eyes to less accusing parts of the room. Like her lap.

"The doc just told you, didn't she? That's as much as I know too-"

"Bullshit. What did you see, Levy?"

His cold gaze bore into Levy, sending an icy chill running down her spine. Stubbornly, she pushed away the memories his words summoned, refusing to acknowledge them.

Which worked about as well as it always did; that is, not at all. The minute the thought occurred to her, the images of Gajeel getting shot and falling to the refuse-covered ground in front of her resurfaced. The feel of Erik's warm breath on her ear as he taunted her. The cold of her blood draining from her body. She started to shiver as her jaw clenched and her eyes shut tight, desperately trying to keep herself from losing it. She drew her knees to her chest for something to latch onto and desperately tried to stop shaking, but couldn't.

It was almost humorously ineffectual. If she couldn't even control her stupid body, how could she possibly get a handle on the horrific thoughts swimming in her head? She didn't know how to deal with this; Levy had never been betrayed by her mind before (sure, her body pretty much every gym class she'd ever been forced to attend, but never her mind). For perhaps the first time in her life, she doubted her life's philosophy.

Maybe, sometimes, more knowledge _wasn't_ , in fact, a good thing. Not when it haunted you and replayed over and over until you could hardly breathe-

The hyper-real sensation of a warm hand on her head jerked her out of the cycle of her thoughts. She looked up, tears welled in her eyes, to see Gray sitting on the bed in front of her, eyes shadowed as he left his hand resting in her blue curls. She hadn't even noticed him moving.

"You can't keep it inside. It's not a viable option. If you don't get it out, you won't be able to focus on anything else." He lifted his head then, and it was the kind, all-too-understanding look in his eyes that finally cracked the remnants of the eggshell-thin wall she'd built to protect herself from...everything.

Tears ran down her face and a sob ripped from her throat before she could stop it. She pulled her legs closer and wailed like a child, letting the despair and guilt she'd kept barely at bay fill her up again as the tears just kept on coming.

Gray didn't move. He just sat there, his hand resting gently on her head, waiting. Levy was glad. She didn't know if she could have dealt with anything more. She felt like an open nerve, completely unprotected from the nasty reality of the world and completely without the safe, comfortable cushion of imagination that usually kept the harsher truths at bay for her. It hurt so much that the only response she could muster was to just keep sobbing out her pain.

At one point, Wendy peeked her head into the room, but at a head shake from Gray left again. The look in his eyes reminded Wendy a little bit of her attending surgeons: completely in control of the situation, despite appearances. Not for the first time, she wondered how such an unusual group of kids had been brought together under such bizarre circumstances.

Eventually, Levy's sobs died down and she was reduced to sniffles, wiping her nose on the sleeve of her sweater. "How...how did you know?"

Gray sat back, ruffling her hair before lifting away his hand. "What? That you saw something that broke you?" His sigh was rich with context she couldn't seem to interpret. "Personal experience." He met her eyes as they just stared warily at each other for a while. Levy was the first to break, looking away again. Gray sighed again and ran a hand through his hair, leaving spikes in its wake. "So, I assume what you saw was in one of your flashbacks, right?"

Levy nodded, wiping her nose again on her sleeve. "Yeah. I finally got what I wanted. I know why his...that is, _my_ soul is tainted."

"So…" Gray ventured, trying to remember the specifics of what she'd been running herself ragged over. Honestly, he had only been half-listening the dozen or so times Lucy had used him as a sounding board for her worries over the blunette's quest for the truth. Still, he got the gist of it. "Gajeel ended up being the serial killer or whatever then?"

"No!" Her sudden vehement reaction shocked him. "No, it's not his fault at all! It's all me! I'm…" Tears dripped down her cheeks again, stinging where they met skin rubbed raw. "I'm the one to blame. I killed him….I..killed...my own... _soulmate_. I thought he was the killer...and I just...shot him...but it wasn't...him!" She fought to keep her breathing even, fighting against more tears. Gray sat quietly while she did, but once she seemed to have a handle on herself, he spoke up again.

"Well, that sucks."

A burst of watery laughter escaped her before she realized what she was doing. Some of the tension melted away, her shoulders creeping back down away from her ears. "Yeah, I think that's a _bit_ of an understatement. I blackened my immortal soul. Probably _forever._ _Sucks_ doesn't really cover it."

"Hey, who said forever? I mean, it's not a _great_ thing to find out about your past life, but there are worse things you could do. You didn't plot to kill him, right? What do they call it? Premeditated? I can't see your soul intentionally setting out to kill anyone. Not really."

"No…" Levy agreed. And went on to describe in detail what she had seen. There were points when she had to stop, but Gray just waited silently until she managed to get them out, only once reaching out again to lay a hand on her head when she came to the part where she shot him. She got to the part about Erik and he sat up straighter in surprise, but stayed quiet, eyebrows shooting up. It wasn't every day you found out an acquaintance of yours was a serial killer in a past life. Or, like, any day really.

But, it was her description of the face that joined Erik's as her life came to an end that froze him to his core. He couldn't help but interrupt her.

"Did you say...gentle black eyes and an aura of pure death? Like...like everything around him withered and darkened? Like you couldn't remember what hope feels like just by being near him?"

Levy took a sharp intake of breath, pulling back suspiciously. "Yeah. That...that's exactly it. How…?"

"I've seen him. Or that. Or whatever you want to call it." He made an effort to relax his clenched muscles. Which mostly worked. "I don't know how much Natsu or Lucy have told you about my past. I don't like talking about it, so Natsu takes it on himself to tell everyone so they'll back the fuck off. Which is pretty much just classic dumbass Flame Brain; sticking his fist where it doesn't belong in some misguided effort to protect his friends." The complaint came out a little more fondly than he intended. Despite Natsu's current douchebaggery, he at least usually had good intentions.

"I know...some. You're a refugee, your parents were killed. You went through...something awful? That's how you met Natsu and Erza right? Therapy?"

"Yeah. When I was a kid, I watched my parents get killed in front of me and then almost froze to death hiding in what was left of our car. If it hadn't been for the little girl who found me and got help, I probably would have died."

Levy didn't say anything. A day ago, she would have been the first to offer empty platitudes, but now...she knew they were useless. "So, when did you see...Death?"

"One of the soldiers that killed my parents. He was a captain or something. Something powerful. Nothing about his appearance was all that different, except that just looking at him you knew he was in charge of everything around him. Everything else just faded into darkness if you looked at him for too long. At the time, I…" Gray wasn't surprised to feel the familiar catch in his throat as he fought to keep from losing himself in the memory. He fell back on the words he'd used over and over to describe the events, telling the story without living it; years of therapy to support him as he recounted his darkest hour. "He looked right at me and smiled. I thought I was dead, but then he and everyone else left. I was so scared I couldn't move. And by the time I could, I had realized there was nowhere I could go. It was like I was already dead. Until a random little girl found me and got help, I might as well have been. She found my cousin Lyon too. He's my only living family member now."

"That captain...and the face _I_ saw...he sounds like a reaper or something. Or the god of death himself. At least, based on the folk lore. After all, he came for me too. As I was dying." Levy's hand drifted to her side, instinctively checking to make sure there wasn't a knife sticking out of her ribs where she could still feel the ache. "Maybe you were meant to die that day. Maybe Death came for you. But something happened to stop him."

"Yeah...who knows? I try not to think about it too much. Dwelling on the past isn't going to help me stay positive in the future." Gray spoke the last sentence like he was reciting a line from a book. Levy quirked a brow and he snorted. "Yeah, I know, sounds weird coming out of my mouth, right? My therapist used to make me say it over and over. Well, her and Ur. Me and Lyon's adoptive mom is not someone you disobey more than once. Unless you want to contemplate your 'mistakes' outside in the snow in nothing but your underwear. Or in the walk-in freezer at the restaurant next door if it wasn't cold enough outside for her liking." He chuckled at the incredulous look on Levy's face. "Oh, I promise, we deserved it. We were little shits. But it kind of backfired on her after a while. Between Lyon's smart-ass mouth, Ultear's temper, and my tendency to hit anything that pissed me off, we spent most of the time outside together fighting each other instead of thinking about what we'd done wrong." Gray grinned at the memory, practically hearing the exasperated sigh Ur let out every time any of them talked about her failure to get her brood of kids to behave like disciplined children.

"Interesting...I can't imagine growing up like that," Levy said thoughtfully. She tilted her head, resting it wearily on her knee as she loosened her arms around her knees and settled into a more comfortable position. "My parents never scolded me. Even when I did stuff I wasn't supposed to, they called it a "learning experience" and sat me down to cross examine why I'd done whatever it was. By the time they'd asked me about it from ever angle, they never seemed to remember what it was I'd done to begin with. It's why I started pulling pranks in the first place. It was all just an experiment to see how far I could go before they actually got mad. I honestly can't remember any time when I managed it though. I guess that's kind of a weird way to grow up, huh? Parents and kid using each other like some sort of experiments… What were your real parents like? If you don't mind me asking..."

Gray tilted his head in thought for a moment. "They were...warm. I was still so young when.. _.that_ all happened. Most of my memories from then are pretty fuzzy. I just have impressions… My mom smiled a lot. Nothing like Ur that way, but somehow really similar to her too. My dad was really tall. I thought he was like a giant then. For a long time I thought that was why he called me 'Junior'. I didn't find out until later that they had really named me after him."

"I was actually wondering about that! Gray isn't a Croatian name is it? How did your dad get his name?" Levy inquired, propping her head up on her raised knees.

"Well, actually, my dad's name, er, _our_ name, is Siva. If you translate it into English it means Gray. It was really hard for me as a kid with everyone calling me by my father's name...well, they called me Silver instead, but it was close enough. It was like ripping the bandage off an open wound every time someone said it, so my therapist suggested I go by the English translation instead, so I became Gray. Well, that and Natsu kept making fun of me when Lyon called me Junior."

Levy's brow furrowed in confusion. "What's so weird about Junior?"

"Lyon used the Croatian word, which is Mlađi. You know Natsu and how shitty he is with names? Well, he thought it was 'Milady' and went around calling me that instead. The little shit thought it was _hilarious._ "

Levy let out a faint snort. "Yeah, I can see that all too well. He really loves nicknames. You know he still calls me Cyan sometimes? He absolutely does not get the point of a codename at all, does he?"

"Yeah...but compared to the other habits he picked up in Pergrande, I'll take the stupid nicknames no problem."

"Pergrande? What do you mean?"

"The group...well, army, I guess, of kids he fought with in Pergrande used to call each other by nickname. I think, at the time, it was a way to depersonalize someone you might be ordered to kill at any minute, but with Natsu...it's like the way he marks the people he wants to protect. At least, that's how our group therapist explained it once. Everyone has a different way of coping with their trauma. That was his way of taking back control."

The smile tugging at the corners of Levy's mouth slid back into a frown as she thought about all the trauma her friends had been through in their short lives. "I guess I officially fit in with the group now."

"What do you mean? Like you didn't fit in before?" Gray asked, using his feet to swivel his chair side to side. Now that Levy had calmed down, his body was getting restless just sitting.

Levy smiled wryly at him. "For a while now, I realized I'm pretty much the only one of our little group without some dark past eating away at me. Well, me and Gajeel, but I knew he was a gang banger in a past life, so I always think of him having his dark past in a different kind of way. But, no matter what past life or era I ended up seeing, I always led a happy life. Even when my death was tragic, or I spent my life surrounded by devastation, my existence always had a certain purity to it. I had loving parents who raised me and kept me safe. All the strength my soul musters, life after life, seems to come from that. I've filled notebooks with flashbacks from hundreds of years of history in my search and I've experienced my own death dozens of times in dozens of ways, but nothing shook me like this did. Nothing got to me, or left me feeling so utterly hopeless and alone. Even when I was stuck for weeks on end in the Stone Age, and panicked that I would never get back, I never completely lost hope. And I never saw Death. But, you guys all had to build your strength from the ground up. It's terrible, but I was kind of proud of how easy my life has been. Guess I'm a pretty shitty person inside, huh?" She met Gray's eyes then, a spark of her usual fire glimmering in contrast to her red-rimmed, swollen eyelids.

Gray listened to her explanation in silence. Levy had such a different way of looking at the world. Who cared what kind of background any of them had? Being friends was about who you were as a person, not what kind of shit you had to go through to get there. And Levy fit in just fine as far as he was concerned. Still, it was kind of cute how worked up she got about it. And he guessed, she probably understood him better now. Well, all of them better. They all had their shitty moments. And they all had regrets...things they could never change or forget.

Still, he wouldn't have wished that kind of knowledge on his worst enemy, let alone a friend.

In the end, though, when she was done offering her heartfelt analysis and explanation the only thing he could think of to say was a smart-assed comment:

"Well, welcome to the club."

He was so lucky Ur wasn't there to hear him or he'd have been locked in the freezer for a week.

* * *

Gajeel was staring at the stack of books next to Levy's bed, reading them over and over from his place on the floor in the corner and listening to Erik's snoring, when his phone finally vibrated in his pocket. Apathetically, he pulled it out, ready to hang up and finally muster the energy to haul his ass into bed for the night. However, when 'Shrimp' showed on the display he jerked alert as though an electrified wire had been inserted into his heart. Fumbling and almost dropping the phone, he answered it.

"Levy? Are you ok? Where are you? What's going-"

 _I'm okay. I just...fuck this is hard. I-"_

"What's hard? Where are you? I can come to you if you need me. Just say the word and-"

 _Gajeel, please! I'm trying to get something out... Can you just shut up for minute?!_

The air in Gajeel's lungs vacated in a single massive sigh of relief as he heard a shadow of the Shrimp's usual spark in her voice. He breathed in deeply, feeling like himself for the first time in hours. The overwhelming urge to hold her in his arms didn't decrease in the slightest, but the panic and inexplicable loss that had clouded his thoughts since he felt her heart stop in his chest finally began to ebb away.

"K. Talk then. I'm listenin'." He held himself back from bursting out with more demands and questions. His old man had always said that a woman would tell you anything you wanted to know if you could listen long enough to hear it. Given Metallicana's infamously short attention span, it really wasn't a wonder he'd never been able to tie a girl down.

 _Thanks… I...I found what I was looking for. I know what happened to my soul._

Gajeel bit his tongue to keep from saying anything as she sat on the phone in silence, the seconds ticking by feeling more like minutes.

 _I was wrong. It wasn't you. You're not responsible for my black aura. It's all my fault. And I don't know if you'll ever be able to...forgive...me…_

Gajeel's heart ached as he heard the tears choking her back into silence. The sound was muffled, as though she were holding a hand over her mouth to keep it from him. He couldn't just sit and listen anymore, fatherly advice be damned.

"Shrimp. There ain't nothing you could do that I wouldn't forgive. I told you before. I don't give a shit what ya did in a past life. It's this one that counts. Just forget about it-"

 _But I can't! Don't you get it?! I **killed** you Gajeel! I watched myself, no LIVED shooting you in the chest! I don't know if I will ever forgive myself. It's the only thing I can think about. I see the life leave your eyes every time I close mine! Forgetting it isn't a fucking option!_

"But I'm fine! I'm living, breathing, and talking to you right now! Just let me come to you and you can see for yoursel-"

 _NO! Oh god, I can't see you right now! I...I just...can't! I'm so sorry...but, I don't know if I can take that. I...it might...I...dammit, I just don't know…"_

"What the hell?! I'm going crazy here Levy! Can't you feel how fucking wrecked I am? All I can think about it making sure you're fucking safe. It's been days since I've seen you. You're doing all this risky shit for reasons that don't even matter and leaving me in the fucking dark! Do you have any idea what it felt like to NOT FEEL YOUR HEART BEATING?! DO YOU?! It's SHITTY! Even right now, I still can't fully convince myself that you're there on the other side of the fucking phone! I need to see you!"

 _AND I NEED TO NOT SEE YOU!_

Levy's tear-stained words froze his tongue, and stung deep in his chest with a pain worse than he'd ever gotten from a punch to the gut. Behind the panic, his growing anger at the whole situation took over to protect the aching heart in his chest.

"Then don't fucking see me. I'm done chasing someone who doesn't want to be found. Handle your bullshit by yourself: just the way you like it."

Gajeel hung up the phone, not waiting to hear anymore and threw it across the room, putting a gash in the wall with his phone's industrial strength case before it ricocheted into his sleeping friend.

Erik jerked awake with a cry to hear what could only be described as a primal roar of anger leaving the room. Crashes of knocked over books and furniture followed, ending in the sound of the apartment door slamming shut, everything shaking slightly in the wake of in his rage.

The redhead picked up the phone on the floor next to him, the words 'Shrimp' and 'Call Ended' still blinking on the screen.

"Shit," he muttered before hauling himself to his feet and plodding after his friend.

But, he was stopped when the phone in his hand vibrated, showing a call from none other than the 'Shrimp' herself. Already regretting his decision, he swiped to accept the call. "Little Blue, he's not here. He just left his phone and stormed out."

He heard a sharp intake of breath from the other side of the phone. "What? You ok?"

He heard muffled voices-Levy and a guy seemed to be arguing-but he couldn't make out what they were saying.

"Levy? You there? What's going on?"

When her voice returned, is was full of regret and hesitation:

 _Erik...I have something I need to tell you..._

* * *

 **And there's another chapter! I've got a light workload this week, so I'm starting the next chapter now! I would love to hear what you guys think of this one and where you think it will go next. There is not greater motivation and inspiration than the epic reviews you guys send me! Plus, I don't know if anyone noticed, but while I'm writing this, PAPI is only NINE reviews away from 2000! I could not be more excited!**

 **A HUGE shout-out to charbrown226 for delving into the wonderful Croatian language to discover the crazy awesome link to Silver when Gray is translated. I'm totally in love with the idea and 100% agree that Gray being called Junior by his parents is one of the sweetest things EVER. Thank you again for that amazing tidbit!**

 **Just one reference I think probably needs to be explained to most of you:**

' **For some reason, her thought had summoned a mental picture of some cartoon robot thing screaming "IGNORE ME!"'** -ok, so I'm really hoping at least some of you got this reference...it's from the show The Venture Bros, when the alien comes to Earth and decides to observe them, but scientifically doesn't want to interfere with the humans he's observing, so he ironically yells, 'IGNORE ME!" really loudly whenever anyone looks at him, or mentions him. If you haven't watched Venture Bros, it's definitely worth the time. It's basically a parody of Johnny Quest, but with a little Scooby Doo, classic superhero/villain nonsense, and just plain nutso-crazy-randomness thrown in. Freaking hilarious. The Mighty Monarch's henchmen are the best. Go watch it. My favorite line in the whole show: "It's like he channels dead crazy people." hehe

 **Til next time, Riot out!**


	53. The Great Magic World

**FINALLY GOT THIS FINISHED. God, this chapter just did not want to come out!**

 **AND, you know, I made six cosplays (including Mavis, Zera & Frosch!) and went to two conventions since I started it...so,yeah...well, that didn't help. My bad. **

**I've got another quick con coming up this weekend and two more in April, so no promises (*insert hysterical laughter from everyone who remembers I used to update once a week*), but I'll try to squeeze out another one before I leave for my first one in April before I go.**

 **I changed my profile pic again to my new Mavis cosplay and the Zera I made for my friend for the last con for those who want to see. Or, if you're really intrigued by all of the things I talk about making and want to follow my work in that too (if only to see what I'm doing instead of writing PAPI…) then follow my page on Facebook: Quite-A-Riot Cosplay and Couture.**

 **ALSO, 2,000 reviews! I STILL CAN'T BELIEVE IT! THANK YOU SO MUCH! You guys are the best! And, as a reward, I do believe I promised at least one extra one shot if it hit 2000 reviews, so keep an eye out on the companion posting for this one (A Colorful Collection of Passive Aggressive One-Shots) for a couple of side stories! I'm going to write them RIGHT NOW. I PROMISE.**

 **Ok, ridiculously long A/N done. Enjoy! And then flood me with demands, questions and comments in the reviews! I promise I'll even try to get them answered this time!**

* * *

"Okay, I know I said I needed to go to the gym...but why the hell did we have to get up before the _freaking sun_ to do it!?" Lucy whined, dragging her feet and pulling her weight away from Natsu as he stubbornly hauled her unwilling body down the sidewalk to the gym. _**I'm still so sleeeeeepyyyyyy!**_

"Because you were the one who wanted chocolate croissants so badly last night that you said to, and I quote: 'drag me to the gym super fucking early so that I can eat as many pastries as I want and still get back before Levy wakes up,' Natsu replied, rolling his eyes and heaving her unwilling body forward with minimal effort. _Besides, you're so heavy! You definitely need a day at the gym...well...a day at the gym_ _ **actually working out**_ … His brain supplied a very vivid image of the time they'd spent the day before in their new favorite private workout room... _not_ working out.

Lucy stumbled as he remembered just what it had felt like, her knees threatening to turn into butter.

 _ **Hey! You said you wouldn't do that anymore! It's hard enough to walk in a straight line after yesterday without having your pervy memories shoved onto me! You're just…**_ Lucy gasped as lust rolled off of him in waves... _ **evil. Pure sadistic evil. You sex demon.**_

"Oh look! We're here! Let's go have a great workout, okay Luce?" he professed suddenly with over-enthusiastic, candy cane sweetness, completely ignoring her thoughts.

 _ **You suck.**_

He just grinned back at her as he held open the door for her. _I mean, if we're talking about sucking, you're really more of the expert there..._

 _ **Godsdammit Natsu! Can't you get your mind out of the gutter!?**_

 _But it's so much fun to see how far I can go before your knees get all wobbly…_ he pouted into her head. _Plus it's not like you're really resisting all that amazing, knee-weakening sex..._

"But it's making me so soooooore!" she whined aloud into the empty gym just to emphasize her point. Or rather, what she thought was an empty gym.

"What's making you so sore?" Erza's voice echoed out of nowhere like an informant waiting for someone to snitch to in a darkened parking garage as she strode forward to greet them.

Lucy inhaled her own spit in alarm and coughed violently as a result.

"Oh, hey Erza. I was just working Lucy really hard at the gym yesterday, so she's a little worn out," Natsu replied smoothly as he dropped their gym bag _(That's right world, I'm part of a couple that shares a gym bag now!_ he thought proudly to himself as Lucy fought not to choke further on her sudden laughter). "What's up with you?"

 _ **Your ability to lie on demand is fucking creepy. You clingy nerd.**_

 _What? I was totally telling the truth! You think I'd lie to Erza?! I worked you hard all over the gym yesterday…in the closet, in the workout room, behind the stairs..._

Lucy's coughing got worse.

"Good work, Natsu. She needs to be worked hard," Erza replied with approval..

Which is when Natsu succumbed to a coughing fit of his own.

"Do you need help stretching out?" Erza asked with a twinkle in her eye that did not bode well for Lucy, if Natsu's immediate reaction of pure terror was any indication. She could feel the anticipation and excitement Erza was practically vibrating with just standing near her. It almost overwhelmed the Horny-Natsu-in-the-Morning vibes she'd been fending off since he'd woken up at three in the morning and, _somehow,_ fucked her in his sleep. As in, didn't actually wake up the entire time.

Hell, they were halfway into it before she even realized what was happening. Maybe they were having a little too much fun lately...after all, serious things had been happening. They needed to stop going at it like Playboy bunnies and be responsible adults.

But at the same time, she also hoped it went on forever. Afterall, he _was_ REALLY good in bed. Or anywhere really. Didn't matter where, the man was fucking talented. And all hers.

Natsu's pride suddenly overwhelmed every other feeling in the room.

 _ **Shut up. It's not like it's news to you, horndog.**_

"Yeah...I think I can probably stretch on my own, but thanks anyw-" Lucy's polite refusal was cut off as Erza took matters into her own hands, literally, by grabbing the hand Natsu wasn't holding on to in order to drag the protesting blonde to the mats.

Only she never got the chance. Because the minute Erza's hand came into contact with Lucy's, her unwilling victim was flooded with an overwhelming number of emotions.

From everyone. _Everywhere_.

Or what sure as hell felt like it.

She could feel the darkness in Levy's mind as her friend dreamt, she could feel Gajeel's anger and anguish, Erik's disbelief, Mystogan's frustration, and even a smug self-satisfaction that felt like it came from Mystogan...but if Mystogan were an asshole (so, Jellal, she assumed). She could even pick out Gray, happy in a warm fuzzy kind of way as he dreamed about something pleasant. And dozens more from people she couldn't immediately identify: glee, loneliness, boredom, a zeal bordering on insanity that almost leaked out of her in a crazed giggle just by association...

But mostly, she got metaphorically buffeted like a flag in the wind by Erza and Natsu's feelings, including complicated nuances she had never noticed before: the subtle change in Natsu's happiness when he looked at Lucy as opposed to what he felt seeing Erza, the feeling of inadequacy simmering deep below Erza's unabashed pride, and the miniscule differences in the flavor of their almost equal concern for her own well-being.

Lucy could only stand being an emotional sounding board for so long, jerking her hand roughly out of Erza's and shaking it as though she had been shocked by a particularly nasty light switch in the dry season. She felt almost numb, like she was deprived of her natural senses after such overstimulation. She opened her mouth to ask what the hell had happened but was beaten to it by Natsu.

"Holy crap Erza! I don't know what you did, but whatever it was, Lucy's emotion sensing thing was so powerful even _I_ could feel 'em! It was crazy! Is that what your power is?" He squeezed Lucy's hand, silently comforting her, even as he questioned Erza in excitement. She could barely feel his hand, but it still made her heartbeat slow by a few beats per minute.

"I did _what_ now?" Erza replied, taken aback.

"When you touched me just now…" Lucy started. "It...amplified my power. I could feel everyone. I mean, everyone _bonded,_ I guess. Levy, Gajeel, Mystogan, Jellal...EVERYONE. It was like my power on crack! What did you _do_?!"

"I just touched you!" Erza looked down at her hand with the beginnings of a wonderstruck, but satisfied smile. "I guess we just figured out what I can do…"

Natsu grinned. "That's fucking awesome Erz. If you can amplify our powers, I wonder what would happen if you touch me! Maybe I could switch bodies with anyone!" He reached forward only to have both girls leap into action: Lucy, to restrain him and Erza to keep the hell away from him.

 _ **Dammit Natsu! The last thing we need right now is you going on a rampage in Erza's body! And do you REALLY want to be that intimate with someone who's basically your sister?**_

Thankfully, that thought gave Natsu pause long enough to keep him from doing something stupid (since there was no way Lucy could really hold him back from something he was determined to do), but he pouted about it anyway while Erza and Lucy shared a loaded look.

Apparently, it was time to wake up Levy.

* * *

The sun was just thinking about rising when Wendy awoke, her well-trained body responding automatically to the rigorous demands of her hospital schedule; sleeping-in was a pipe-dream she had given up after starting clinicals in med school. But, having forsaken a college student's sacred fulfillment of a good morning's sleep, she had wholehearted converted to the worship of caffeine. Just the thought of it perked her up. Surely there was a coffee maker and a halfway decent brew waiting for her to discover it in the kitchen. Now she just had to figure out where the hell that was.

Careful not to wake Levy (or Gray, in his nest of blankets and discarded clothing on the floor), Wendy climbed down from her borrowed loft bed and tiptoed out of the room, closing the door softly behind her. A little thrill of adrenaline ran up her spine.

Despite Gray's assurances, she was still pretty sure women weren't allowed to sleep over in the frat, and the chance of getting caught (however slim at 5am) did more to wake up her brain than the self-promised coffee would. Getting into the notion, she flipped her long hair over her shoulder and flattened her back against the wall. Wendy had always had an unexpected thirst for adventure.

The air in the hall was cool where her t-shirt and pajama shorts exposed her limbs, but it felt refreshing against her heated skin. She came to a corner and peeked around it, seeing the main staircase at the end of the hall. If there was anywhere she was going to run into anyone, it would be there, right?

Steeling herself, she ducked low and sprinted to the stairs, scanning the steps and the entryway below before taking them two by two. She didn't stop until she'd exited the entry, choosing the larger archway off to the right under the assumption that it led to the other community rooms in the house and flattening herself around the corner again. Catching her breath a little she had a look around.

Her assumption proved correct, a large, empty dining area full of beat up round tables and matching chairs greeting her as she surveyed her surroundings. Well, she wasn't called a prodigy for nothing. It did seem odd that the room featured not one, but two bars on opposite sides of the room...however, it being a fraternity dining hall, she assumed it was just a college 'bro thing' and dismissed it.

Besides, she was more interested in the door next to the far bar...the one that screamed 'KITCHEN THIS WAY' to her complaining stomach and fatigued brain. Without further ado, she skipped her way across the room, letting down her guard as she wove through the tables and swung herself through the doorway, her waist-length hair fanning out behind her with a lovely swishing noise tha she encouraged with a twitch of her neck.

Which was the sight that met Romeo as he turned around, a plate of cold cuts in one hand and a protein bar sticking out of his mouth. Well, it started in his mouth. Before Wendy's hair could finishing swinging around her body (and straight into her face), his after workout power boost had hit the floor.

And he couldn't care less.

Romeo had always laughed when movies portrayed a meeting of two people in slow motion. That kind of shit didn't happen in real life, so seeing it in a film always felt ridiculous. But now…

It wasn't so much that time slowed down as it froze, like a particularly controversial Super Bowl recap video, locked into one second as someone drew circles outlining all the important parts of the moment. He never would have thought any woman could have that kind of impact on him.

But the woman caught mid-hair-flip in front of him was more than just gorgeous. From her sweet smile and flushed cheeks to her modestly curvy figure and bright-green-sock-bedecked feet he instantly loved everything about her. His heart, just settling down from the cardio he'd put it through, came to attention, thumping away in his chest like the tail of an excited puppy. And he just knew: one day, she would be his. The last time he'd been so sure of anything, he'd seen Natsu do his Fire Dragon Roar. He'd signed up to rush for Fairy Tail Frat within the hour, and had yet to regret it.

And, just as suddenly as that frozen moment of clarity hit, it was gone, the girl's gleeful expression shifting to one of surprise, her hair continuing its path to smack her securely in the face, and her eye-smarting socks skidding to a stop on the smooth kitchen floor just as his protein bar skidding across the floor to land in front of her.

"Oh shit!"

Romeo's eyebrows shot up as the mysterious girl squeaked out the profanity, immediately turning tail to run. He automatically followed after her, setting his plate on the counter as he went.

Wendy slipped and slid on the linoleum before she could get traction, but that didn't stop her from retreating with a vengeance. Natsu and Lucy's warnings about not showing herself easily echoed in her head, overriding both her common sense and her coordination. It didn't help matters that she could feel the unexpected witness to her secret mission hot on her heels!

So it really wasn't all that surprising that her not-so-graceful exit got even less so, her feet sliding out from under her as she embarrassingly reverted to her clumsy, pre-teen self, scrunching closed her eyes and throwing out her arms in anticipation of her impending faceplant.

But, instead of the once all-too-familiar feeling of her nose meeting hard, cold floor, a strong arm wrapped her around the waist, lifting her slippery feet off the ground as easily as if she _was_ that beanpole of an eleven-year-old clutz again. The impact knocked out her breath as she felt herself jerked backward against a warm body, a shock that felt like white-hot lightning running out from her back, where they touched, to her scalp and toes. Her vision went white for half a second, leaving after-images behind she tried to blink away. The whole experience left her skin tingly and crawling, making a shiver go convulsively through her body and into her rescuers, his grip tightening in response.

"Whoa…" breathed a rather hoarse voice next to her ear. "That was...uh…" He cleared his throat and Wendy turned her head toward him automatically coming nose to nose with her rescuer. "Are you...o...kay?"

Romeo couldn't believe how big her eyes were. And such a deep brown they were almost purple. He was immediately lost. His overactive puppy of a heart went from tail wagging to leaping into the air. What had he been saying again?

Declarations of his love? A proposal? Sure...that sounded right...they could get married right after the spring semester was over and live happily ever...

"Um…" the love of his life whispered, her breath ghosting over his lips, "I'm really grateful that you caught me and all...but could you maybe put me down?" She kicked her heels gently into his bare shins to illustrate the fact that he was still holding her a good foot off the floor.

Romeo blinked, trying to clear his muddled thoughts long enough to concentrate on what she was saying. "Huh?"

"PLEASE PUT ME DOWN!" Her words were harsh, but polite, all delivered at an ear splitting decibel inches away from his ear.

The amount of sound coming out of such a tiny person surprised him enough that he immediately let go, dropping the girl of his dreams unceremoniously back on the floor where she promptly slipped again and fell back against him. But, before he could wrap his arms around her again, she was up on her own, sliding to the nearest chair and plopping into it with a massive blush across her cheeks.

"Um, thank you. For keeping me from falling, I mean." Her voice was back to the quiet tone she'd used before, and she glanced around nervously. "If it's not too much trouble, could you maybe not tell anyone that I was here? I'm...visiting someone here and they made it pretty clear that girls aren't allowed to spend the night. I just really needed some coffee…" Finally her eyes found Romeo's again and she was surprised to see disappointment obvious in his eyes. "Uh...is it really that big a deal? I just spent the night in one of the rooms upstairs…"

As Romeo's mind ran from one alarming conclusion to the next, his brow furrowed. So, she was visiting someone. AND had spent the night upstairs...which meant his future wife was dating an upperclassman. His overexcited heart whined in pain at the thought and a knot formed in his stomach. He tried to figure out which of the seniors still living in the frat it could be as he answered her.

"Well, _technically_ we're not supposed to have girls sleepover in our rooms…" _Mystogan? Naw, he was with Erza now…no way he'd cheat on her. That would mean sudden and painful death. Everyone knew that._ "But guys do it all the time." _Laxus? Had he finally given up on Mira? This girl didn't really seem like his type, but who wouldn't want her?_ "Granted, they know better than to come to the kitchen early in the morning…" _Bacchus maybe? But he was so hung up on Cana lately…speaking of which…_ "We've got a new housemo-uh, I mean, _Master_ of Fairy Tail though, and she's pretty chill, so I'm sure it will be fine as long as not many people see you." _Who the hell was this girl seeing? Could it be one of the ex-quattro puppies? Or Reedus?! Was he about to lose the love of his life to REEDUS OF ALL PEOPLE?! Why had he wasted all those years waking up to work out if the love of his life was going to get stolen by a CHUBBY ARTIST?!_

The more Romeo thought about it, the more frantic his expression became. Wendy was starting to get concerned.

"Hey...are you okay? You look like you're about to have a panic attack or something." On reflex, she stood up and grabbed his wrist, checking his pulse. "Are you having any difficulty breathing or chest pains?" She steered him to a chair next to hers and compared the beats she was feeling to the second hand of her beat-up Hello Kitty wristwatch. It was childish, but the only thing she still had from her birth mom, so she never took it off.

Romeo tried desperately to keep his heart from speeding up even more as she leaned closer to him, her hair brushing against his bare knees where his workout shorts had ridden up.

 _Gods, she has such long pretty hair,_ he thought. He wanted to run his hand through it so badly. But he was damn sure that was going too far onto the side of creepy, even if she was single, instead of dating one of his bros. His mouth pulled down into a frown again. His experience with girls was definitely...lacking, but some things were obvious. He gripped his chair with the hand she wasn't holding to keep from doing something he'd regret and frantically searched for something to say. "I think I'm...fine?...hey, are you a med student or something?"

"I'm a surgeon in my first year of residency actually," Wendy replied wearily. She was no stranger to explaining her age, but it had gotten old years before. "I'm just not as young as I look. I just turned 25."

Romeo stared at her in surprise. "Seriously? You're six years older than me? No fucking way." His heart sank further, trying it's best to become one with the floor as it howled a forlorn song of lost chances. _Definitely dating a senior then. Or maybe a super senior. I bet it's Mest. That jackass only dates older women...and she's just his type…_ Romeo could picture all too well the things Mest would be compelled to _investigate_ on a petite thing like her.

Now it was Wendy's turn to look surprised. "Wait, you're only _19_? You look..." Her well-trained eyes took a good look at him for the first time, lingering on the pronounced biceps exposed by his sleeveless tank against her will. His velvety black hair was sticking up all directions, half bedhead and half sweaty from his early morning workout, but in a roguishly adorable kind of way. It offset his solid, cleancut All-American-athlete jawline in a way that made her body feel warm with more than embarrassment. She could feel the blush flaring across her cheeks again and she ducked her head.

Romeo leaned forward a bit trying to see her face better under her curtain of fringe, a self-conscious smile lurking at the corner of his mouth. "A lot older than 19?" he asked almost playfully, with more hope than he intended. Flirting wasn't his strong suit, but he'd be damned if she didn't want to make him try anyway. His thumb moved ever so slightly, brushing against the underside of her forearm where she still held his wrist. It was sinfully soft.

Wendy reacted to his minute movement like he'd hit her with a defibrillator charged to 200, jerking back violently and falling into her chair, scooting it several inches back with her momentum. "Um...definitely not 19," she squeaked, belatedly finishing her earlier sentence. "And…"She cleared her throat, adopting the doctor-knows-best voice she'd worked so hard on over the years. "In my professional medical opinion, you seem ok. Your heart rate is probably just high from your recent workout, but it's strong and steady." Abruptly, she stood up. "Anyway, I have to get going before someone sees me, right? So if you'll just show me to the coffee I will be on my way back to my patient…"

"Patient? So…" Romeo's heart rolled over, perked up and cocked its figurative head, hanging on her every word. "You're here professionally? You aren't dating someone in the house?"

Wendy gawked at him for a second before snorting. "No! Of course not! I was asked to keep an eye on someone due to a medical incident that happened yesterday. Since the patient in question refused to go to the hospital, and needed a quiet place to rest, Natsu said it would be ok to monitor her in your fraternity house. If I had known there was an adult in charge, I would have cleared it with this Master person first."

 _Well, Cana's not really what I would call an 'adult'..._ Romeo thought wryly as a grin busted onto his face. He could barely process anything she'd said after she'd denied dating any of his brothers. His heart was back to tail wagging, with intermittent excited barks. He still had a chance. Hopefully. Just because she wasn't dating a fraternity member didn't mean she was single. Or looking.

But some indefinable feeling in his gut told him she wasn't. He just needed an opening. And, he realized, she'd given him one. He sprang to his feet with more energy than his cooling muscles wanted to give and gestured over his shoulder at the kitchen.

"Well, that's totally different! Let me get you a cup of coffee and walk you back to the room you're staying in. We can talk to Cana after that. I'm Romeo by the way. Do you want anything else to eat? I mean...I make a borderline edible piece of toast if you're interested…" He grinned at her, practically bouncing on his toes with happiness.

It was infectious. Despite her discomfort at her sudden awareness that she was still wearing her pajamas, Wendy couldn't help but grin back.

"You don't think I'll get caught if we wait long enough for toast?" A tiny spark of the impish feeling she'd been enjoying on her quest to the kitchen resurfaced, giving her a matching bounce in her step.

Romeo just waved her into the kitchen before him, made a show of scanning the dining hall and closed the door behind him, shutting them into the kitchen together.

"Not if we take the back stairs..." He gestured to a door she hadn't noticed in her brief glance at the industrial styled kitchen earlier.

"Oh.." she mused as her rescuer confidently moved around the kitchen, popping bread into a toaster and taking out instant coffee grounds. "That's super handy."

"Yeah, it is. Years ago, back when the cook was live-in instead of a part-time position, their room was upstairs, so it was easier to reach the kitchen to start breakfast without waking anyone up. Our frat's been around for a long time...dating back generations. My dad was even a member!" Romeo couldn't resist puffing out his chest at that. Sure, when he'd starting looking at fraternities, he had been dead set against Fairy Tail because of that, but that had long since changed. If anything, it had brought him and his dad closer together than they'd been in years.

They chatted about Fairy Tail and what being a doctor was like as Romeo made toast, microwaved up some bacon and got himself a new power bar. Wendy watched him open up to her in fascination. For the most part, she found guys-particularly buff, attractive guys-to be self-centered and more than a little scary. But Romeo felt like an old friend. _Or maybe…_ she mused as he leaned over the counter toward her a little and her heart fluttered, _more like an old crush._

"You know, Doc, I still don't know your nam-" Romeo cut himself off as a noise outside the closed door behind her caught both of their attentions. Putting a finger to his lips to indicate she should be quiet, Romeo grabbed the two plates of food he'd made. Wendy grabbed their mugs, trying desperately not to spill any as they raced through the back door and took the stairs as fast as they could. Wendy splashed a little bit of hot coffee on her wrist as it sloshed in the cups, but could barely feel it through the adrenaline and glee flooding her system. She couldn't remember the last time she'd had this much fun just hanging out with someone. She felt like she was in high school again.

When they got to the top of the staircase, Romeo balanced both plates on one arm expertly and eased open the door, looking around the hall before opening it wider and gesturing her out. Wendy sidled past him, unable to resist grinning up at him as she passed.

Their eyes locked as his grin mirrored hers.

Then the weirdness started.

For just a moment, Wendy could see nothing but blinding white. It was not even long enough to create an afterimage before a whole new scene blossomed before her.

 _A much younger Romeo held one of her hands, dragging her behind him, his broad smile the essence of light itself. She herself was young, her wrist and hand even smaller than his and twice as dainty, but that didn't stop her from keeping a strong hold and racing after him. Even though she was breathing hard and her new boots pinched her toes, she refused to be left behind._

 _After all, he had promised he wouldn't leave without her._

 _Beside them, on the tracks they raced next to, a locomotive had just begun to move, the connecting rods of the driven wheels squealing in protest as if being forcibly woken from a long nap. Dark smoke coughed out of the engine chimney, funneled through the smokebox from the firebox as the boiler was heated enough to get the steam pressure needed to power the massive machine. She knew everything there was to know about steam engines. She'd been gleaning every bit and piece she could get her hands on since she'd found out her father was a conductor. And now she was finally going to find him!_

 _But she wouldn't have had the courage to even find out that much if it wasn't for Casey._

" _Come on Clara! We can't miss it!" Casey/Romeo yelled back at her, gesturing to the slightly open car door ahead of them. To her four-feet-four-and-a-quarter-inches it seemed like an insurmountable height._

" _How...how are we supposed to get up there?!" she exclaimed, breathing hard from their run. The car was inching along already by the time they got there, but her companion easily levered himself up, having a good foot on her in height, and reached down to grab both her arms._

 _Within moments her feet were swept from under her and for one glorious, terrifying instant she flew through the air, surrounded by nothing but air as she fluttered from his solid grip._

 _And then she was flung into the hay of the car, landing hard on her arm as the door slammed shut behind her-_

Wendy blinked rapidly, staggering back into the doorframe as she sought to orient herself.

A plate of toast, cold cuts and bacon hit the carpeted floor of the hallway with a small thump, scattering its contents amid a shower of crumbs. Startled, Wendy looked up at Romeo to see him staring, bewildered, back at her.

When their eyes met again, somehow, they both _knew_ what the other had just seen.

"What the HELL was that?!" Romeo spoke first, ignoring the mess he'd made in favor of searching Wendy's face for answers.

Wendy just shook her head, swallowed hard, and turned away to flee back to her temporary lodgings. It felt a lot like running away.

She seriously needed to call Porly.

She was in way over her head.

And she was starting to think this thing was contagious!

* * *

Levy awoke to the sound of Gray mumbling things in his sleep.

Which, overall, wasn't a terrible way to wake up. Now, if she had just **not** dreamed about the bloody terror that was her past life-where she had killed the past incarnation of her soulmate and then got murdered by one of her best friends-she might have even called it a decent night's sleep. Unfortunately, it looked like she wouldn't be having one of those for a while.

Gray had mentioned how long his nightmares had haunted him. She definitely wasn't looking forward to a similar timeline.

Gingerly, she peeled the blanket from her terror-sweat-soaked skin and sat up, trying to get her bearings in the unfamiliar room. Memories of her current life slowly caught up to her. She was at Fairy Tail. Gray was sleeping on the floor just beneath her dangling feet, which backed up what her hazy caffeine-deprived brain remembered of the night before. But hadn't there been someone else there? A woman?

Conveniently, Wendy and Romeo chose this moment to burst through the door.

And all glory and praise to Jesus, Buddha, and God Serena, they were carrying _coffee_! The blue-haired doctor she immediately remembered from the night before stopped long enough to take a big swig from one of the two cups she was holding before searching for an appropriate surface to unload her double-fisted treasures.

Levy knew she'd liked Wendy from the moment she'd met her. Even before the sun came up she had...spunk. And a glint in her eye.

"Pass one of those over here, would you?" she gestured, reaching for one of the cups.

Meanwhile, Gray - awoken by the abrupt sound of two people busting in on his sleep at an hour too ungodly to mention - tried to get his bearings...and figure out where all of his clothes had disappeared to. Then, finding his watch under his shirt (which was serving as a pillow), he realized what time it actually was.

And promptly curled back up in his warm, sleep-encouraging nest.

"Shit...why the hell is everyone awake? Go away."

And then he went back to sleep.

Or tried to.

Because that's when Levy's phone rang with Lucy's special ringtone.

Which was apparently the Mission Impossible theme song, for reasons he did not understand.

And things got even more complicated.

* * *

Erik almost hadn't come into work.

Honestly, after the evening Gajeel had had, he was shocked the place was open at all. But, open it was. Granted, its owner was more likely to scare off any new customers with his death glare than convincing them to get some ink, but he had to give the big guy some credit for crawling out of bed and rejoining the daily grind. It made him really glad that he hadn't skipped out on work himself, despite the temptation. Sure, he'd had a pretty shitty night himself, but at least he knew what was going on.

As far as he knew, Levy still hadn't told Gajeel anything. Which made him feel even shittier, because he wasn't jumping to have that conversation either.

Fuck, he still hadn't come to terms with what she'd told him about his own past life. But then, how did anyone come to terms with learning he had brutally murdered numerous people in his past life? It wasn't like he was some kind of saint when he was younger anyway, but at least the people he'd sent to the hospital had chosen to fight him, however unwisely.

And he'd never killed anyone. It was one line he'd never had an interest in crossing, even when he'd gone by Cobra.

Erik cleared his throat firmly again, forcing the now familiar lump that had formed in his throat the night before back into submission. He had shit to do. This was not the time to continue his previous-sleepless-night's overthinking. Work was work, and he was lucky to have

"Mmph." Gajeel's guttural, equally sleepless grunt pulled his attention away from the dark twisty tunnel his thoughts had been wandering towards again. With an answering grunt, the redhead took the appointment book his boss was offering him and flipped it open to the right date.

It looked like they had a full day ahead of them. Starting with an appointment right off the bat.

"You want me to take the first appointment? You don't look like you're up for it…" Erik tried to make it sound like a joke, but only mustered a glimmer of his usual charm. Gajeel snorted with derision anyway.

"Not like you look any better. But yeah, you might as well take it. Some friend of Mira's decided she wants a tat. Or Mira decided she needs one. Either way, she'll end up getting one."

Erik shivered. He'd been a freshman gangbanger in high school when Mira 'Demon Soul' Strauss was a senior, but he'd known even then that you didn't defy her will. Not unless you wanted your life to be a living hell. "Poor girl. Here's hoping it _was_ her idea."

Gajeel grunted in agreement and downed an energy shot, crushing the tiny plastic bottle in his fist before chucking it at the trash can. Erik stared after it longingly. Why hadn't he thought to bring any caffeine in with him that morning?

His forlorn thought was cut short by the now-familiar sound of the guitar riff ushering in their first client. He glanced at the clock and stifled a groan. Their _early_ first client.

"Hello? Anyone here?" The light feminine voice was accompanied by a chorus of equally feminine giggles.

Arranging his tired face in some semblance of a courteous smile, he dragged his weary body off his wheelie stool and pushed through the chain curtain.

He was met by the grinning faces of four girls. One of which made his blood turn cold.

"Hey Mira!" he barked with forced cheer. "How's it going?"

The platinum blonde clearly presiding over the ditzy clique narrowed her eyes in a moment of confusion as she gave him the once over before a smile lit them up again.

"Cobra?! What the hell?! I haven't seen you in ages! I had no idea you worked here!" Though her words were cheerful, her smile turned less pure as she swiveled on her heel and gently pushed a petite, purple-haired woman in jeans and a halter top forward. "This is Kinana! She needs a tattoo and the Body Shot Bitches are footing the bill, so get this girl whatever she wants!"

Her words were accompanied by a cheer that made Erik want to grab the crowbar off the wall and knock himself out with it. Luckily, the client seemed to be the only one abstaining from the excessive noise, though she was smiling quite widely through her blush. It gave her an indescribably sweet look that almost made his teeth ache to see.

She was cute. It was too bad he wasn't into the sweet types. Granted, whatever the 'Body Shot Bitches' was didn't sound all that sweet to him either. The poor girl probably got roped into it all by Mira. Oh well, not his problem.

"Hi, I'm Erik. Do you have some idea of what you want?" He spoke directly to the client. Maybe if he just ignored the rest of them they'd calm the fuck down. "Or where you want it? If you need suggestions, I can grab some of our work for you to look over…" He gestured to the binders still sitting out from someone looking them over the night before. He and Gajeel hadn't really spent a lot of time cleaning up, what with the Levy-related shit that went down. And the wallowing after that.

Looking over the girl in front of him, he tried to guess what she'd go for.

 _A flower of some kind probably? Fuck, I hope it's not another fucking mariposa._ _¿Por qué estas chicas nunca pueden pensar en algo original?_

He was definitely not expecting the violet-haired princess in front of him to smirk at him as though she could hear his thoughts. And understand them. In that split second, he came to the swift realization that he had grossly misjudged her. Her vibe had gone from sweet milk chocolate to bitter dark in an instant.

"I do actually. I want a snake. More graphic than realistic. On my ribs right here." She lifted the hem of her lime-green halter top to reveal the pale, smooth skin of her abdomen...framed by what were clearly the edges of several other tattoos, one disappearing into her jeans and another just poking out from where she held up her shirt. Erik fought not to show his surprise. She traced a finger over her ribs and around her navel. "I'd like it to be sort of tangled over here and for the tail to wrap around to my belly button."

Oh yeah, he'd definitely underestimated her. He could feel a glimmer of interest spark. This wouldn't be another boring sorority girl, but a true enthusiast. His morning suddenly seemed a lot brighter.

"I think we can definitely help you out." He gave her a grin and motioned for her to grab a seat on one of the couches while he pulled one of the binders from under the counter. Kinana and the two other girls he didn't know took up one couch, leaving Mira to share a seat with him. He handed over the binder and sat back, intentionally not looking at the secretly hellish ex-model beside him. It was best not to engage with her unless absolutely necessary, or he'd find himself with a random blind date or some part of him black and blue.

"These are amazing...did you do these?" Kinana was looking up at him in interest, the book open to the pages he knew she would be most interested in.

"Actually, no. Those pieces were done by the owner. He's got a thing for reptiles, and tribal symbols. Usually he ends up doing dragons the most, but he's done some amazing work with snakes too. If you like what you see there I can grab him quick to chat with you before his first appointment comes in."

"So he has done snakes too then?" She flipped through the pages of graphic, patterned dragons and then went back through them again. "Do you have any pictures of those? I don't see any…"

Erik shrugged. "I don't think he's got them in a book at the moment, but he did one for me I can show you, if you want."

Every woman in the room was suddenly very interested in their conversation, the lavender-haired woman and the ginger with the cat-eye makeup sitting up in anticipation. Kinana turned bright red, though she kept her composure pretty well otherwise. "If you wouldn't mind, I would appreciate it. I don't want to waste the owner's time if he can't do what I'm wanting."

With another shrug, Erik stood up and pulled off his t-shirt, turning around so they could see his back. "He did it for me a while ago when he was just learning his trade, but it's still my favorite ink."

Kinana stood up and walked over to look closer as though she were being drawn in by some unknown power. "Wow…" she sighed. "That's incredible."

Erik had to agree. He'd spent more than a little time just looking at it in the mirror over the years and every time he saw something different to admire in it. The tattoo in question took up the upper left corner of his back, the two ornate snakes tangled together in a complicated knot spilling over onto his shoulder and under his arm. One was white, a delicate lacy structure of Indian henna-tattoo inspired swirls and lines stretching down its length, in stark contrast to his burnished Puerto Rican skin. The other was made up of bold black tribal symbols reminiscent of ancient Central America. It was also a high-contrast design, but in a completely different way than the white was.

At first glance, the two snakes appeared to be in battle with one another, their lower halves tightly entwined, but on closer inspection, their upper coils were loose and free, neither of their fangs bared. The black snake seemed indifferent, its head squarely centered on the back of his neck, facing the sky, while the white snake's head turned back near his ribs to look upwards at its darker partner. There was almost something forlorn about it.

Erik had never told anyone before, but he liked to think of those two snakes as the two sides of himself, the darker side always in the lead while the good he rarely showed fought to keep that part of him from taking over, sometimes...well, often, failing.

"It's somehow...sad, isn't it?" Kinana faintly whispered. Erik twisted around to look at her, just as she reached out a finger to trace the white ink spiraling over his skin. A white-hot shock followed her finger, causing him to jump reflexively and the violet-haired girl to jump back away, rubbing her finger. "Holy gods, I'm sorry! I shouldn't have touched you like that without asking!"

Erik turned and shook his head with a good-natured smile even as he rolled his shoulders to cover up the uncontrollable twitching of the muscles in his arms and back. "It's fine. I'm used to it. Just wasn't expecting the shock…"

He trailed off as he realized all of their clients' eyes were locked on his torso. While he had numerous tattoos there too, he already knew that wasn't what had grabbed their attention; his scars far outnumbered them. The ones from the bullet wound in his right shoulder and the stab wound on his left side stood out the most, but they were joined by dozens of smaller scars from the many scraps he'd gotten into over the years. His abdomen told a violent story to anyone who saw it.

Mira was the first to meet his eye. "What? Did you go to war in between now and high school or something?"

He grabbed his shirt and pulled it back on over his head to hide his face when he answered. "Something like that." He wasn't new to the stares, and honestly couldn't give a shit about them most of the time, but he found himself avoiding his new client's eyes as he settled back on the couch.

At least, until she spoke up again.

"Can I see your work?"

He looked up in surprise, one eyebrow already cocked. "Sure, but from what you were describing, I think Gajeel's stuff is probably better suited."

She smiled back at him. "You might be right...but I hate to choose without examining all my options."

"Sure. Let me grab my sketchbook. I actually did a snake drawing the other day, though I tend to be more into realism than what it sounds like you're looking for." He stepped behind the front counter and grabbed his worn sketchpad, offering it to her.

"You know," she replied with a confused look. "For a tattoo artist, you're not very good at promoting yourself. Don't you work on commissions?" She quickly opened the book, but took her time flipping through the pages, getting about five pages in before she starting lingering more over each drawing. The girls on either side of her leaned in to look at first, but seemed to get bored easily, one of them pulling out her phone, lucky cat, Hello Kitty, and every other imaginable cat-themed charm hanging off of it like a gaudy tail.

That girl seriously liked cats.

"Naw. I'm a friend of Gajeel's that was hired on to help with the rush, but I ended up sticking around. I do admin stuff sometimes too, so he pays me hourly for the time being, which works fine for me at the moment."

"Well, you should definitely convince him to pay you on commissions. If your work on skin is as good as your stuff on paper, then you could be making a lot more." She barely seemed to be attending to the conversation, stuck on the drawing he had already known she'd like the best, a deep purple and gold coiled snake with soulful eyes and just the hint of a smile staring straight out of the page. Currently, it was his favorite too.

"There are extenuating circumstances...but thanks for the vote of confidence. See something you like?" He grinned as she took her tracing fingers away from the page as though she were guilty of some crime.

"Oh! Uh, yeah. This is really...I don't know. It kind of...makes me feel...warm… It's really beautifully done." She fell into silence for a moment before she seemed to come to a decision. "Can I buy this drawing from you?"

Erik was starting to think his eyebrows would get stuck in surprise mode. "You don't want it as a tattoo?"

"Well...I really love this drawing...but the other style goes better with my others...see?" She stood up again, lifting her shirt up further than before to show off the tribal scorpion that sat half hidden by her bra and pulling her waistband down an inch on the side to reveal the head and elongated neck of a bird.

"Is that a crane?" Erik leaned forward, interested in spite himself. The tiny white and gray swirls that made up the bird's feathers were something he'd never seen done on skin before.

"A heron actually. I'm kind of a fan of Aesop's Fables. I got that one when I was accepted to transfer into Magnolia University." Her lips curled into a wry version of her usual smile that he didn't quite understand. He made a mental note to ask Levy for a copy of Aesop's Fables. He was 100% sure she had one. It sounded right up her alley.

"Well, this is beautiful work. And I see what you mean. Gajeel's stuff would go better with your other ink, if you're worried about that kind of thing." He sat back in his chair and made a split decision. "If you really want it that much, you can buy the drawing off of me once I come up with a fair price for it. I'd like to get a scan of it for my portfolio first, but you can take it home when you come back to get your snake done. Deal?"

Kinana favored him with a broad smile and held out her hand. "Deal."

Gingerly, almost half expecting to get shocked again, Erik shook it. Thankfully, nothing unusual happened. Other than him noticing just how tiny her hand was. "Alright then. I'll go grab Gajeel and you can talk over what you want."

Erik walked back through the chain curtain again feeling lighter than he had all morning. He wondered what Levy would think of their newest client. He bet she'd like her.

Unfortunately, thinking about Levy reminded him just why he'd been in a bad mood in the first place, dropping an unseen weight back on his shoulders.

"Gajeel, you've got a client that wants to work with you. I'm heading out to get some caffeine. I'll be back in a bit."

Erik didn't wait to hear Gajeel's response. He just pushed out the back door and started walking.

He didn't get far before he regretted forgetting his sunglasses. The glaring light blinded him for a moment, making him blink in a world of white.

" _On your feet soldier! Superior officer on deck!"_

 _Half asleep, he was slumbling to his feet and saluting before he heard the guffaws of his bunkmates and realized the cicadas were still humming in the pitch black of night outside their windows._

 _When he did, he tackled the nearest one. The little pink-haired shit he'd recognized as the joker of the group when they'd met that afternoon went down hard still laughing, but gave as good as he got. Pretty soon they were both backing out of the skuffle, grins on their faces and the exhaustion of their first week at basic coming back to them._

 _The pink-haired kid stuck out his hand. "Name's Sterling Moss. Nice to know I've got a decent fighter to watch my back."_

 _Erik took it. "I'm Gordon Dunn. Wait! Sterling Moss? The racer?!"_

" _Yeah, that's me. Or at least it was. Closest engine I get to manhandle now is driving the Tilly to go for supplies."_

" _Well, if I see the old girl peeling out, at least I'll know who's driving!" Erik/Gordon joked, getting to his feet with the help of his new friend. A faded photograph fluttered down from its precarious placement on the edge of his undershirt front pocket. It was actually more surprising it hadn't fallen out sooner during their fight. Futilely, he made a catch for it and missed, Sterling scooping it up off the floor before he could adjust and go for it again._

 _He whistled sharply. "Well, take a look at this gents! Looks like our new surly companion has a beauty waiting for him at home!" He held up the picture so the group could see, most of them gathering around to get a look at the violet-haired woman in the photo._

" _Nice!"_

" _Oh yeah, I wouldn't mind coming home to that!"_

" _Who knew you had it in you?!"_

" _Does she have a sister?"_

 _Erik/Gordon rolled his eyes and snatched the picture back, his gaze lingering on her face before tucking the worn paper safely back into his pocket. "She's an only child, and head over heels in love with me, so you're all out of luck chaps!" He gave them a joking glare, accompanied by a sharky smirk and a shake of his fist._

 _A ruckus of hoots and catcalls met his good-natured response as they passed him a smuggled-in beer to make up for waking him up for his initiation into the group and they all settled down to sleep. His eyes closed to welcome oblivion, the image of his sweetheart engraved on his eyelids…_

Erik came-to with a gasp, throwing out a hand to steady himself against the back wall of the building as the disorienting experience of returning to full daylight shocked his senses. Once he'd regained his balance, it took him less than another ten seconds to take a guess at what had happened.

Cursing, he dug his phone out his pocket to call Levy.

* * *

"Hey! Droy, wait up!" Lisanna puffed as she tried to catch up to the chubby figure several yards ahead of her. He might be a big guy, but he could really move when he wanted to. Luckily, he was also nice enough to wait for her.

"What's up Lis? Did I forget my notebook or something?" Droy replied, immediately searching his bag. They had just come from a meeting about the research trip they were both going on over winter break. Only Droy had had to leave early.

"No. But you did miss something important. Professor Azuma said they're looking for a great linguistics student who might want to come on the trip to Tenrou. Apparently, they're looking at Levy! You're really good friends with her right? Apparently they've been trying to get a hold of her for a week or so, but she's been out sick or something. Do you know where she lives? The deadline for the trip is super soon, so they wanted to know if any of us knew a way to get a hold of her." Lisanna put her hands on her knees and gasped for air, not really sure how she had made it through everything she had to say after sprinting across campus. "I told them you were a friend. Could you maybe let her know to talk to Azuma?"

"Yeah. I can get a hold of her somehow. I'm sure she'll be psyched to go. But why do they need a linguist on the Tenrou trip? Isn't it a bio and zoology trip? I mean we're going to study the indigenous wildlife, so what would she even do?"

"You don't know? There used to be some kind of civilization there, so there are ruins and some ancient glyphs that no one has been able to translate yet. We learned about it last semester for the trip...maybe you were gone that day or something...anyway, it's like this huge deal to the language community right now, since they only discovered it like a decade ago. I'm sure it's got something to do with that."

Droy grinned. "Oh yeah, that's got Levy written all over it. When's the deadline for the trip enrollment again?"

"Like...Tuesday I think? Sometime next week for sure, so she's got a couple days for sure, but not much more than that."

"Gotcha. Well, thanks for running after me and everything, I'll let her know." Droy suddenly remembered why he'd had to leave early in the first place. "Shit! I've got to go. My class is probably already starting! See ya later Lis!"

Lisanna watched him haul ass at an impressive speed for a few seconds before remembering she also had someplace to be and heading back across campus.

* * *

By the time Levy made it back to her apartment at two o'clock in the afternoon, it wasn't even a surprise to find Erik, Porlyusica, Lucy, Natsu, and Erza waiting for her. And that wasn't even addressing Gray, Wendy and Romeo who had simply followed her home.

"Oh meus deuses ... realmente?", she whispered not-so-quietly under her breath, letting the sarcasm drip from her next words like the tired and testy wordsmith she was. "What, no Mystogan? What a shame. Oh shoot, Jellal's probably feeling left out now too, huh? I mean the gang's all here, right?"

Erza didn't pick up on her sarcasm. Apparently.

"No, Mystogan was unavailable as he has a follow-up appointment with Dr. Sky right now."

"Oh, well good. Wouldn't want to think we'd left anyone out," she muttered grumpily. She needed a nap. If only she wasn't scared as shit to close her eyes.

"Except Gajeel." Erik matched her severe tone with just enough accusation to make Levy feel guilt take another little nip out of her heart. Her spine stiffened and she froze in place.

Lucy smacked the back of his head before Levy could figure out what to say to that. "Like she doesn't feel bad enough, you ass. Don't take out your fear and frustration on her!"

"Get out of my head, Blondie!" Erik barked back.

"Trust me, if I could, I would," she fired back, taking a step in his direction. Natsu immediately wrapped his arms securely around her and sighed. Then suddenly she was turning on him. "I don't care if he was in a gang in high school! That was fucking uncalled for."

Everyone else looked on in less-than-surprise as the two glared at each other and fell into silence, clearly having another conversation in their heads instead of aloud. And honestly, that was probably best for everyone.

Fed up with it all, Levy pushed past the crowd of people in her apartment toward her bedroom. She seriously needed a shower. And a change of clothes. And maybe a year's worth of therapy.

Gray took the opportunity to question the crowd. "So, I know why we're here, but what's going on with all of you?"

They all began speaking at once, but were almost immediately cut off by Levy's scream of fury.

"WHAT THE **FUCK** HAPPENED TO MY WALL?!"

Erik, the only one who had any idea what she was talking about cursed under his breath.

"Shit."

Which pretty much summed up the meeting that followed.

* * *

 **Ok, so things are heating up now! We've got two new bonded pairs, Erza's power has revealed itself and I FINALLY got to introduce the Tenrou Island Trip! I have literally had that planned since chapter 10. CHAPTER FUCKING TEN. I'm so freaking happy to get that ball rolling, you guys have no idea. And, it will only get crazier from here!**

 **Before you ask, YES, Juvia is coming. There, I confirmed it. Happy now? GOOD.**

 **Now here's some things you might not know yet…:**

 **Mariposa** -Spanish for butterfly...because SO MANY BUTTERFLY TATTOOS. I guess I could have used treble clefs here instead...because also, SO MANY TREBLE CLEF TATTOOS!

 _ **¿Por qué estas chicas nunca pueden pensar en algo original?**_ _-Spanish for_ _Why can't these girls ever think of anything original?_

" **A heron actually. I'm kind of a fan of Aesop's Fables. I got that one when I was accepted into Magnolia University." Her lips curled into a wry version of her usual smile that he didn't quite understand. He made a mental note to ask Levy for a copy of Aesop's Fables to read.-** For those of you familiar with Aesop's Fables (a collection of ancient stories credited to a Greek slave and storyteller named Aesop used to teach children life lessons), you might already know the story of the Heron which passed over many fish as not large or grand enough for him to eat until the fish were swept out to sea and he was grateful to find but a single snail to eat instead. The moral of that particular story cautions against being too hard to please, lest you be left with the worst options left or none at all. The implication is that her transfer into MU was a saving grace from the school she went to before, which she ended up with because she missed the deadline to apply to most other schools due to her picky taste. I like to think she's a character that works hard to learn from her mistakes and never repeat them.

 **Now, how many of you, who've read the Fables, are wondering what circumstance prompted her to tattoo the Scorpion on? I bet it's an interesting story...maybe I'll write it in later...hehe.**

 **On this note, I know I've gone a little OOC with her, giving her a sort of saucy side, but I'm sort of interpreting her snake form side, that spits poison and works side-by-side with Cobra when he's evil, as a hidden personality that most people don't see in her. It especially comes out when she gets drunk, which is why the BSBU (Body Shot Bitches Union for those who can't remember all the way back to the Moon Drip arc…) likes her so much. They've seen her wilder side and accept it.**

 **Gordon Dunn** -G.G. Dunn was a captain in the British Army in the Durham Light Infantry Unit, he died in 1940 in the line of duty. I found him on one of those ancestry sites, and didn't want to pay for a subscription, so I'm not sure if this was his first name or not, but it was one of the top hundred male G names for 1924 when he could have been born. In my head, I know I could just make up these tie ins, but I really like the idea that the characters could use the internet and find traces of them the way I did. So...Gordon Dunn! In this timeline, he and past Natsu, Sterling Moss, both die at Dunkirk, but because fast friends before that, often talking about their respective girls who they'll never again have the chance to meet.

 **Tilly** -an abbreviation for utility, it was the name of a type of car produced in Britain for use as a military utility vehicle. Look it up, they're actually pretty cool. Way classier than our Jeeps in the US at the time. But then it's the UK, so classier goes without saying.

 _ **Oh meus deuses ... realmente?-**_ -Portuguese for "Oh my gods...really?" At least according to Google translate. Since this chapter took so long to get out as it is, I didn't consult my usual translators for corrections on the two little foreign language moments. But, if one or both of them are incorrect in some way, just let me know what it should be and I'll fix it later!


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